CELTIC, Central Europe. Helvetii. Circa 75/50-25 BC. Quinarius (Subaeratus, 12 mm, 1.34 g, 7 h), Vatico. Celticized male bust to left, the hair devolved into crescents and wearing torque; to right, three pellets. Rev. VATICO Horse springing left; above, carnyx; below, shield. DT -. Frey-Kupper, Viros, Fig. 6.2. Leu 1 (2017), 13. Nick p. 69-73 and Pl. 93, 5. LT -. SLM -. Of the highest rarity, apparently only the sixth known example. A tremendously important issue of great historical interest. Minor breaks in plating, otherwise, good very fine.


Nick only records four coins bearing the name Vatico, two of which were found in the oppidum on the Bois de Châtel and one in nearby Avenches. The issue is known in two varieties, with left and right facing heads, with our coin being only the sixth recorded example and only the second to ever appear in a public sale. The recorded find spots make an attribution of the issue to the oppidum on the Bois de Châtel tempting, but its close connection to the coins naming Viros, three of which have been found in the oppidum of Altenburg-Rheinau while just one was found in Avenches, calls for caution. While further finds may shed new light on their origin, their historical importance is beyond any doubt. The adaption of both the Roman quinarius and the Latin alphabet by the Helvetii provides evidence of increasing Roman influence in an area that had been dominated by Celtic culture for several centuries. Viros and Vatico were most likely local noblemen or moneyers, who lived in a time of rapid intercultural influence and political change and may have been witnesses of the loss of Helvetian autonomy during the Roman expansion under Caesar and Augustus.