The Collection of Roman Republican Coins of a Student and his Mentor Part III T. Quinctius Flamininus. Stater, Chalkis (?) Circa 196, AV 8.53 g. Bare head of Titus Quinctius Flamininus r. Rev. Nike, standing l., holding palm branch in l. hand and crowning legend with wreath in extended r. hand, T QVINCTI upwards. Babelon Quinctia 1. Bahrfeldt 9b. Biaggi 9. Kraay-Himer pl. 175, 579. Carson BMQ 1955, 11. Kent-Hirmer 29. C. Botrè, RIN XCVI, p. 49. C. Botrè, SNR 76 pp. 65-73. RBW 1857. Crawford 548/1b. Of the highest rarity, only ten specimens known of which only six are in private hands. An issue of tremendous historical importance and great fascination. A wonderful Hellenistic portrait of fine style, several edge marks, otherwise about extremely fine Ex M&M sale 73, 1998, 149.This specimen is struck on the same weight standard as the almost contemporary Macedonian issues made for local circulation; its considerable historical interest derives from its bearing the portrait of a living Roman more than a century before it was to be acceptable to a republic which at that time was only just begininning to allow magistrates’ monograms to appear on the Roma head denarii. It was surely struck immediately after the victory of T. Quinctius Flamininus over the troops of Philip V of Macedon in June 197 at Cynocephalae. The most likely explanation of the issue is to be sought in a desire to publicise, in a land accustomed to seeing the heads of its kings upon the coinage, the appearance of the conquering Roman general, not as part of a personality cult (unthinkable for a Roman of the time), but rather in order to convey through the medium of coinage, here certainly used for the time by the Romans in so dramatic a way, yet in a fashion wholly comprehensible to the native population, the importance of Roman victory. Portraiture has long been recognized as the hallmark of Roman coinage, and since the gold staters of T. Quinctius Flamininus are the forbearers of that tradition, they are understandably among the great prizes of ancient coinage. The coin portrait was a Persian invention of the late 5th Century B.C. that was embraced by the Greeks about a century later, and was reluctantly adopted by the Romans in the 40s B.C. Once that Roman taboo was shattered by Julius Caesar and his successors, coin portraits became a tradition in which no Roman could find fault or shame. But the gold staters of Flamininus predate this by more than 150 years, and it is that quality, in concert with their beauty, historical context and rarity that make them the object of such admiration. Only a remarkable circumstance could account for such an issue, and we find it in 196 B.C., in the aftermath of the Roman defeat of the Macedonian army of King Philip V. It was a moment of great triumph, Rome’s international prestige reached a new height. The Romans had first encountered a professional Greek army in Southern Italy when they fought Pyrrhus, the king of Epirus, late in the 3rd Century B.C. Later still, the Romans defeated the Illyrians in 228 and 219, securing their first foothold in the Balkan peninsula. In doing so, however, they aroused the suspicions of the Macedonian King Philip V, who opened a second front against Rome in the midst of its terrifying war with Hannibal. Rome forged alliances with the Aetolians and other Greeks to keep Philip V at bay while they remained focused on Hannibal. Only in 205, after Rome had turned the tide against Carthage, were they in a position to negotiate peace with the Macedonians. The Romans had not forgotten the liberties Philip took during their time of weakness, and in 200 they intervened in his affairs at the request of their own allies in Greece and Asia. The consul Galba and his successor made little headway over the course of two years, but when Flamininus became a consul in 198 he fought with great vigour in Greece and Macedon. Upon learning that his consular powers would be renewed for the following year, Flamininus sabotaged the Macedonian diplomatic efforts so he could exact a more favorable settlement through his anticipated military success. His gamble paid off, and Flamininus roundly defeated the Macedonian at Cynoscephalae in 197. If possible, the terms for peace were more devastating than the battle: though Philip remained king of Macedon, he had to free every Greek city from his yoke, to pay an indemnity of 1,000 talents, and to forfeit all but six vessels from his navy. Thus we find the context for this gold stater: when Flamininus, on behalf of himself and the senate of Rome, proclaimed the freedom of all the cities of Greece. It is likely these coins were struck as a donative to the victorious army, though we probably will never know if the coins were produced by Flamininus or by the thankful Greeks. At least a portion of the mintage was paid to Roman legionnaires, since several of the known specimens have been found in Italy, and presumably were brought home by veterans of the Second Macedonian War (who returned to Italy almost immediately). In all but its Latin inscription, this coin is Greek. Its denomination is the attic-weight stater, its style and fabric are consistent with Greek coins of the period, its use of a portrait on the obverse (even if not diademed in a regal fashion) derives from the legacy of Greek royal portraiture and, finally, its reverse design is based upon the gold staters of the type introduced by Alexander the Great. They probably were distributed at the Isthmian Games in the summer of 196, the deadline by which Philip was to have withdrawn his garrisons from all Greek cities; it was an ideal occasion for Flamininus to proclaim his universal freedom, for Greeks had gathered there from throughout the Mediterranean world.