Lampsakos (AD 193-211) AE 26 - Septimius Severus

Septimius Severus, 193-211 AD. AE26 (13.00g). Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind / Ithyphallic herm of Priapos, holding thyrsus and cantharus, facing left within distyle temple; eagle in pediment, garlanded altar with uncertain figure below, flanked by amphorae. VF, thick green patina. Wagner Coll.

The cult of Priapus, the god of regeneration and fecundity, was centered on Lampsacus, where he supposedly was born of Aphrodite and Dionysus. This apparently unpublished bronze of Septimius Severus presents the most detailed surviving depiction of the temple of Priapus at Lampsakos.