COIN (ROMAN)
A 1st-century Roman Republican silver denarius of the moneyer M Fonteius, Rome mint, 85 BC (RRC 353/1d)
Ruler: Republic
Moneyer: Fonteius, Mn.
Denomination: Denarius serratus (Roman Republic)
Material: Silver
Mint: Rome
Obverse: Laureate head of Apollo facing right; below, thunderbolt
Obverse legend: MN F[ONTEI C F] ('M' and 'N' ligatured; 'N' and 'T' ligatured, behind head)
Reverse: Cupid on goat right; 'pilei' (conical hats) on either side of goat; below, 'thyrsus' (staff) (in exergue); all within laurel wreath
Reverse legend: None
Dated: -85.0 to 
Weight (g): 3.08
Thickness (mm): 1.65
Completeness: Complete
Parish: Restricted Access
District: Winchester
County: Hampshire
Region: South East
Place known as: Winchester
Discovery method: Metal detector
RRC reference: rrc-353.1d
Notes: This coin is part of a group of twenty-four Roman Republican and early imperial coins reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme together with other groups of Iron Age and Roman coins in 2005. The majority of the gold and silver coins spanned a period from the mid first century BC until the mid 2nd century AD.

The group of twenty-four coins appear to represent addenda to the earlier 'Winchester Hoard', discovered by the same finder (published in TAR 2001, no.181). The current coins are consistent with the earlier hoard in terms of their type and condition, and the possibility that they originated at the same site is supported by the fact that the finder was known to have revisited the site on occasions after the discovery of the hoard.

The original hoard comprised three Roman Republican period silver denarii, one denarius of Augustus (27 BC-AD 14) and one denarius of Tiberius (AD 14-37). The twenty-four coins  belong to the same periods: The earliest is a Republican coin of 113 or 112 BC and the latest are a gold aureus and silver denarius of Tiberius, both struck between AD 14 and 37. The hoard has gone through the Treasure process as case 2006 T163.

There are 206 obverse and 229 reverse dies known for this coin - this is a common issue.