Obolos 18

L. Marcius Philippus, 57 BC. Denarius (Silver, 19 mm, 3.73 g, 5 h), Rome. ANCVS Diademed head of Ancus Marcius to right; behind, lituus. Rev. PHILIPPVS Aqueduct, on which is a statue of Q. Marcius Rex on a horse rearing to right with a plant below; in the five arches of the aqueduct, A Q V A (MAR). Babelon (Marcia) 28. Crawford 425/1. Sydenham 919. nearly very fine.

From the Trausnitz Collection, ex Brandt & Sonntag FPL 1994, 2.

The Gens Marcia claimed descent from the fourth king of Rome, Ancus Marcius, who is portrayed on the obverse of this coin. There was a legend that he built the Aqua Marcia, the longest of the aqueducts of Rome (it tapped sources 91 kilometers away from the city), but, in fact, it was built by Q. Marcius Rex, whose statue appears on the reverse of this coin, in c. 144-140 BC, and it was paid for by the spoils of Carthage and Corinth, which were both destroyed in 146. Having such a major source of water allowed the city of Rome to begin the expansion that led to it becoming the largest city in the western world.