M E D A L. 
832 
try ought of courfe to be feparated ; though it is beft to 
arrange each fet in chronological order, let their fize 
or metal be what they will. It may be remarked here, 
that our modern medals, of the fize of a tea-faucer, are 
only fo many monuments of barbarifm. The ancient 
medallions are almoft univerfally but little larger than 
our crown-piece, though three or four of them may ex¬ 
tend to about two inches diameter; but very many mo¬ 
dern medals are four inches and more. A large medal 
always declares an ignorant prince or an ignorant artifl. 
Into the fize of a crown-piece the ancients threw more 
miracles in this way than will ever appear in thefe mon- 
itrous produdfions. 
Thefe directions will likewife apply to the formation 
of a cabinet of the fecond kind : but, if the collector 
means to form a feries of large Roman brafs, he will find 
the. coins of four or five emperors fo fcarce as not to be 
attainable in that feries even at any price. He muft there¬ 
fore fupply their places with middle brafs, as is allowed 
with regard to Otho even in the beft cabinets ; there not 
being above three coins of that emperor in large brafs 
known in the world, whereas of the middle brafs two or 
three hundred may exift. For this reafon Mr. Pinkerton 
concludes, that in cabinets of the fecond clafs the col¬ 
lector may mingle the large and fecond brafs together as 
bethinks proper, in order to fave expenfe; though it 
would not do fo well to unite fucli difproportionate lizes 
as the large and fmall. “ In the fmall fequence, how¬ 
ever, (fays he,) there can be no harm in his mixing gold, 
filver, and brafs, as chance or curiofity may lead him to 
purchafe any of thefe metals. And, though the bigotted 
medallift may fneer becaufe fuch a fequence would con¬ 
trovert his narrow way of thinking, common fenfe will 
authorife us to laugh at the pedant in our turn, and to 
pronounce fuch a feries more various, rich, and intereft- 
ing, than if the collector had arranged only one metal, 
and rejected a curious article becaufe he did not colleCt 
gold or filver. In like manner, if, in the modern part of 
the fmaller cabinet, any coin of a feries is of high price, or 
of bad imprefiion, there can be no impropriety in putting 
another of the fame reign, which is cheaper, or better exe¬ 
cuted, though of a different denomination, or of a little 
larger fize. In fhort, the collector has no rules but in 
the Greek cities and Roman families to obferve alpha¬ 
betical order, and chronology in every-thing elfe.” 
Medals afford a good number of portraits of illuftrious 
men ; but they cannot eafily be arranged in chronological 
order, fo that a feries of them is not to be expeCted. It 
is likewife vain to attempt the formation of a feries of 
gods and goddeffes to be found on ancient coins. Mr. 
Pinkerton thinks it much better to arrange them under 
the feveral cities or kings whole names they bear. A 
collection of the portraits of illuftrious men may likewife 
be formed from medals of modern date. 
The reverfes of ancient Greek and Roman coins afford 
an infinite variety of inftruClion and amufement. They 
contain figures of deities at full length, with their attri¬ 
butes and fymbols, public fymbols and diveriions, plants, 
animals, See. See. and in (hort almoft every object of na¬ 
ture or art. Some have the portrait of the queen, fon, 
or daughter, of the prince whofe image appears on the 
face obverfe; and thefe are elteemed highly by antiqua¬ 
ries, not only becaufe every coin damped with portraits 
on both fides is accounted valuable, but becaufe they 
render it certain that the perfon reprefented on the reverie 
was the wife, fon, or daughter, of him who appears on 
the obverfe; by which means they afiift greatly in the 
adjuliing of a feries. Some, however, with two portraits 
are common; as Augnltus, the reverfe of Caligula; and 
Marcus Aurelius, reverfe of Antoninus Pius. 
We. find more art and defign in the reverfes of the Ro¬ 
man medals than of the Greek; but, on the other hand, 
the latter have more exquiiite relief and workmanfhip. 
The very ancient coins have no reverfes, excepting a rude 
mark ftruck into the metal, refembling that of an inltru- 
ment with four blunt points with which the coin was 
ftruck; and was owing to its having been fixed by fuch 
an inftrument on that fide to receive the imprelfion upon 
the other. To this fucceeds the image of a dolphin, or 
fom^fmall animal, in one of the departments of the rude 
mark, or in a hollow fquare: and this again is fucceeded 
by a more perieCt image, without any mark of the hollow 
fquare. Some of the Greek coins are hollow in the re¬ 
verfe, as thofe of Caulonia, Crotona, Metapontum, and 
fome other ancient cities of Magna Graecia. About 500 
B. C. perfeft reverfes appear on the Greek coins of exqui- 
fite relief and workmandiip. “ The very mufcles of men 
and animals (fays Mr Pinkerton) are feen, and will bear 
infpeflion with the largelt magnifier, as ancient gems.” 
No Roman or Etrufcan coins have been found of the 
globular form, or indented on the reverfe like the early 
Greek. The firft Greek are fmall pieces of filver, while 
the Roman are large maffes of copper. The former are 
ftruck; the latter caft in moulds. The reverfes of the 
Roman coins are very uniform, the prow of a Hi ip, a car, 
or the like, till about the year 100 B.C. when various re¬ 
verfes appear on their confular coins in all metals. The 
variety and beauty of the Roman imperial reverfes are well 
known. The medallift much values thofe which have a 
number of figures; as the Puella Faujiinianct of Fauftina, 
a gold coin no larger than a fixpence, which has twelve 
figures; that of Trajan, Regna Affignata, has four; the 
Congiarium of Nerva, five ; the Allocution of Trajan, feven ; 
of Hadrian, ten ; of Probus, twelve. Some Roman me¬ 
dals have fmall figures on both fides, as the Apollini Sanclo 
of Julian II. Such have not received any peculiar name 
among the medallilts. Others have only a reverfe, as 
the noted Spintriati , which have numerals I. II. Sec. on 
the obverfe. 
The figures of deities and perfonifications on the Ro¬ 
man coins, are commonly attended with their name, be- 
fides being diftingnifhed with their attributes. Thefe 
names, without an adjundt, are put down merely becaufe 
it was necefl'ary that the coin (hould have a legend. Thus, 
in a coin of Luc.illa, Venus, though well known by the 
apple which (he always holds in her hand, has neverthe- 
lefs the name round her, venvs, without any addition. 
But an adjundt is moll commonly added, and this renders 
the infertion of the name very proper and neceffary, as 
in the inftance of a Neptune, with neptvno redvci; a 
Venus, with veneri victrici; with others fnnilar. The 
like may be faid of the coins with a figure of Modefty, 
PVDiciTiiE AVGVSTffi; of Virtue, virtus avgvsti, Sec. 
for it is the legend which appropriates the virtue to the 
emperor or emprefs, and thus leaves no doubt as to the 
meaning of the reverfe. 
In the Greek coins, a fuperior delicacy is obferved by 
not exprefting the name of the deity, but leaving it to the 
interpretation of fixed fymbols. This remarkable differ¬ 
ence is obfervable in the earlieft coins of the two coun¬ 
tries, on which only the buft of the deity or perfonifica- 
tion is given. The Romans have almoft always the name, 
as pietas, libertas, Sec. while the Greeks content them- 
felves with giving Ceres with her wheaten garland ; Jupi¬ 
ter with his mild countenance, laurel crown, and beard; 
Minerva with her helmet, Sec. Sec. 
Mr. Pinkerton has given an account of the fymbols 
found on the Greek coins, and alio of thofe very few of 
the Roman which are not immediately illuftrated by the 
legend of the medal. The principal deities fymbolized 
in the Greek coins, as divided into male and female, are 
as follow: 1. Jupiter, in the firft rank of gods, occur¬ 
ring frequently on reverfes of Alexander the Great, ami 
eafily known by his eagle and thunderbolt; when the 
buft only occurs on obverfes of coins, it is known by the 
laurel-crown, and placid bearded countenance. Jupiter 
Ammon is diftinguiflied by the ram’s horn twifting round 
his ear. 1. Neptune feldoin occurs on the coins of 
Greece; but, when he appears, he is well known by the 
trident, or the dolphin, and is iomedmes drawn by fea- 
horfes. 
