A. Plautius Hypsaeus, as Curule Aedile (ca. 55 BC). AR denarius (19mm, 3.64 gm, 10h). NGC VF 5/5 - 4/5. Rome. A•PLAVTIVS-AED•CVR•S•C, turreted head of Cybele right, wearing pendant earring, with hair rolled into chignon at back of head, some loose curls behind / IVDAEVS, camel standing right, figure kneeling right before, reins in left hand, olive branch raised in right; BACCHIVS in exergue. Crawford 431/1. Sydenham 932. Plautia 13. This coin alludes to the Ludi Megalenses Roman religious festivals held in honor of the goddess Cybele (also known as Magna Mater or Mater Deum), a Phrygian goddess of fertility and nature. The Ludi Megalenses were established in 204 BC, during the Second Punic War. The Roman Senate, seeking divine intervention for the war effort against Carthage, consulted the Sibylline Books, a collection of prophetic texts. Based on these prophecies, they decided to bring the cult of Cybele to Rome and a black meteorite, representing the goddess, was brought from Phrygia and placed in a sacred temple on the Palatine Hill. The Ludi Megalenses continued to be celebrated in Rome for centuries, even after the official conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity. HID09801242017 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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