Coinage Struck in Spain 18-16 BC

Sale: Triton XI, Lot: 801. Estimate $1000.  Closing Date: Monday, 7 January 2008.  Sold For $1400. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Augustus. 27 BC-AD 14. AR Denarius (3.56 g, 6h). Spanish mint - Tarraco. Struck circa 18 BC. CAESAR AVGVSTVS, laureate head right / DIVVS • IVLIVS across field, comet with eight rays and tail. RIC I 102; RSC 98; BMCRE 357; BN -. Good VF, lightly toned, hairline flan crack.

The ‘Julian star’ was the comet that appeared in the evening skies shortly after the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC. This was taken as a sign of his divinity.