The Villa Publica

279, Lot: 378. Estimate $100. Sold for $260. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

P. Fonteius P.f. Capito. 55 BC. AR Denarius (18mm, 3.83 g, 5h). Rome mint. Veiled head of Concordia right, wearing stephane / The Villa Publica: building consisting of two stories, each with a row of columns, to which gates are attached; the lower columns are surmounted by arches, the upper ones by a sloping roof. Crawford 429/2b; Sydenham 901a; Fonteia 18 and Didia 1a. VF, toned, obverse struck off center, a couple crystalized spots near edge. The rarer variety with gates attached to columns.

From the Bruce R. Brace Collection.

Built to house the censor’s records, the Villa Publica was situated on Rome’s Campus Martius, west of the city proper.