Saitta (AD 193-197) AE 26 - Claudius Albinus

Clodius Albinus, as Caesar, 193-197 AD. AE26 (10.16g). Bearded head right / Aphrodite, nude and diademed, standing left and covering herself, small winged Eros at left, holding torch, dolphin diving at right. Nice VF, smooth black patina, clear types. Extremely Rare.

Clodius Albinus was a tragic figure whose eastern coinages are quite rare, and this particular coin features an important reverse of artistic merit: the scene is a third generation copy of a Praxiteles sculpture, the first nude rendering of the goddess Aphrodite Knidia in the bath supported by a dolphin. This same imagery was subsequently copied for the Villa Medici in Rome, where it is known as "Venus Medici," and it became a popular Renaissance theme, being the subject of some Boticelli paintings.