62, Lot: 81. Estimate $200. Sold for $190. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

GAIUS CALIGULA. 37-41 AD. Æ As (30mm, 10.23 gm). Struck 37-38 AD. Bare head left / Vesta seated left on throne, holding patera and sceptre. RIC I 38; Cohen 27. VF, dark brown patina, a scratch across reverse.

The mark on the reverse of this coin may be one associate with the general idea of damnatio memoiae, though more often the obverse would be marked. As the goddess of the hearth and family values, after the Capitoline triad of Jupiter, Juno, and Minerva, Vesta was she occupied a special place in Roman public life. Located across from the ancient royal residence, or Regia, the temple was circular in shape, indicating is ancient origins, and was tended by a group of high-born, free women, known as the Vestal Virgins, who served for up to thirty years years and in return for their virginity, enjoyed a variety of benefits. A woman who broke her vow was subject to being buried alive. Given Caligula's reported sexual proclivities, the mark may reflect a possesor's digust at the emperor's various "moral" choices.