Picked up a group of three low grade un-ID'ed Roman nummi a while back. It was a rare one I saw among them that became the only reason why I bought the lot. It was this 2.5 nummi coin of Totila (Baduila), king of the Ostrogoths. It was struck in their capital city of Ticinum during the Gothic War between 541 to 552 AD. Two in comparable shape sold for ~$70. On Vcoins right now, one with a better obverse but similar condition reverse is selling for $120, and another with a better obverse and reverse (but won't win any beauty contests soon) is at $210. Paid $25 for the three nummus coins (the other two were a Leo lion reverse and Leo monogram), so I did pretty ok.
A short history on Baduila I wrote on another forum, with some more info added:
At the time of his ascension to the throne in 541 AD, Totila (whose original name was Baduila) had been the garrison commander of Treviso and had
inherited a war-weary kingdom fighting for its life. The Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy had been invaded in 535 AD by Byzantine forces led by the famed general Belisarius, in an attempt to bring Italy back under direct Roman control. In the early years the Byzantines had had much success, mainly the capture of Rome, and the conquest of the Italian capital of Ravenna and the capture of Ostrogothic king Witiges. The Byzantine armies then had the Ostrogoths cornered in the north of Italy.
Marching out of the north with the small Ostrogoth army, Totila came upon a larger Roman force at Faventia and destroyed it, enabling him to move further south. As part of his strategy, Totila skipped over the fortified cities and took control of the countryside, and soon had nearly the whole of the peninsula back in Gothic hands. Totila's successes and the lack of cooperation between Emperor Justinian and Belisarius, and among the other Byzantine generals helped to extend the conflict for another decade. He even managed to take Rome twice, the second time holding it for two years from 550-552 AD.
By this point, Justinian had had enough, and sent a great force of 35,000 under the general Narses to Italy. The main Ostrogothic army was soon defeated, and Totila killed. His successor Teia died in battle not long afterwards, and Justinian was left as the new master of the old Roman heartland.
Baduila, Ostrogothic KingdomAE 2.5 nummi
Obv: Pearl-diademed, draped bust of Anastasius right
Rev: Monogram of Baduila
Mint: Ticinum; struck 541-552 AD
Ref: MIB 87; Kraus 69; Metlich 94
You might be wondering why Anastasius was put on a coin over 25 years after he died. After King Theodoric had taken Italy from King Odoacer in 493 AD per his agreement with Emperor Zeno, Zeno's successor, Anastasius, had confirmed Theodoric as the empire's representative in Italy. Theodoric and his successors nominally ruled Italy in the name of the emperor (but in practice, Italy was independent under Germanic rule). This act legitimized Ostrogothic control, and was the main legal argument the Ostrogoths used in justifying their ownership and rule of Italy.
Posted 04/21/2016 2:44 pm
