Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-08-08
A Venerable Coin.

NJ. Reed, we have been shown a
specimen Of the Roman penny, or
Ucnariu*, coined during the reign of
the Emperor Domi.i.n, in the year of
our Lord @5, and which is consequent
~, aeven,ee en- hundl cdand uinety-four
years Old. This rare coin was re
Gently sent to VI. Reed by his
friend, DR.. Robert Morris, one Of
most earned and devoted an,iuuari-
ans Vi the age, and Secretary of the
American Association Of Numisma-
fists. Thi, specimen, together with
many other ancient coins, was Oh
tanned by Ir. Morris during his ex-
;enslve travels in and about Syri;.
and the Holy Land, and there is no
question as to its genuinenesss and
reputed age. This coin is of silver,
about the diameter of IL ten cent
piece. though somewhat thicker. 1t
weighs iifty-tive grains and conse-
quently approximates in value, to fif
teen cents of our money. On the
diverse side appears the laureate
head of Domitian looking towards
the right, hair thick and curly, face
beardless and bust unclotbed. The
inscription is as follows: IMP
CAES DOMlT AVG GERM p NJ
TR p XIII. These authorizations
stand for the words and figures,
Imperator Caesar Domitianus Angus
tus Germanicus, Pontifex Maximus,
Tribunitia, Potestate IA; a translation
of which would be: "The Emperor
Caesar Domitian Augustus Germani-
Gus, the High Priest, exercising the
Tribunitian power the fourteenth
time" On the reverse side appears
the figure of Minerva Jaculatrix,
standing upon the prov OF vessel,
and looking towards the right. On
the left arm is q circular shield, her
right hand raised Us if to cast dart,
and at her feet an urn. The legend
runs thus: IMP XNII COS XVII
GEMS P p p; standing for the
words and figures, Imperator %, Con-
sui II, Censor Perpetua Pater Patri@,
translated" Emperor for the twenty
second time, Consul for the seven
teen;h time, Perpetual Censor, Fa-
Their of the Country"
Like all ancient coins and medal
lions, the edges are not milled; in
point OF definition and sharpness of
impression, however, the piece
would compare favorably with neAy
foreign coins of the present day
When we consider the rudcness of
the implements used by ancient arti-
sans, this little tell-tale of the worlds
early handicraft is a marvel of me-
chanical skill.
The Denarius, or Roman penny,
figures largely in Scripture, profane
history and Freemasonry. 1t was
the daily pay of the Roman soldier,
the wages of the husbandmen in the
parable of the laborers in the vine
yard, the benefaction of the good
Samaritan, and the tribute money
brought to Jesus in compliance with
his demand, "Show me penny.
Whose image and superscription
hath it ?"
As this little piece of metal lies
upon our palm and we gaze upon
the profile of. the naughty Roman Of
whom it has been said, His very
virtues were turned into vices"
what strange and commingled asso-
Citations cluster around it. Verify,
through the tumult of ages, it comes
down to us linguist; the Latin
language of the Silver Age was its
mother tongue, and it was equally
proficient in Greek, in Hebrew, nay,
in the language of every nation that
paid tribute to Caesar while Rome
was mistress of the world. For
sixty generations, it has been pass
ing from hand to hand, and in a still
small voice intoxicating the divine
injunction, "Owe no man anything"
1t was contemporaneous with hun
dreds WHO listened to the teachings
of Him who spake as never man
spake, and while St. John, the Reve-
lator, lived an exile in Patmos, it
may have jingled with its brother
coins in tho pockets of the soldier
wbo oftapdot him, For almost