Sale: Nomos 2, Lot: 170. Estimate CHF3000.  Closing Date: Monday, 17 May 2010.  Sold For CHF7250. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Augustus. 27 BC-AD 14. Denarius (Silver, 3.77 g 1), Pergamon, circa 19-18 BC. AVGVSTVS Bare head of Augustus to right. Rev. ARMENIA CAPTA Armenia tiara and bowcase with quiver. BMC 677. BN 995. Cohen 11. RIC 516. Very rare. Somewhat brightly cleaned and with some minor traces of corrosion remaining, otherwise, nearly extremely fine.

This coin celebrates one of the major triumphs of Augustus, his placing of a Roman candidate on the throne of Armenia. This occurred when the Armenians requested the Romans to replace their present king, Artaxias, with his Romanized brother Tigranes, who had been living as an exile in Rome for ten years. This was done by an army led by Tiberius: his success was so complete, and so swift, that the Parthian king Phraates IV decided to return all the Roman standards captured from Crassus at the battle of Carrhae in 53 BC (for another denarius commemorating the Armenian triumphs, see above, lot 168).