SYRIA, Decapolis. Nysa-Scythopolis. Pseudo-autonomous issue. AE (Bronze, 19 mm, 5.03 g, 12 h), struck under the proconsul, Aulus Gabinius, CY 10 = 55/4 BC. Bare head of Aulus Gabinius or Marcus Licinius Crassus to right. Rev. ΓΑΒ / ΝΥ / L [I / Λ] Dionysos standing front, head to left, holding kantharos in his right hand and thyrsos in his left. Barkay 4. Rosenberger 3. RPC I 4827. Very rare and unusually attractive and complete. Surfaces a little rough, otherwise, nearly very fine.



The identity of the head depicted on this coin is debated; it could represent either the Roman governor of Syria, Aulus Gabinius, or his successor, Licinius Crassus. While most sources attribute it to Aulus Gabinius, Barkay argues that it depicts Crassus, citing stylistic differences and the absence of any name or abbreviation on the obverse. Coins where the head is definitively identified as Gabinius bear the Greek letters ΓΑ in the field behind the head on the obverse. Gabinius first gained prominence in 67 BC when he authored the lex Gabinia, granting Pompey the Great command to suppress Mediterranean piracy. About a decade later, Pompey’s patronage helped Gabinius secure the consulship and subsequently the proconsular governorship of Syria.