Silver Denarius - Roman Republic, c. 211-206 BC
Anonymous Series
Obv: Helmeted Head of Roma, right
Rev: Dioscuri with spears, galloping right, “ROMA” below
(Sear-R38) 18mm, 4.06gm
In ancient Roman religion, Roma was a female deity who personified the city of Rome and more broadly, the Roman state. Her image appears on the base of the column of Antoninus Pius.
In Greek and Roman mythology, Castor and Pollux (or Polydeuces) were twin brothers, together known as the Dioscuri. Their mother was Leda, but Castor was the mortal son of Tyndareus, the king of Sparta, and Pollux the divine son of Zeus, who raped Leda in the guise of a swan. Though accounts of their birth are varied, they are sometimes said to have been born from an egg, along with their twin sisters and half-sisters Helen of Troy and Clytemnestra.
In Latin the twins are also known as the Gemini or Castores. When Castor was killed, Pollux asked Zeus to let him share his own immortality with his twin to keep them together, and they were transformed into the constellation Gemini. The pair were regarded as the patrons of sailors, to whom they appeared as St. Elmo's fire, and were also associated with horsemanship.
