Roman Genius
Cn. Lentulus. 76-75 BC. AR Denarius (17.5mm, 3.92 g, 6h). Spanish(?) mint. Diademed and draped bust of Genius Populi Romani right; scepter over shoulder / Scepter with wreath, globe, and rudder. Crawford 393/1a; Sydenham 752; Cornelia 54. Attractively toned, faint hairlines. EF. A beautiful coin in hand.
The Genius Populi Romani personifies the collective animating force of the Roman people; the closest English equivalent might be “spirit.” This is personified by a young male figure holding a scepter and/or a cornucopia. The “genius” may appear on a coin of 100 BC by P. Cornelius Lentulus Marcellinus, although the nude male figure is not explicitly identified. This coin type of another member of the Lentulus gens, struck circa 76/5 BC, is the first to unequivocally depict the “Genio P.R.” The semi-divine figure would go on to make many more appearances on Roman coins.
