contorniate
Sign in to savethumb|Contorniate of Sallust A contorniate, or contourniate (UK pronunciation: ), is a type of ancient Roman medal or medallion of bronze issued in the fourth and fifth centuries CE, having a deep furrow on the contour or edge, as if the object had been turned in a lathe. The extant contorniates show portraits of various earlier emperors (especially Nero and Trajan) or of cultural figures such as Homer, Solon, Euclid, Pythagoras, Socrates, Sallust, Apollonius Tyaneus, and Apuleius, as well as athletes, whose victories are symbolized by palm leaves and chariots, either bigae or quadrigae. The
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Within Vinony's link graph, contorniate is referenced by 6 other articles, and connects out to medallion, Socrates and Homer.
It sits within the topics Ancient Greece, Award items and Culture of ancient Rome.
Its subject is documented across 12 Wikipedia language editions.
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- denomination
- Material used
- metal
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- Contorniates
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- Pauly–Wissowa
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thumb|Contorniate of Sallust A contorniate, or contourniate (UK pronunciation: ), is a type of ancient Roman medal or medallion of bronze issued in the fourth and fifth centuries CE, having a deep furrow on the contour or edge, as if the object had been turned in a lathe. The extant contorniates show portraits of various earlier emperors (especially Nero and Trajan) or of cultural figures such as Homer, Solon, Euclid, Pythagoras, Socrates, Sallust, Apollonius Tyaneus, and Apuleius, as well as athletes, whose victories are symbolized by palm leaves and chariots, either bigae or quadrigae. The medals were not used as currency, but may have been distributed as New Year's gifts in association with public spectacles, including chariot races and pantomime.
The standard catalog of these medals is by Andreas and Elisabeth Alföldi, Kontorniat-Medaillons (Berlin, 1976), (v. 1) and (v.2).
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “contorniate” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.