Marcellinus

How do we know that it was Publius Cornelius Lentulus Marcellinus who issued this coin? Well, because he didn’t try to hide it: looking at the legend on the right of the front side we read “MARCELLINVS”. It was a normal practice for issuers of coins to inscribe their names on the coins they issued. Marcellinus did just that, because, as we said, this year he held the office of moneyer. The moneyers of the republic used coins for their personal promotion, often using images from their family’s history.

In the Roman civil war, which started one year later in 49 BCE, Marcellinus fought for Caesar. He suffered a harsh defeat in 48 against the troops of Pompey. Afterwards, Marcellinus is not mentioned in our sources, so it is possible that he died in the defeat in 48. During his lifetime, he claimed to be a descendant of the legendary Marcellus. We learn more about Marcellus on this coin.