Tuesday, September 10, 2013

Ancient Roman coins depict sundry sexual acts, but what were they for?

The Romans loved sex. The wrote graphic poetry about it, and scrawled x-rated graffiti on their city walls. They even emblazoned currency with depictions of sexual acts. But what purpose did this coinage serve? Fair warning: numismatic pornography after the jump – potentially NSFW.

Ancient Roman coins depict sundry sexual acts, but what were they for?

The racy coins in question are known as "spintriae." A single spintria is typically a little smaller than a modern day quarter. Minted from bronze or brass beginning in early first century CE, each coin depicts a sexual act on one face and a Roman numeral – ranging from I to XVI – on the other.

It's unclear what purpose these coins served. One popular theory holds that they were used in place of official Roman currency in brothels, where they could be used to pay prostitutes in exchange for sexual services.

The coins have been discovered in locales as far-flung as modern-day Britain, but the going rate for prostitutes at Pompeii is believed to have ranged from 2 to 20 "asses," (the basic unit of Roman Currency at the time was called the as) as evidenced by recorded fees, as well as graffiti like this, found on the walls of a bath house in suburban Pompeii:

Si quis hic sederit, legat hoc ante omnia.
Si qui futuere voluit Atticen, quaerat a(ssibus) XVI.

"If any is sitting here, let him read this before anything.
If he is someone who wants to fuck Attike, he needs 16 asses"

Which is to say, the going rate for a practitioner of the oldest profession would appear to match up rather neatly with the 1–16 range depicted on the coins.

An extension of the sex-token theory maintains that the sex act depicted on each coin corresponds to the price listed on the opposite face, a system that would also have helped dissolve language barriers, if for example, the prostitute being solicited did not speak the language of the requesting John. That being said, this viewpoint has its critics. As The Straight Dope summarizes:

For one, Geoffrey Fishburn of the University of New South Wales, whose 2007 paper"Is That a Spintria in Your Pocket, or Are You Just Pleased to See Me?" is well worth perusal by anyone interested in the topic. Such skeptics note that (1) the same sex act sometimes appears on coins bearing different numbers, which hurts the number-equals-price theory; (2) unambiguous references to such tokens are strangely absent from Roman writings (the purported examples that do get cited are notably iffy); (3) identical scenes show up in Pompeiian murals, suggesting these may have been commonly depicted artistic themes; (4) spintriae have been found in excavated bathhouses but never (points out Anise Strong of Northwestern U.) in the ruins of actual brothels; (5) the correlation between modern prostitutes' rates and the tokens' numbering system isn't as neat as the [other studies] would have it; and so forth.

The writings of Roman historian Cassius Dio suggest the coins may also have been used to circumvent a law, upheld by then-Emperor Tiberius, that equated bringing currency bearing the emperor's image into a brothel with treason.

Ironically, while the coins may, in fact, have been used to avoid charges of treason, it's not unlikely that they were simultaneously intended as a form of political mockery and subversion. Via The Straight Dope:

Tiberius was famously rumored to be into the kinky stuff (in citations provided by the OED, the adjective spintrian, basically meaning "anything but vanilla," comes up several times in conjunction with his name), and since official coins bore his likeness, the idea of alternate, sexually explicit versions may have struck some as a joke at Tiberius's expense — a sort of ribald editorial cartoon in brass.

Read more about spintriae at The Straight Dope, Wikipedia [1, 2], The Journal of Popular Culture and the above mentioned paper by Fishburn, "Is that a Spintria in your Pocket, or Are You Just Pleased to See Me?"

h/t reddit

Monday, September 9, 2013

Gold treasure trove unearthed at base of Temple Mount

Israeli archaeologist: 'I have never found so much gold in my life!'

Gold treasure trove unearthed at base of Temple Mount

Byzantine-era coins and unique menorah medallion found by Hebrew University archaeologists at site abutting Southern Wall

By ILAN BEN ZION September 9, 2013, 11:12 am

Byzantine-era gold coins found near the Southern Wall of the Temple Mount (photo credit: courtesy Ouria Tadmor/Hebrew University)

Hebrew University researchers on Monday announced the discovery of a rare trove of Byzantine-era gold and silver artifacts, the most impressive of which is a 10-centimeter solid gold medallion emblazoned with a menorah and other Jewish iconography.

The find, unearthed in the area adjacent to the Southern Wall of the Temple Mount known as the Ophel, was dated to the early 7th century CE, in all likelihood the time of the brief Persian conquest of Jerusalem.

Professor Eilat Mazar described the discovery as a unique find with “very clear Jewish symbols.” She posited that the hoard of gold and silver objects, found beneath the floor of a Byzantine-era house meters from the massive walls of the Temple Mount, was brought by Jews who returned to the city after the Persians conquered it from the Byzantines in 614 CE.

“I have never found so much gold in my life!” she said with obvious excitement at a press conference on Mount Scopus. “I was frozen. It was unexpected.”

The centerpiece, a medallion that Mazar posited may have been used as ornamentation for a Torah scroll, is emblazoned with a seven-armed candelabrum — a menorah — a Torah scroll, and a shofar, a ram’s horn.

Close up of a Byzantine-era solid gold menorah medallion found near the Southern Wall of the Temple Mount (photo credit: courtesy Ouria Tadmor/Hebrew University)

The Torah scroll, she explained, is a unique icon that is not commonly found in artifacts from this time period.

Excavators also found a collection of 36 gold coins marked with the visages of Byzantine emperors from Constantine II to Mauricius, ranging over 250 years, and gold bracelets, earrings, a silver ingot and a gold-plated hexagonal prism.

Mazar stated that her supposition was that the hoard was a communal treasure, meant to help the sparse Jewish community survive hard times or rebuild what the Jews hoped would be a free community under Persian rule. “What is certain is that their mission, whatever it was, was unsuccessful,” she said.

The Byzantine Empire — the Eastern Roman Empire — ruled the Holy Land from Constantinople almost unimpeded until Muslim armies under Omar ibn Khattab conquered the city in 634 CE.

Hebrew University professor Eilat Mazar displaying a Byzantine-era gold menorah medallion found near the Southern Wall of the Temple Mount (photo credit: courtesy Ouria Tadmor/Hebrew University)

Mazar, a third-generation Israeli archaeologist, has overseen the excavations of the Ophel and Jerusalem’s City of David, the lower slope of the Temple Mount. The digs, while contentious for taking place in East Jerusalem’s Silwan neighborhood, have yielded the earliest known artifacts in the city, dating as far back as the 12th and 11th centuries BCE and, according to Mazar, evidence of the Biblical Kings of David and Solomon.

England’s Oldest Northerner - Archaeology Magazine

England’s Oldest Northerner

Monday, September 09, 2013

(Courtesy Liverpool John Moores University)

LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND—A fragment of human leg bone discovered in Cumbria’s Kents Bank in the 1990s has been found to be more than 10,000 years old by Ian Smith of Liverpool John Moores University and Hannah O’Regan of the University of Nottingham. “Previous cave burials of humans from around this date have been in southern England, with later dates further north,” explained Smith. The cave helped preserve the bones, which had been held in a museum for study.

Pictish Burial Unearthed in Scotland - Archaeology Magazine

Monday, September 09, 2013

(University of Aberdeen)

RHYNIE, SCOTLAND—In a grave lined with sandstone, a team of scientists from the universities of Aberdeen and Chester discovered fragments of leg, pelvis, and jaw bones that may have belonged to Pictish royalty. “It is extremely rare to find any human remains from this era in the north east of Scotland as the soil in this part of the world is so acidic,” said Gordon Noble of the University of Aberdeen. The collapsed stones in the grave helped preserved the skeletal material. Pieces of medieval glass imported from western France and fine metal works were also found near the grave. Rhynie is known for its eight stones carved with Pictish symbols.

Eros Mosaic Found in Southern Turkish City

Eros mosaic found in southern Turkish city

ADANA - Doğan News Agency

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The fishing Eros mosaic is said to be the one and only in the world. DHA photo

A mosaic featuring an Eros figure fishing on horse has been found in the southern province of Adana’s Yumurtalık district. The half fish-half horse Eros, which is called Hippocampus in Greek mythology, is claimed to be the one and only such mosaic in the world.

Made up of marble, glass and stone, the mosaic is estimated to date back to the late Roman or early Byzantine era.

The Adana Museum Directorate has initiated archaeological excavations in the region where the mosaic was discovered. One week ago the existence of a villa was determined in the area. The villa was thought to be owned by a top state official and the Eros mosaic was revealed when a part of the villa was excavated.

Yumurtalık Deputy Mayor Erdol Erden said the Eros mosaic was found during a one-week excavation. “We found young and adult Eros figures in the villa. Experts say that these figures were the first and only such figures in the world,” Erden said.

February/20/2013

Here's What Third-Century China Thought about the Roman Empire

Here's what third-century China thought about the Roman Empire

Third-century China got around the ancient world. They even made it to the Roman Empire, and wrote down their thoughts on these strange foreigners in the Weilüe, a third-century C.E. account of the interactions between the two nations. Here's what China had to say about their imperial neighbors!

From a translation by the University of Washington’s John E. Hill:

This country (the Roman Empire) has more than four hundred smaller cities and towns. It extends several thousand li in all directions. The king has his capital (that is, the city of Rome) close to the mouth of a river (the Tiber). The outer walls of the city are made of stone.

This region has pine trees, cypress, sophora, catalpa, bamboo, reeds, poplars, willows, parasol trees, and all sorts of plants. The people cultivate the five grains [traditionally: rice, glutinous and non-glutinous millet, wheat and beans], and they raise horses, mules, donkeys, camels and silkworms. (They have) a tradition of amazing conjuring. They can produce fire from their mouths, bind and then free themselves, and juggle twelve balls with extraordinary skill.

The ruler of this country is not permanent. When disasters result from unusual phenomena, they unceremoniously replace him, installing a virtuous man as king, and release the old king, who does not dare show resentment.

The common people are tall and virtuous like the Chinese, but wear hu (‘Western’) clothes. They say they originally came from China, but left it.

They have always wanted to communicate with China but, Anxi (Parthia), jealous of their profits, would not allow them to pass (through to China).

As a Latin and Classics nerd, I'm weirdly gratified for the ancient Chinese to give them such a good review. Here's a description of some of Rome's trade goods:

This country produces fine linen. They make gold and silver coins. One gold coin is equal to ten silver coins.

They have fine brocaded cloth that is said to be made from the down of ‘water-sheep’. It is called Haixi (‘Egyptian’) cloth. This country produces the six domestic animals, which are all said to come from the water.

It is said that they not only use sheep’s wool, but also bark from trees, or the silk from wild cocoons, to make brocade, mats, pile rugs, woven cloth and curtains, all of them of good quality, and with brighter colours than those made in the countries of Haidong (“East of the Sea”).

Furthermore, they regularly make a profit by obtaining Chinese silk, unravelling it, and making fine hu (‘Western’) silk damasks. That is why this country trades with Anxi (Parthia) across the middle of the sea. The seawater is bitter and unable to be drunk, which is why it is rare for those who try to make contact to reach China.

And here's even the directions how to get there:

The kingdom of Da Qin (Rome) is also called Lijian. It is west of Anxi (Parthia) and Tiaozhi (Characene and Susiana), and west of the Great Sea.

From the city of Angu (Gerrha), on the frontier of Anxi (Parthia), you take a boat and cut directly across to Haixi (‘West of the Sea’ = Egypt). With favourable winds it takes two months; if the winds are slow, perhaps a year; if there is no wind, perhaps three years.

The country (that you reach) is west of the sea (haixi), which is why it is called Haixi (literally: ‘West of the Sea’ = Egypt). There is a river (the Nile) flowing out of the west of this country, and then there is another great sea (the Mediterranean). The city of (Wu) Chisan (Alexandria) is in Haixi (Egypt).

From below this country you go north to reach the city of Wudan (Tanis?). You (then) head southwest and cross a river (the Sebannitus branch of the Nile?) by boat, which takes a day. You head southwest again, and again cross a river (the Canopis branch of the Nile?) by boat, which takes another day. There are, in all, three major cities [that you come to].

Now, if you leave the city of Angu (Gerrha) by the overland route, you go north to Haibei (‘North of the Sea’ – the lands between Babylonia and Jordan), then west to Haixi (Egypt), then turn south to go through the city of Wuchisan (Alexandria). After crossing a river, which takes a day by boat, you circle around the coast (to the region of Apollonia, the port of Cyrene). (From there, i.e. the region of Apollonia) six days is generally enough to cross the (second) great sea (the Mediterranean) to reach that country (Da Qin = Rome).

You can read the whole Weilüe here for more of ancient China's Fodor's guide to the Roman Empire.

[Smithsonian Magazine via Neatorama]