ROMAN. The History and Coinage of the Roman Imperators. David R. Sear (London, Spink, 1998). First edition, hardbound with dust jacket, xxxii, 360 pages, illustrated throughout. A landmark Spink publication, awarded an IAPN Book Prize, and a major departure from Sear?s usual reference format, combining a detailed historical narrative of the Imperatorial era with an integrated, fully illustrated type catalogue of the coinage struck during Rome?s violent transition from Republic to Empire. Structured in six chapters spanning 49 to 27 B.C., it follows the sequence from Pharsalus and the Caesar Pompey civil war, through Thapsus and Munda, the Ides of March and Philippi, Antony?s ascendancy and the tensions of the Triumvirate, the final contest ending with Antony and Cleopatra, and the emergence of Octavian as Augustus, with each section paired to a comprehensive catalogue of the relevant coin types and varieties and a clear explanation of how each issue reflects contemporary events and propaganda. The volume catalogues 435 principal Roman types with valuations, includes an appendix listing 524 types of contemporary local issues with mapping, and provides practical tools for attribution and collecting such as concordances to standard works, comparative rarity tables and value guidance, supported by hundreds of photographic and line illustrations and additional topographical material, making it equally persuasive as a history, a catalogue, and a working study guide for the most dramatic generation in Roman political life. Paper cover with tiny tears, original book cover is in great condition, overall VG from many years of use. From the personal reference library of David Allen, a well known numismatist, formed over more than 50 years and used as a long term reference for research, attribution, and catalogue work.

Estimate: AUD 100