MEDAL. 
the (mailer Greek filver coins; fome of the other princes 
are not uncommon. 
In moft cafes the copper money of the Greek monarchs 
is fcarce; but that of Hiero I. of Syracufe is uncommonly 
plentiful, as well as that of feveral of the Ptolemies. 
The moft rare of the confular Roman coins are thofe 
reftored by Trajan : of the others the gold confular coins 
are the moft rare, and the filver the moft common ; ex¬ 
cepting the coin of Brutus with the cap of liberty, already 
mentioned, with fome others. Some of the Roman impe¬ 
rial coins are very fcarce, particularly thofe of Otho in 
brafs ; nor indeed does he occur at all on any coin (truck 
at Rome: but the reafon of this may with great proba¬ 
bility be fuppofed to have been the (hortnefs of his reign. 
His portrait upon the brafs coins of Egypt and Antioch 
is very bad; as well as almoft all the other imperial coins 
of Greek cities. The bell likenefs is on his gold and 
filver coins; the latter of which are very common. The 
Greek and Egyptian coins are all of fmall or middling 
f zes, and have reverfes of various kinds : thofe of Antioch 
have Latin legends, as well as moft of the other imperial 
coins of Antioch. They have no other reverfe but the 
SC in a wreath ; excepting in one inftance or two of the 
larger and middle brafs, where the infcriptions are in 
Greek. Latin coins of Otho in brafs, with figures on 
the reverfe, are certainly falfe; though in the cabinet of 
d’Ennery at Paris there was an Otho in middle brafs re¬ 
ftored by Titus, which was e(teemed genuine by con- 
noifieurs. 
The leaden coins of Rome are very fcarce. Moft of 
them are pieces (truck or call on occafion of the Saturna¬ 
lia 3 others are tickets for feftivals and exhibitions, both 
private and public. The common tickets for theatres were 
made of lead ; as were the contorniati, perpetual tickets, 
like the Englifti filver tickets for the opera. Leaden me¬ 
dallions are alfo found below the foundations of pillars 
and other public buildings, in order to perpetuate the 
memory of the founders. From the time of Auguftus 
alfo we find that leaden feals were ufed. The work of 
Ticorini upon this fubjeft, entitled Piombi Antichi, is 
much commended by Mr. Pinkerton. 
The Roman coins, which have been blundered in the 
manner formerly mentioned, are very rare, and undeferv- 
edly valued by the connoiffenrs. The blunders in the 
legends of thefe coins, which in all probability are the 
mere e(lefts of accident, have been fo far miltaken by 
fome medaliifts, that they have given rife to imaginary 
emperors who never exifted. A coin of Fauftini, which 
has on the reverfe sovsti s. c. puzzled all the Ger¬ 
man antiquaries, till at laft Klotz gave it the follow¬ 
ing facetious interpretation: Sine omni utilitate JeElamini 
tantas ineptias. 
The heptarchic coins of England are generally rare, ex¬ 
cept thofe called Jiycas, which are very common, as well as 
thofe of Burgred king of Mercia. The coins of Alfred 
which bear his bud are fcarce, and his other money much 
more fo. Thofe of Hardyknute are fo rare, that it was 
even denied that they had an exiftence; but Mr. Pinker¬ 
ton informs us, that there are three in the Britifh Mufeum, 
upon all of which the name harthcanvt is quite legible. 
No Englifti coins of king John are to be met with, though 
there are fome Irifh ones ; and only French coins of 
Richard I. “ Leake (fays Mr. Pinkerton) made a (trange 
blunder in afcribing coins of different kings with two 
faces, and otherwile fpoiled in the (lamping, to this 
prince; in which, as ufual, he has been followed by a 
milled number.” 
Coins of Alexander II. of Scotland are rather fcarce, 
but thofe of Alexander III. are more plentiful. Thofe 
of John Baliol are rare; and none of Edward Baliol are 
to be found. 
It is evident, from what has been faid of the value of 
medals of particular kinds, that the formation of a cabi¬ 
net mu ft be attended with a very confiderable expen fe ; 
it is neceffary, therefore, for every one who attempts this 
SSI 
to proportion the cabinet to his own circutnftances. There 
are, properly fpeaking, three kinds of cabinets, i. Thofe 
meant to contain a coin of every fort that has been iffusd 
from the mint in every age and country; but this, which 
may be called the large and complete cabinet, is not to 
be purchafed by private perfons. That of Dr. Hunter 
already mentioned is perhaps one of the bed private ca¬ 
binets ever known ; and coft 23,000!. but as many dupli¬ 
cates were fold as coft 2000I. by which means the expenfe 
was reduced to 21,000k The vaft collection made by the 
king of France coft upwards of 100,000k 2. The fmaller 
cabinet maybe fuppofed to confilt only of middle and 
fmall Roman brafs, Englifti pennies, groats, &c. with a 
few medals of the more valuable kind, and may be fup¬ 
pofed to incur an expenfe of from 200k to ioool. 3. The 
fmalleft kind is called a cajket of medals, and does not 
confift of above 1000 at molt of various kinds; and corr- 
fequently the expenfe mult depend on the pleafure of the 
proprietor. 
In the formation of a grand cabinet, it muft be obferved 
that the Greek medals of every denomination do not ad¬ 
mit of any arrangement by the metals like the Roman ; 
not any regular feries of this kind being met with even 
in the molt opulent cabinets. Hence in all collections 
the civic coins are ranged according to an alphabetical 
order; and the monarchic in a chronological one. The 
fame rule is to be obferved in the Roman confular medals ; 
they are ranged, like the coins of the Greek cities, in an 
alphabetical feries of the families. The Roman imperial 
coins are only thofe capable of being arranged according 
to fizes and metals. Even from this muft be excepted 
the minimi, or very fmalleft coins; which are fo fcarce, 
that the only regular feries of them in the world is that 
belonging to the king of Spain, which was formed by a 
moft (kilful French medalliit, and confifts of all the metals. 
The arrangement of a grand cabinet, according to Mr. 
Pinkerton, is as follows : 
I. Coins of cities and of free dates in alphabetical or¬ 
der ; whether ufing Greek, Roman, Punic, Etrufcnn, or 
Spanifh, characters. 
II. Kings in chronological feries, both as to foundation 
of empire and feniority of reign. 
III. Heroes, heroines,and founders of empires and cities. 
IV. Other illultrious perfons. 
V. Roman afes. 
VI. Coins of families, commonly called confular. 
VII. Imperial medallions. VIII. Imperial gold. 
IX. Imperial minimi of all metals. X. Imperial filver. 
XI. Imperial firft brafs. 
XII. Second brafs. XIII. Third brafs. 
XIV. Colonial coins, which are all of brafs. 
XV. Greek cities under the emperors, of all metals and 
fizes. In a fmaller cabinet they may be put with the- 
Roman, according to their metal and fize. Thofe with- 
out the emperor’s head go to Clafs I. though (truck in 
Roman times. 
XVI. Egyptian coins (truck under the Roman empe- 
rors, of all metals and fizes. They are moltly of a bafe- 
metal called by the French patin-, it is a kind of pot-me¬ 
tal, or brittle brafs. 
XVII. Contorniati, or ticket-medals. 
XVIII. Coins of Gothic princes, See. inferibed with? 
Roman characters. 
XIX. Coins of fouthern nations ufing-uncommon al¬ 
phabets ; as the Perfian, Punic, Etrufcan, and Spanifti. 
XX. Coins of northern nations ufing uncommon cha¬ 
racters ; as the Runic and German. 
In the modern part, no feries can be formed of copper 
that will go back above two centuries; but fequences 
(chronological feries) of gold and filver may be arranged 
of all the different empires, kingdoms, and ftates, as far as 
their feveral coinages will allow. Thofe of England and 
France will be the moft perfect. Modern filver is com¬ 
monly arranged in three (equences ; the dollar, the groat, 
and the penny, fizes. The medals of each modern coun¬ 
try 
