• Bronze coin with bust of Trajan (obverse) and octostyle temple (reverse), 104–111 CE

Curatorial Notes:

• Piranesi studied ancient coins for their depictions of monuments and symbols. This focus on certain pictorial elements differentiates him from most Renaissance numismatists, for example, who tended to focus on images of Roman rulers; their likenesses, perceived as accurate portraits, could be used to identify sculpture. Piranesi’s study of coins was more archaeological, as he used numismatic evidence to help reconstruct lost or ruined structures in his books. The materiality of coins also interested him, because stamped and impressed metal objects had resonance with his own work as an etcher and engraver.

Additional notes:

• https://catalog.princeton.edu/catalog/coin-9112

Credit line:

• Coin 9112. Numismatic Collection, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Identifier:

• ark:/88435/q524jz28c