Odysseus and his faithful dog Argos

Republican denarius serratus minted in 82 BC by the moneyer Gaius Mamilius Limetanus. The silver coin has a depiction of passages in Homer's Odyssey; the reunion of Odysseus with his faithful dog Argos. The obverse shows the draped bust of Mercury, wearing a winged petasos hat and carrying the caduceus.

Odysseus, disguised as a beggar, returns home after twenty years away from Ithaca fighting the Trojan Wars, and is recognised by his aged but ever-faithful dog Argos. Summoning the last of his strength, Argos wags his tail at the sight of his master – the only one to recognise his true identity. The coin is an example of the Republican denarius "serratus" coins with a notched, sawtooth design around the edge of their flans. The "serrati" were intended as an anti-counterfeiting measure, showing the pure silver interior.