First Aragonese and Pamplonese emissions.

First Aragonese and Pamplonese emissions.

Translation of part of  an article published in Spanish: “Numismática Medieval de Navarra I. Gaceta Numismática 185; Junio 2013: pp. 25-56” 

According to documents, coins were well known elements before the XI^th century, even if the first local issues appeared at the late quarter of this century. Previously, the silver Andalusi coin was normally used (some times by weight). The dirhems, commonly named in christian documents as "argenteos", were found at random in Navarrese settings, also some pieces of the northern christian kingdoms were occasionaly introduced by pilgrims who transited  St. Iacob Route. The hispanic dirhems, as well as the muslims gold dinars (morabetinos), would be used long after local currency was available. The silver and gold coins were introduced by commercial relations and the payment of "parias". Sometimes, although the kingdom had its own currency, in rural areas the exchange of goods was a day to day practice (Fig. 1).

Fig.1.- Treasure of muslims dírhems of San Andrés de Ordoiz (Estella, Navarre, Spain).

Among Sancho Ramirez's coins we can find two different types; the first one presents an obverse where there is a face with a teared eye shape, the hair is resolved using wavy lines, and at the base of the neck there are three dotted lines that represent the beginning of the clothing or mail collar (Fig. 2; Pl. Ib,b’). It is a rather unusual piece, in the reverse it shows a cross on a stand and legend ARAGONENSI in deniers and ARAGONENSIS in obols, being this a coin type  of which few samples are known.

Fig. 2.- Denier and obol of Sancho V Ramírez, with leyend ARAGONENSI(S).

The most common type, according to the terminology used in contemporany documents, called "jaques", shows in the obverse a face looking to the right or left, and in the reverse there is a cross standing on a long pedestal with simetrical side ornaments, this figure has been interpreted as a cruciferous tree.

Even if the most usual legend is ARAGON (figs. 3; Pl. Ic-j), there is also a rare variant with legend MONSON (Fig. 4; Pl. Il) and an other one with legend IACCA (Fig. 5; Pl. Ik). This last coin has been dated from the time when the local privileges were given to Jaca, although this coin was probably minted at a later age, because it is a rude imitation of a tardive emission. These last ones could have been minted between 1076 and 1077. According to the density of ornaments in the reverse, and the variants of the faces, six different kinds with legend “Aragon” have been identified, including several subtypes both deniers and obols (semideniers), the latest ones show a different pattern in the reverse, with a semicircular legend instead of a horizontal one.

Fig. 3- Deniers and obols of Sancho V Ramírez, with leyend ARAGON.

Fig.4.- Denier of Sancho V Ramírez, with leyend MONSON.

Fig. 5.- Denier of Sancho V Ramírez, with leyend IACCA.

The silver proportion in the first issues of Sancho V Ramírez (Pl. Ic, d) is high, the 50 per cent is silver and the rest is copper, during his reign this proportion decreased to a 33.3 % ("cuaternal" denier, this is four silver deniers in 12). The origen of this great amount of silver, needed to produce these important emissions, might have been this metal reservoir obtained through the payments of the "parias", and also through the explotation of the silver mines in Bielsa (Huesca). The gold percentage as traze elements in the silver/copper of these first issues, appears in important amount, from 2.5 to 7.3 parts per thousand, ciphers these, that reach values from 7 to 16 parts per thousand if we only consider the gold concentration exclusively refered to the amount of silver that the coin contain (we presume that the gold would "pollute" the silver but not the copper). These amounts are slightly higher than the ones appeared in later coins, such as Alfonso XI of Leon’s deniers (1188-1230) which have a gold concentration of a maximum of one per thousand. During Sancho V Ramírez’ reign, we can find counterfeit coins, made in copper covered with a layer of a mixture of mercury and silver.

            It remains a gold enigmatic piece, a "mancuso" of Sancho V Ramirez, first described in 1958 by Pio Beltran (Fig. 6; Pl. Ia). We can assume that emissions from gold coins made ​​at this time, would be imitation, in types and weights, the Muslim gold coin in circulation, but it is a coin of similar size to the silver money. Changes the obverse legend, Pio Beltran  interpreted as SANCI  (I) N (OST) RI M (AN) C (USUS), but in reality is "+ SA NCINDIE I", being difficult to interpret the last letters of the legend. This piece, weighing 1.95 grams was offered to the National Archaeological Museum, but Gil Farres (1976) considered it a forgery:.

 “Un supuesto Mancuso, “descubierto” recientemente, y dado a conocer en una revista española es falso… Así consta en el Informe que nos solicitó la superioridad. Esta calificación también se ha incluido en el Rapport de Edad Media que nos encargó la Comisión Internacional de Numismática para el Congreso Internacional de 1973, celebrado en Nueva York. 

            Recently, a second specimen, with the same obverse and reverse dies, has appeared, and we can not certify its authenticity, in the absence of more information.

Fig. 6.- Gold “Mancuso” of Sancho V Ramírez.

The first emissions of the king to be Peter I, were made during his father's reign, such as a result of a granting that could be considered as feudal, and probably also extended to his stepbrother Alfonso, future Alfonso I the "Fighter". These coins are mentioned in documents in the year 1086, but they could have been minted the previous year, when Peter I was named king of Sobrarbe and Ribagorza, these first coins are the scarce types (Fig. 7; Pl. IIa), that after Monzon's conquest in 1089, were minted in bigger amounts taking the name of the village. Either the face and the figure in the reverse are similar to a type of Sancho V Ramírez, minted more frecuently with legend Aragon (Plate I,i) and also with legend Monson (Fig. 8; Pl. IIb). Because of this, the mentioned coins were made at this age (about 1086, the ones with legend Aragon, and in 1089 the ones minted in Monzón).

Recently, in a treasure found in Zafranales (Fraga, Huesca), which contained coins of Sancho V Ramírez, one coin of Peter I with legend PETRVS SANCIVSREX appeared and was probably minted before 1094 (Fig. 9; Pl. IIc).

Fig. 7.- Denier of Pedro I, with leyend PETRVSSANCII/ARAGON.

Fig. 8.- Denier of Pedro I, with leyend PETRVSSANCII/MONSON.

Fig. 9.- Denier of Pedro I, with leyend PETRVSSANCIVSREX/ARAGON.

At the beginning of Peter I’s reign (1094-1104) coins were scarcely issued (Fig. 10; Pl. IId & d') similar in typology to the last "jaqueses" deniers of Sancho V Ramírez. One coin of this characteristics appeared in a treasure of coins of Sancho Ramírez and Alfonso VI. Soon this typology was abandoned and a new one began, showing modifications, both in the design of the royal face (with a typical bun), and in the reverse figure (Fig. 11; Pl. IIe-f). In these abundant emissions (deniers, and obols followed the same typology as deniers). We can find two variants, although typologicaly similar, they show great differences in the silver proportion. The first emission are "ternales", this is, 3 silver deniers in 12 (25% in silver), the next ones, quite similar, are different, because they have a dot in front of the face and two dots or signals in both sides of the reverse cross. This minting (type P-III.2) has got less weight and value, so this reflects an important monetary devaluation in a short period of time, of about 30 years  since the first emissions of Sancho V Ramírez (aproximately 77% taking into account the weight and silver proportion loss).

Fig. 10.- Denier and obol of Pedro I, with leyend PETRVSREX/ARAGON.

Fig. 11.- Denier of Pedro I, with “bun”. Leyend PETRVSREX/ARAGON.

When Alfonso I (1104-1134) reached the crown, an improvement in the coins took place, and then two new types were minted (deniers and obols), the first kind following a model established by Sancho V Ramírez, in whose obverse there is a big cross on a stand and legend "Aragonensis" (figs. 12; Pl. IIIa-d). Coins of this type are commonly found in places such as Monte Cantabria and San Adrian tunnel. The second sort of coins (Fig. 13; Pl. IIIe) followed the model established by Peter I (type P-III), increasing the amount of silver up to 20% and the weight up to 39%. This improvement in Alfonso I's emissions, justifies the frecuent reference in documents to these coins as "moneta nova". On the contrary, between 1109 and 1114, Alfonso I minted in Toledo, some deniers with low silver percentage, in whose obverse there is a face with no ornaments and legend ANFVSREX, and in the reverse, there is a cross with stars in the opposite cuadrants (between the cross arms) and legend TOLECTI at the beginning and later TOLLETA. These coins, named "pepiones" were originally minted by Alfonso I "the Fighter", keeping the same typology and low silver proportion for over a century and a half. There are other pieces attributed to Alfonso I produced in Castillian mints that sometimes lacked in minting mark or legend, fact this, that often made their attibution a bit uncertain, despite several proposals made in the 50's.

Fig. 12.- Deniers and obol of Alfonso I, with leyend ARAGONENSIS.

Fig. 13.- Denier and obol of Alfonso I, with leyend ARAGON.

The discovery of a type of denier in the Zafranales treasure (Pl. IIIa), may make us think that also Alfonso could have minted during his brother's, Peter I,  reign, as the last one did during their father Sancho Ramírez' life. Alfonso's early emissions, that appear in royal documents since 1096 could be the coins of the type of Zafranales,  this could explain the absence of this monetary type in Peter I's emissions.

Coins of the Aragonese dinasty are know from ancient times, the jaquese deniers of Sancho V Ramírez were drawn and commented, in the XVII^th century, by Lastanosa (1681) and Moret (1665). However, the first attributed both the coins to the Pamplonese king Sancho Abarca. Heiss described the piece with legend IACCA (Fig. 5; Plate. I-k) and three different types of deniers and obols, with legend ARAGON. San Pío y Ansón (1926), described 38 deniers, among which the type with legend ARAGONENSI, (whose obol has been recently published), and four different sorts of obols. Among the pieces preserved in private and public collections, is highly remarkable the great variety of dies. With reference to Peter I's coins, we can distinguish the issues made during Sancho Ramírez' lifetime, in this case the legend was PETRVSSANCII, but with no REX title, and with the mint named ARAGON and MONSON (Pl. IIa, b), there is also a new type (Fig. 9; Pl. IIc) with legend PETRVSSANCIVS REX, whose interpretation would be: "Peter (son) of the king Sancho", this coin would be part of an early emission. Heiss described, both in deniers as well as in obols, pieces with legend PETRVS REX and the face of the type of Sancho Ramírez, with reverse legend ARAGON. A denier of the first type recently appeared as part of a treasure of coins of Sancho Ramírez, the second type, with leyend “MONSON” was described by Vidal Quadras (1892), with the number 5272. The most common type of deniers and obols of Peter I , is a later type (Fig. 11; Pl. IIe-f) . The face style changes, and shows a typical bun, already described by Heiss and recorded in the later bibliographies. Sometimes, several types of Sancho Ramirez coins have been described, where in the reverse, and always in damaged pieces the cross of the reverse is substitued by a letter "P", and interpred as a mention to Peter I, which has led to some confussion, since this letter "P" doesn't really exist and is a bad interpretation of a damaged cross. Coins of Alfonso I, both with legend ARAGON (Fig. 13; Pl. IIIe), as well as ARAGONENSIS (Fig. 12; Pl. IIIa-d) already recopiled by Lastanosa, were later described and correctly atributed to Alfonso I  by Heiss, and some new variants interpreted by Vidal Quadras (numbers 5286-5287^bis). The obols belonging to the second type have been recently described (Pl. IIId’).

Plate I.- Coins of Sancho V Ramirez of Aragon & Pamplona. 

Plate II.- Coins of Pedro I of Aragon & Pamplona. 

Plate III.- Coins of Alfonso I of Aragon & Pamplona.

A medieval "agnostic" coin, in full Christian Reconquest

A medieval "agnostic" coin, in full Christian Reconquest.

Translation of an article published in Spanish: “El Eco Filatélico y Numismático”
(November 2000). Vol.56 (n. 1080): p.50.

In the Middle Ages, one of the main concerns of the Christian kings in the Iberian Peninsula, was the struggle against Islam, that as a powerful blaze spreaded throughout the known world. Hence, one of the principal objectives of European kings in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries was the reconquest of the Holy Places, under pressure from a society imbued with religious feeling and Christian life, pugnacious determination stretching from the king to the humblest of his subjects.

Currencies of Sancho VII of Navarre

This motivation led to the political leaders of the time to use the figure of the cross on their more specific emblems, such as signs and seals and royal money. In this environment, at a time of exacerbation of religious feeling, it's strange for a Christian monarch not  to include the figure of the cross on their coins, as the main reason on the obverse or reverse, or as an element of separation of legend , nor in its "signature" or royal sign. Add to this the presence in the currencies of a crescent surmounted by a star (symbols commonly used in the Muslim world), and we face an unprecedented event in the numismatics of medieval Christian kingdoms. We emphasize the importance of this numismatic evidence, since at this time we could deduce the identity of the author of coinage by the symbols or legends of the same. These coins were minted in abundance, both deniers and mites in the reign of King Sancho VII of Navarre, surnamed "the Strong", during a long reign of over forty years between 1194 and 1234, and went down in history for his role in the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa against Muslims.

At this time, we can find the figure of the crescent moon and star in the emissions of Raymond VI and Raymond VII (1194-1249), the counts of Toulouse (France), although in this case on the other side of the coin features a large cross, and also a small cross marks the separation of words in the legends (text that appears on the currency). On the coins of Sancho VII, this separation is made with points.

During this time, there are some curious anecdotes of the coins, such as frequent falsification of Almohad square dirhams by some Christians, so that the same Christian bishop of Melguell (southern France) coined Arab currency with Koranic texts and professing Muslim faith, a fact which was rejected by the Pope himself. However in this case they were imitations of the prestigious Muslim coin. When in the late twelfth century Alfonso VIII of Castile minted gold coins, he included a cross on the reverse, and Christian texts, but written with Arabic legends.

The figure of the king of Navarre Sancho VII "the Strong" has entered popular mythology from his decisive intervention in the battle of Las Navas de Tolosa (1212), where he defeated his former friend, Amir Muhammad ibn Ya'qub to Nasir (known by Christians as Miramamolín, abbreviation of its Arabic title of "Emir al-Mu'mineen") and from this historic event comes the shield of the chains of Navarre, introduced in mid-thirteenth century as a sign of identity of the Old Kingdom.

However, from the economic standpoint, this king has passed into history as the "banker to the kings”, banker as stated, minted their coins without using the cross symbol on them (an exceptional occurrence in the  medieval Christian coinage), and where it appears on the obverse the bust of the monarch, with the legend: SANCIVS REX, and on the reverse a crescent moon and star, with NAVARRORVM or NAVARRE legends. Sancho VII supported the bourgeois of Bayonne (France) and gave large sums to the king of Aragon, obtaining in return, collateral, numerous castles and villas (as Petilla of Aragon, Aragonese village that still belongs to Navarre).

Mausoleum and tomb of Sancho VII “the Strong” in Roncesvalles (Navarra)

It remains to establish the reasons why the Navarrese monarch dispensed with the use of the cross on his coins. Perhaps it could affect his friendship with the African emir (the nickname Miramamolín), with whom he spent long periods in North Africa, or perhaps the influence of Jewish bankers, who at that time controlled the economy of the kingdom and were the only capable of performing loans with interest or usury, activity prohibited to Christians because of scholastic economic ethics in those days, and only practiced by the Jews, which was precisely one of the causes of resentment against this group, source of persecution and killing of this group in the early fourteenth century.

Una moneda medieval “agnóstica” en plena Reconquista cristiana.

3.1.-Una moneda medieval “agnóstica” en plena Reconquista cristiana. (Noviembre, 2000) Eco Filat. y Numism. 56(1080): 50.

En plena Edad Media, una de las principales preocupaciones de los monarcas cristianos en la Península, era la lucha contra el Islám, que como poderosa llamarada se extendía por todo el mundo conocido. De ahí que uno de los obsesionantes objetivos de los reyes europeos en los siglos XII y XIII fuera la reconquista de los Santos Lugares, bajo la presión de una sociedad impregnada del sentimiento religioso y cristiano de la vida, belicosa determinación que abarcaba desde el rey hasta el más humilde de sus súbditos.

Esta motivación llevó a los dirigentes políticos de la época a utilizar la cruz en sus más específicos emblemas, desde los signos reales y sellos, hasta las acuñaciones monetarias. En este ambiente generalizado a lo largo y ancho de toda la cristiandad, en un momento de exacerbación del sentimiento religioso, resulta extraño que un monarca cristiano no incluyera la figura de la cruz en sus monedas, ni como motivo principal en el anverso o reverso, ni siquiera como elemento de separación o inicio de las leyendas monetales y tampoco en su “firma” o signo real. Si a esto añadimos la presencia en las monedas de una luna creciente superada por una estrella (simbología frecuentemente utilizada en el mundo musulmán)  nos encontramos ante un hecho sin precedentes en la numismática medieval de los reinos cristianos. Cabe insistir en la importancia de este dato numismático, puesto que en esta época podían deducirse las señas de identidad de quien ordenaba acuñar moneda por los símbolos o la leyenda que en ella hubiera reflejado. Estas monedas que se acuñaron en abundancia tanto en dineros como en óbolos, pertenecen al rey de Navarra Sancho VII, apodado “el Fuerte” que disfrutó de un largo reinado de más de cuarenta años entre 1194 y 1234 y que pasó a la Historia por su protagonismo en la batalla de las Navas de Tolosa.

Figura 1.-  Monedas de Sancho VII “el Fuerte”, rey de Navarra. 

La figura de la luna creciente y estrella la encontramos en esta época en las emisiones de los condes de Tolosa (Francia) Raimundo VI y Raimundo VII (1194-1249), si bien en este caso en la otra cara de la moneda figura una gran cruz, y además, en las leyendas (texto que aparece en la moneda)  una pequeña cruz marca la separación de las palabras. En las monedas de Sancho VII esta separación se realiza con puntos.

Durante esta época se producen algunas curiosas anécdotas referentes a las monedas, como por ejemplo la frecuente falsificación de los dirhems cuadradas almohades por parte de algunos cristianos, de forma que el mismo obispo de Melguell (sur de Francia) acuño gran cantidad de moneda árabe con textos del Corán y haciendo profesión de fé musulmana, hecho que fue reprobado por el mismo Papa. Sin embargo en este caso se trataba de imitaciones de la prestigiosa moneda musulmana y no de moneda propia. Cuando a finales del s. XII Alfonso VIII de Castilla acuñó monedas de oro, lo hizo presentando en el reverso una cruz, y con textos cristianos escritos con leyendas árabes.

La figura del monarca navarro Sancho VII “el Fuerte” ha pasado a la mitología popular a partir de su intervención decisiva en la batalla de las Navas de Tolosa (año 1212), donde cayó derrotado su antiguo amigo, el emir Muhammad ibn Ya’qub al Nasir (conocido por los cristianos como Miramamolín, abrebiatura de su título árabe de “Emir-al-mu’minin”) y de donde viene el escudo de las cadenas de Navarra, introducido a mediados del siglo XII como seña de identidad del Viejo Reino.

Sin embargo, desde el punto de vista económico, este monarca ha pasado a la historia como el “banquero de los reyes”, banquero que como se ha señalado emitió moneda en la que no figura el símbolo de la cruz (hecho excepcional en las acuñaciones cristianas medievales) y donde aparece el busto del monarca con la leyenda SANCIVS REX y en el reverso una luna creciente y estrella, con leyenda NAVARRE ó NAVARRORVM. Sancho VII apoyó a los burgueses de Bayona (Francia) y prestó cuantiosas sumas al rey de Aragón, obteniendo a cambio, en garantía, numerosos castillos y villas (como Petilla de Aragón, enclave aragonés que aún pertenece a Navarra).

Quedan por establecer las causas por las cuales el monarca navarro prescindió de la utilización de la cruz en sus monedas. Tal vez pudo influir su amistad con el emir africano (el apodado Miramamolín), con quien pasó largas temporadas, o tal vez la influencia de los banqueros judíos, que en esos momentos controlaban la economía del reino y eran los únicos capaces de realizar préstamos con intereses o usura, actividad prohibida por la ética económica escolástica en esos tiempos y que sólo practicaban los judíos, lo cual fue precisamente una de las causas de la animadversión contra este colectivo de desembocó en persecuciones y matanzas a comienzos del siglo XIV.   

Figura 2.- Sepulcro de Sancho VII “el Fuerte” en Roncesvalles (Navarra)

Imitations of Greek, Roman and Iberian coins in Gaul: Imitation of denarius "Baskunes" in Belgic Gaul.

Imitations of Greek, Roman and Iberian coins in Gaul: Imitation of denarius "Baskunes" in Belgic Gaul.  

Translation of an article published in Spanish: “El Eco Filatélico y Numismático”
(June 2007). Vol.62 (n. 1153): pp.60-61 & Ibid. (July-August 2007), Vol. 62 (n. 1154): pp. 56-58.

The term "Keltoi", or "Celtic" in Greek, first appears in the sixth century BC to refer to people living north of the Greek colony of Marseille, and the Romans designated with the name "Gauls" of a league to Celtic peoples who lived on the continent.

The first Celtic coins appeared in the second century before our era⁽¹⁾, and copied the figures appearing in the Macedonian gold coins of Philip II and Alexander the Great (382-336-323 AD) and probably brought in as payment on services to Gallic mercenaries returning to their land of origin (Figure 1).

 

Figure 1 .- Prototype staters of Philip II of Macedon (359-336 BC) and imitations of Ambiani gold, second century BC 

In a second step, as the probable result of trade with the Romans, the Gauls made their cash in silver pattern, based on the denarius of Rome, which in many areas replaced the former gold coin from the second half of century BC. During this time, a new type of lower monetary value appeared, the "Potin", coin cast in molds with an alloy of copper, lead and tin (Figure 2). Finally bronze coins arose in late period in Gaul (except in Narbonne, where it already existed, as in the Iberian Peninsula, due to Roman influence) to the years 70-60 BC, and in the northwest of the Gaul (Gaul Belgium many coins in various sanctuaries were minted.

 

Figure 2 .- Potins of Gaul. 

In many cases, other currencies such as the Massaliote drachma and Roman denarii were imitated (Figure 3), developed a varied typology which includes portraits, mythological figures and monsters and animals dominated by the horse and wild boar. Among the Celts of the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of the continent there is a noticeable stylistic difference, while the first reliably reflect the themes represented in the strictest of Greco-Roman artistic tradition, clearly indicating the name of the mint, the Celtic coins of the rest of Europe developed a personal style, traditionally described as "barbarian art", and which is but an abstract art very similar to that developed in the twentieth century, moreover, these currencies do not normally carry epigraphic information to identify the place of production.

Figure 3 .- a: Hispanic Denarius of Cornelius Lentulus (76-75 BC). b: Republican Denarius of  Fabatus Roscius (59 BC). c: Imitation of the Celts of the Danube the denarius of C. Lentulus. d. - A curious double imitation of the Celts of Pannonia, on one side of the denarius R. Fabatus, and the other from C. Lentulus.

In this article we focus on one of the Celtic peoples of Belgian Gaul, the tribe of the "Ambiani", which we can locate in the region surrounding the current village of Amiens in northern France. In this area were issued two series of coins that have unique characteristics, the first type and size imitates the Iberian denarius "Baskunes", although in this case the material used in its manufacture is bronze, not silver, and the second series mimics the previous currency iconography on the reverse, but substantially changed the obverse.

The question arises, how came the denarii "Baskunes" to this remote region of Belgian Gaul?, And why were imitated precisely these dinars?. But before attempting to answer these questions, we briefly analyze the characteristics of the Iberian mint of "Baskunes”.

For many years, researchers (linguists, numismatists and historians) have assumed that the term "Barskunes / Baskunes" is clearly identified as "Basques" who inhabited the area around Pamplona, a deduction which seems evident from the phonetic similarity between terms. But in recent years, things have been complicated somewhat due to an interesting discovery in the Iberian language⁽²⁾, that the suffix "-s" is not as was thought a nominative plural of an ethnic group, but the ablative singular of a toponymyc name!. Accordingly, the meaning of "Barskunes" becomes "to Barsku. That is, the mint or people who issued these coins would be called "Barsku" (or at a later Basku). This new interpretation presents us with two new issues, the first coin bearing the name can be interpreted as "for use by Barsku" or "made for Barsku" so we could think of traveling craftsmen, knowledgeable of the technology manufacture of coins, which would move through the area offering their services to the people of the area. These are likely not very large emissions, recruited more as a sign of prestige than as a genuine financial need, and this subtle way, little by little would be introduced in the habit of using the currency in pre-Roman populations that had never before used. This interpretation, which at the moment is a mere hypothesis, would explain the enormous similarities that occasionally we can find in images of different Iberian mints, since they are the same artesans who manufacture the coins for several different populations. The second question is that "Barskunes" would be a Celtic term to designate the people of "Barsku" (subsequently lost the letter "r"), possibly of Basque ethnic. When we speak in the Basque language now, in the original language should say "Euskara", ie that the term "Basque" is not "Basque", is "Euskara". The same may have happened more than two millennia ago, and could well be the Celtic border who coined this term (Basku-Basque) to denote a village inhabited by people of ethnic Basques who had not developed the writing. In fact the first explicit reference to the Basques is quite late and goes back to 76 BC in a quotation from Livio (XCI) referred to Sertorian wars. The other classical sources about the Basques are from a later period (Pliny, Strabo, Ptolemy .....). Besides the traditional location of the mint "Baskunes" in the vicinity of Pamplona today, other locations have been proposed as Rocaforte-Sangüesa (Canto, 1997), based on the name that the Arabs gave to this area, "Baskunsa "(very similar to the name of the mentioned city that issued  coins).

Another surprising fact is the vast amount of silver denarii  issued in the mint "Baskunes" in a period of less than a century, since they began to be manufactured, probably starting in the fall of Numancia (133 BC) until the end of indigenous emissions, after the battle of Munda (45 BC). This fact is justified only in a context of almost continuous war situation, where it was necessary to pay troops of indigenous mercenaries as allies against other peoples Celtiberian, and also in the civil wars that the Romans themselves staged in the Iberian Peninsula.

Among the coins minted in Gaul by the Celtic peoples, we find some curious bronze imitations of the denarius of the mint of "Baskunes", which have been found in excavations in some sanctuaries in northern France (as in that of Digeon). The first author to describe these coins is E. Lambert in 1864, who published a picture of this coin (Plate VIII, n. 18), but considers that it is an Iberian currency, and as such it has been transmitted in the literature until well into the twentieth century.

Figure 4 .- Denarii of the mint "Baskunes.

It is assumed that the first silver coins "Baskunes" began to be minted in the second half of the second century before our era, these early pieces were of good style (Figure 4a,b) and continued to be made to reach the copious emission of the first third of the first century BC, related with Sertorian wars (83 - 72 BC), where there are frequent little treasures of deniers that include coins of the mints of Baskunes, Sekobirikes and Turiasu (such as cave Usategi in Ataun, Gipuzkoa, N. Spain) . These late coinages have a more degenerate style, where for example the obverse bust in Baskunes denar has a large nose, and beard is resolved with a few heavy points (Figure 4c). This increase in the size of the nose is typical when the dies wear out and are manually retouched to prolong life. It is precisely one of these late emissions that the Celts used as a model of the Ambiani in northern Gaul (Figure 5).

Figure 5 .- Ambiani Celts imitations: "IMONIN bronzes".

The two types of emissions that copy the Iberic coin of Baskunes are very different and give us valuable clues about the manufacturing techniques used. In the first case ⁽³⁾, the perfect similarity, both obverse and reverse, among the bronzes "IMONIN" and its prototype denarii "Baskunes" leads us to think that these Iberian denarii could serve as a model or "Patriz" (Figure 5). From its own coins (denarii Baskunes) could be obtained the Matriz, possibly reproducing the dies in wax, surrounding them with clay to form the mold, which is then filled in with molten bronze, using the technique of lost wax used in antiquity. Some small changes were introduced in the  dies, as on the obverse: adding front of his face, a small snake or dragon, and below a circle inscribed with a point (which would be the Iberian syllable "Ku") by contrast in the legend on the reverse, the letter Iberian "Ku" lost its central point and became the Latin letter "O". Also on the back, amending the rider's head, making it more by highlighting the curious procedure, by a point, which becomes the eye, from which emerges a spiral line, placing in the top four small peaks which simulate hair of the head. Also changes the horse's tail and the last two letters of the Iberian legend "E" and "S" are converted to "I" and "N". All these changes could be easily added after obtaining the negative image (“Incusa”) into a soft material (wax or clay) from an original coin "Baskunes.

The second issue is completely different and was conducted with new dies, completely transforming the front, replacing the bust by a drawing a couple of “torqueses” in a central position and under them a necklace, topped with animal heads, above, figures of appearance plant and along the bottom, a series of semicircles with an interior point.. On the reverse remains the figure of the rider with his sword, though heavily modified, in this case appears the text "IMONO" where the letters "O" have the central point of the syllabic letter "Ku", as appears on the denarius Baskunes, but curiously not represented in the previous emission. This same symbol is also engraved on the back of the horse. In a coin (Figure 6d) a small figure under the horse appears, and there seems to be a bird head, which is also represented in some of the Celts emissions.

 

Figure 6 .- Ambiani Imitations of the denarius "Baskunes" called "small bronzes IMONO".

These two types of coins did not appear together, and occur in different geographical areas, while the first, the close imitation of the denarius Baskunes, is located north in the Department of the Somme in the Picardy (Digeon shrine in southwestern Amiens), the second type, termed "homotypia of contiguity" ⁽⁴⁾, occurs further south, in the department of "Seine-Maritime (Rouen findings) and according to this, it would be a further issue that the first imitation copies. But one fact to consider is the conservation in these pieces (IMONO bronzes) of the Iberian syllabic letter "ku" in the legend on the reverse, which had disappeared in the previous type (IMONIN bronzes). This fact allows us to raise another hypothesis, the denarius "Baskunes" was imitated at the same time in two areas close independently and using different techniques in the first case (IMONIN) using deniers themselves as punches to make the stamps, and the second (IMONO) opening new dies, which allowed the operation to introduce major changes in the grounds, preserving in this case only the figure of the reverse of the Baskunes denarius.

These are not the only issues where horsemen are in the currencies issued by the Celts of Belgian Gaul, we also see the rider carrying a "falx" sickle of war or similar to the Iberian emissions of mints from "Oilaunikos "and" Umanbaate "(Figure 7), the latter also located in Basque territory, although in this case we can not prove that emissions are copied to these Iberian mints.

Figure 7 .- a: Bronze Ambiani with rider wearing the falx. b: Aes of the mint Umanbaate (Navarra, Spain).

As for the dating of the imitations of Baskunes denarius, the most relevant data come from the excavations of the sanctuary Digeon (Somme), where it appeared several pieces of the first type in an archaeological context (along with brooches and Roman coins) ⁽⁵⁾ that permit dating for these emissions, between 40 and 70 of our era, ie a century after it ceased production of the Iberian currency "Baskunes" (in 45 BC) and that the Gaul had been completely conquered by Caesar (51 BC). Paradoxically, while the Celts were still coining this imitation of  Iberian coinage, near the place of the prototype (Baskunes), numerous Roman Cascantvm ases were issued in the time of Emperor Tiberius. The Ambiani imitations were manufactured probably during the reign of the emperors Claudius and Nero!.

It may surprise the different timing of the denarii Baskunes (first century BC) and his gallic imitations (first century AD), but for example we saw previously how the Greek gold stater of Philip II and Alexander the Great, were imitated by Ambiani no less than two centuries later!.

⁽¹⁾ Traditionally been considered  the first gold gallic coins were produced  in the third century BC, but recently has been delayed this timeline based on metrological studies.

⁽²⁾ VILLAR, F. (1995). Estudios de celtibérico y de toponimia prerromana. Univ. Salamanca, 276 pp.

⁽³⁾ IBÁÑEZ, M., 1993. Relations entre la Gaule belgique et la Celtibérie. Bull. Soc. Fr. Numismatique. 48(5): 564‑566.

⁽⁴⁾ DELESTRÉE, L.P., 1996. Monnayages et peuples gaulois du Nord-Ouest. Ed. Errance. Paris: 144 pp.

⁽⁵⁾ DELPLACE, Ch., 1987. Monnaies du sanctuaire de Digeon (Somme). En: Monnaies gauloises découvertes en fouilles. Dossier de Protohistoire 1: 125-137.

Monedas celtas de la Galia: imitaciones de las monedas griegas, romanas e ibéricas

2.1.- Monedas celtas de la Galia: imitaciones de las monedas griegas, romanas e ibéricas. Eco Filat. y Numism. (Junio, 2007), 62(1153): 60-61. Imitaciones del denario de “Baskunes” en la Galia Belga. Eco Filat. y Numism. (Julio-Agosto, 2007), 62(1154): 56-58.

            El término “keltoi”, es decir “celtas” en griego, aparece por vez primera en el siglo VI a.C. para designar a las poblaciones que vivían al norte de la colonia griega de Marsella, y los romanos designaron con el nombre de “galos” a los pueblos de legua celta que vivían en el continente.

            Las primeras monedas celtas aparecieron en el siglo segundo⁽¹⁾ antes de nuestra Era, y copiaron las figuras que aparecen en las monedas de oro macedónicas de Filipo II y Alejandro Magno (382-336-323 a.C.) y que probablemente trajeron como pago a sus servicios los mercenarios galos que regresaban a su tierra de origen (Figura 1). 

Figura 1 .- Prototipo de estátera de Filipo II de Macedonia (359-336 BC), e imitaciones en oro de los ambianos, s. II a.C.

            En una segunda fase, como probable consecuencia del comercio con los romanos, los galos introdujeron en su numerario el patrón de plata, basado en el denario de Roma, que en muchas regiones sustituyó a la antigua moneda de oro a partir de la segunda mitad del siglo II a.C.. Durante este tiempo surgió un nuevo tipo monetario de menor valor, el “potín”, moneda fundida en moldes con una aleación de cobre, plomo y estaño (Figura 2). Por último las monedas de bronce aparecieron en época tardía en la Galia (salvo en la Narbonense, donde ya existían, como en la Península Ibérica, debido a la influencia romana) hacia los años 70-60 a.C., y en la zona noroeste de la Galia (Galia Belga) se acuñaron un gran número de variadas monedas en los santuarios. 

Figura 2 .- Potines de la Galia

           

            En muchos casos se imitaban otras monedas como los dracmas masaliotas y los denarios romanos (Figura 3), desarrollándose una variada tipología que incluye bustos, figuras mitológicas y monstruos, así como animales donde predominan el caballo y el jabalí. Entre los pueblos celtas de la Península Ibérica y los del resto del continente existe una notable diferecia estilística, mientras los primeros reflejan fielmente los temas representados en la más estricta tradición artística greco-latina, señalando claramente el nombre de la ceca emisora, los pueblos celtas del resto de Europa desarrollan un estilo propio, tradicionalmente calificado como de “arte bárbaro” y que no es sino un arte abstracto muy similar al que se ha desarrollado en el siglo XX , por otra parte no suelen llevar información epigráfica que permita identificar el lugar de acuñación.

Figura 3 .- a: Denario hispánico de Cornelius Lentulus (76-75 BC). b: Denario republican de Fabatus Roscius (59 BC). c: Imitación de los Celtas del Danubio del denario de C. Lentulus. d. – Curiosa doble imitación de los celtas de Panonia, por una cara del denario de R. Fabatus, y la otra del de C. Lentulus

            En este artículo nos centraremos en una de las poblaciones celtas de la Galia Belga, la tribu de los “Ambianos” que podemos localizar en la región que circunda la actual población gala de Amiens, en el norte de Francia, en esta zona se emitieron dos series de monedas que presentan unas características singulares, la primera imita en tipos y tamaño al denario ibérico de “Baskunes”, si bien en este caso el material utilizado en su fabricación es bronce y no plata, la segunda serie de emisiones imita la moneda anterior conservando la iconografía del reverso, pero cambiando sustancialmente la del anverso.

            Cabe preguntarse, ¿cómo llegaron los denarios de “Baskunes” a esta alejada región de la Galia Belga?, y ¿por qué fueron imitados precisamente estos denarios?. Pero antes de intentar contestar a estas cuestiones, que desarrollaremos en un artículo posterior, vamos a analizar brevemente las características de la ceca ibérica de “Baskunes”.

            Durante muchos años, los investigadores (linguistas, numismáticos e historiadores) han dado por sentado que el término “Barskunes/Baskunes” se identifica claramente como los “vascones” que habitaban la zona próxima a Pamplona, lo cual parece una deducción evidente a la vista de la similitud fonética entre ambos términos. Pero en los últimos años las cosas se han complicado algo, a partir del importante descubrimiento linguístico⁽²⁾ de que el sufijo “-es” no es como se creía un nominativo plural de una etnia, sino el ¡ablativo singular de un topónimo!. Según esto, el significado del término “Barskunes” pasa a ser “para Barsku”. Es decir la ceca o población que emitió estas monedas se llamaría “Barsku” (o Basku en época posterior). Esta nueva interpretación nos plantea dos nuevas cuestiones, en primer lugar el nombre que lleva la moneda puede ser interpretado como “para ser usado por Barsku” o “fabricado para Barsku”, de forma que podríamos pensar en artesanos ambulantes, buenos conocedores de la tecnología de la fabricación de monedas, que se desplazarían a través del territorio ofertando sus servicios a las poblaciones de la zona. Estas poblaciones, probablemente no muy grandes, contratarían las emisiones más como una señal de prestigio que como una verdadera necesidad económica, y de esta sutil forma, poco a poco se iría introduciendo la costumbre de utilizar la moneda en poblaciones prerromanas que nunca antes la habían utilizado. Esta interpretación, que por el momento no deja de ser una mera hipótesis, explicaría las enormes similitudes que ocasionalmente podemos encontrar en las imágenes de diferentes cecas ibéricas, dado que serían los mismos maestros monederos los que fabricarían las emisiones para varias poblaciones diferentes. La segunda cuestión es que “Barskunes” sería un término celta para designar al pueblo de “Barsku” (con posterioridad se perdió la letra “r”), posiblemente de etnia vascona. Cuando actualmente hablamos del idioma vasco, en el idioma original habría que decir “euskera”, es decir que el término “vasco” no es “vasco”, “euskera” sí. Pues lo mismo que ocurre hoy en día, pudo haber pasado hace más de dos milenios, y bien pudieron ser los celtas fronterizos los que acuñaran este término (Basku-Vasco) para denominar una población habitada por gentes de etnia vascona que no habían desarrollado la escritura. De hecho la primera mención explícita a los vascones es bastante tardía y se remonta al año 76 a.C. en una cita de Tito Livio (XCI) referida a las guerras sertorianas. Las restantes fuentes clásicas acerca de los vascones son de época posterior (Plinio, Estrabón, Ptolomeo .....). Aparte de la tradicional localización de la ceca de “Baskunes” en las proximidades de la actual Pamplona, se han propuesto otras ubicaciones, como Rocaforte-Sangüesa (Canto, 1997), basándose en el nombre que los árabes daban a esta zona: “Baskunsa” (muy similar al nombre de la ciudad que emitió las mencionadas monedas).

            Otro hecho que no deja de resultar sorprendente es la enorme cantidad de denarios de plata que se emitieron en la ceca de “Baskunes” en un período inferior a un siglo, desde que comenzaron a fabricarse, probablemente a partir de la caída de Numancia (133 a.C.) hasta que finalizaron las emisiones autóctonas peninsulares tras la batalla de Munda (45 a.C.). Este hecho solamente se justifica en un contexto de situación bélica casi permanente, donde era necesario pagar a las tropas de mercenarios indígenas que participaban como aliados contra otros pueblos celtibéricos, y también en las guerras civiles que los propios romanos protagonizaron en la Península Ibérica.

            Dentro de la moneda acuñada en la Galia por los pueblos celtas, encontramos unas curiosas imitaciones en bronce del denario de la ceca de “Baskunes”, que se han sido halladas en las excavaciones realizadas en algunos santuarios al norte de Francia (como en el de Digeon). El primer autor que describe estas monedas es E. Lambert en 1864, llegándo a facilitar incluso su dibujo (lámina VIII nº18), pero considera que se trata de una moneda ibérica, y como tal se va transmitiendo en la bibliografía hasta bien avanzado el siglo veinte.

            Generalmente se admite que los primeros denarios de “Baskunes” comenzaron a acuñarse en la segunda mitad del siglo segundo antes de nuestra Era, estas primeras piezas eran de buen estilo (Figura 4a) y siguieron fabricándose hasta llegar a las copiosas emisiones del primer tercio del siglo I a.C., relacionadas con las guerras sertorianas (83 – 72 a.C), donde son frecuentes los tesorillos de denarios que incluyen piezas de las cecas de Baskunes, Sekobirikes y Turiasu (como el de la cueva de Usastegi en Ataun, Guipúzcoa). Estas acuñaciones tardías poseen un estilo más degenerado, donde por ejemplo, el busto del anverso en las piezas de Baskunes presenta una nariz de gran tamaño y la barba se resuelve con unos pocos puntos gruesos (Figura 4b). Este aumento en el tamaño de la nariz en los bustos que aparecen en las monedas ibéricas es típico cuando los cuños se desgastan y se retocan manualmente para prolongar su vida. Es precisamente una de estas emisiones tardías la que utilizarán como modelo los celtas ambianos del norte de la Galia (Figura 4c).

Figura 4 .- Denario de la ceca "Baskunes”.

            Los dos tipos de emisiones celtas que copian la moneda de la ceca ibérica de Baskunes son muy diferentes y nos dan valiosas pistas acerca de las técnicas de fabricación utilizadas. En el primer caso⁽³⁾, la perfecta similitud, tanto en anversos como en reversos, entre los bronces de “IMONIN” y sus prototipos de denarios de “Baskunes”, nos lleva a pensar que los mismos denarios ibéricos pudieron servir como modelo o “patriz” (Figura 5), de donde se obtendrían las matrices para fabricar las monedas, posiblemente reproduciendo los cuños en cera y rodeándolos de arcilla para formar el molde que posteriormente se rellenaría con bronce fundido, mediante la técnica de la “cera perdida” utilizada en la antigüedad. Sobre los cuños de cera se introdujeron algunas pequeñas modificaciones como, en el anverso: adición delante de la cara, de una pequeña culebra o dragón, y debajo un círculo con un punto inscrito (lo que sería la letra silábica ibérica “ku”), por contra en la leyenda del reverso, la letra ibérica “Ku” pierde su punto central transformándose en la letra latina “O”. También en el reverso, se modifica la cabeza del jinete, haciéndola resaltar más mediante el curioso procedimiento de hacer un punto que actúa de ojo, y trazar a partir de él una espiral, colocando en la parte superior cuatro pequeños picos que simulan el pelo. También se modifica la cola del caballo y las dos últimas letras de la leyenda ibérica “E” y “S” se cambian por una “I” y una “N”. Todas estas modificaciones pudieron añadirse fácilmente después de haber obtenido la imagen en negativo (incusa) en un material blando (cera o arcilla) a partir de un denario original de “Baskunes”.

Figura 5 .- Imitaciones de los celtas ambianos: "bronces de IMONIN".

            La segunda emisión es completamente diferente y se realizó diseñando nuevos cuños, transformando completamente el anverso, sustituyendo el busto por un dibujo donde aparecen un par de torqueses en posición central y bajo ellos un collar rematado por sendas cabezas animales, encima, unas figuras de apariencia vegetal y bordeando la parte inferior, una serie de semicírculos con un punto interior (Figura 6). En el reverso se mantiene la figura del jinete con espada, si bien muy modificado respecto al modelo original, en este caso aparece la leyenda “IMONO”, donde las letras “O” llevan el punto central característico de la letra silábica “Ku”, tal como aparece en el denario de Baskunes, pero que curiosamente no figura en la emisión anterior. Este mismo símbolo queda grabado también sobre parte trasera del caballo. En una de las emisiones (Figura 6d) puede verse una pequeña figura bajo el caballo, parece tratarse de un caballito de mar, que también aparece representado en algunas emisiones de los celtas ambianos.

Figura 6 .- Imitación de los ambianos del denario de "Baskunes", denominada “pequeños bronces de IMONO”.  

            Curiosamente estos dos tipos monetarios no aparecen juntos, y se dan en zonas geográficas diferentes, mientras el primero, la imitación casi exacta del denario de Baskunes, se encuentra al norte en el Departamento del Somme, en La Picardía (santuario de Digeon, al sudoeste de Amiens), el segundo tipo, calificado como “homotipia de contigüidad” ⁽⁴⁾, aparece más al sur, en el departamento del “Seine-Maritime” (hallazgos de Rouen) y según esto sería una emisión posterior que copia la primera imitación. Sin embargo hay un hecho a tener en cuenta, y es la conservación en estas piezas (bronces de IMONO) de la letra silábica ibérica “ku” en la leyenda del reverso, que había desaparecido en la emisión anterior (bronces de IMONIN). Este dato nos permite plantear otra hipótesis, el denario de “Baskunes” fue imitado al mismo tiempo en dos zonas próximas independientemente y utilizando técnicas distintas, en el primer caso (IMONIN) empleando los propios denarios como punzones para fabricar los cuños, y en el segundo (IMONO) abriendo nuevos cuños, operación que permitió introducir mayores modificaciones en los motivos, conservando en este caso sólamente la figura original del reverso del denario de Baskunes.  

            No son éstas las únicas emisiones donde encontramos jinetes armados en las monedas celtas emitidas por los ambianos de la Galia Belga, también podemos ver el jinete portando un “falx” u hoz de guerra, similar al de las emisiones ibéricas de las cecas de “Oilaunikos” y “Umanbaate” (Figura 7b), esta última situada también en territorio vascón, si bien este caso no podemos demostrar que las emisiones galas hayan copiado a estas cecas ibéricas.

Figura 7 .- a: Bronce ambiano con jinete portando un “falx” u hoz de guerra. b: As de la ceca de Umanbaate (Navarra, España).

            En cuanto a la cronología de las imitaciones del denario de Baskunes, los datos más relevantes proceden de las excavaciones del santuario de Digeon (Somme), donde aparecieron varias piezas del primer tipo en un contexto arqueológico (junto con fíbulas, y monedas romanas) ⁽⁵⁾que dan una datación bastante tardía para este tipo de emisiones, entre los años 40 y 70 de nuestra Era, es decir un siglo después de que cesara la fabricación de la moneda ibérica de “Baskunes” (en el 45 a.C) y de que la Galia hubiera sido completamente conquistada por Cesar (51 a.C.). Paradójicamente mientras los celtas seguían acuñando esta imitación de la moneda ibérica, las acuñaciones más cercanas al lugar donde se había emitido el prototipo, era los numerosos ases romanos de Cascantvm (Cascante), de tiempos del emperador Tiberio. ¡Estas imitaciones galas fueron fabricadas probablemente durante los mandatos de los emperadores Claudio y Nerón!.

            Puede sorprender la diferente cronología de los denarios de Baskunes (siglo I a.C.) y sus imitaciones galas (siglo I d.C.), pero por ejemplo, hemos podido ver en el artículo anterior cómo las estáteras griegas de oro de Filipo II y Alejandro Magno, fueron imitadas por los ambianos nada menos que ¡dos siglos más tarde!.

⁽¹⁾  Tradicionalmente se consideraba que las primeras emisiones de oro galas correspondían al s. III a.C., pero recientemente se ha retrasado esta cronología en base a estudios metrológicos.

 

⁽²⁾  VILLAR, F. (1995). Estudios de celtibérico y de toponimia prerromana. Univ. Salamanca, 276 pp.

⁽³⁾ IBÁÑEZ, M., 1993. Relations entre la Gaule belgique et la Celtibérie. Bull. Soc. Fr. Numismatique. 48(5): 564‑566.

⁽⁴⁾ DELESTRÉE, L.P., 1996. Monnayages et peuples gaulois du Nord-Ouest. Ed. Errance. Paris: 144 pp.

⁽⁵⁾ DELPLACE, Ch., 1987. Monnaies du sanctuaire de Digeon (Somme). En: Monnaies gauloises découvertes en fouilles. Dossier de Protohistoire 1: 125-137.