Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Electronic Auction 446 . 288
C. Mamilius Limetanus. 82 BC. AR Serrate Denarius (19mm, 3.73 g, 10h). Rome mint. Draped bust of Mercury right, wearing winged petasus; to left, L above caduceus / Ulysses walking right, holding staff and extending hand toward his dog, Argus. Crawford 362/1; Sydenham 741; Mamilia 6. VF, lightly toned, some faint scratches.From the Dr. Charles Schulz Collection, purchased from Harlan J. Berk, October 1982.The obverse and reverse of this coin refer to the lineage of the gens Mamilia, who claimed their descent from Mamilia, the daughter of Telegonus, the son of Ulysses and Circe, and a descendant of Mercury. The reverse scene depicts the moment when, returning home from his long wanderings in the guise of a beggar so as to surprise and kill the many suitors of his wife Penelope, Ulysses' aged dog Argus recognizes him: Soon as he perceivedLong-lost Ulysses nigh, down fell his earsClapped close, and with his tail glad sign he gaveOf gratulation, impotent to rise,And to approach his master as of old.Ulysses, noting him, wiped off a tearUnmarked.. . . Then his destiny releasedOld Argus, soon as he had lived to seeUlysses in the twentieth year restored. (Hom. Od. 17.290 [Cowper's translation]).At last, seeing his master after so many years, the old dog dies.