help w small coin

[the10thlegion]

My kid got this from a coins for As program.
The left side of the pic has some distinct markings but I can't make heads or tails out of em - so much so I don't even know which end is up.
The pic on the right I assume is the reverse and what I make out is a person facing left kneeling with arm outstretched (yes/no?)
The diameter of the coins is 8.9 narrow side of oval by 9.6 mm long side.
It weighs 0.88 g

[stultus]

It looks like a Barbarous FEL TEMP REPARATIO fallen horseman type.
s.

[the10thlegion]

I can see what you're saying, in fact I can make out a spear tip where I didn't see before.

But the size doesn't fit, 9 mm.
Could it be clipped?

Last night I was looking around and I was leaning toward a nymph.
After reading your reply I'm not so sure about my idea.

[the10thlegion]

Wow, I think you are on the mark.
If you consider the top of the obverse to be around 7:00 those straight lines converging on angles has got to be a draped shoulder.
If that is the case you got the image it's just a super small flan which befuddles me.
Thanks

[the10thlegion]

So is this what we have?

[TenthGen]

That's a pretty neat overlay there. I think you have correctly figured out the type.

Furthermore, I think it looks like it was struck on a tiny flan. Maybe it's clipped, but clipping a base metal coin so carefully as to leave it round without bothering to preserve the face seems a bit unnecessary. In a era of abundant low-quality coinage, post-mint clipping of AEs would be a poor business model, but who knows. My guess is that the coin was tiny from the start. Maybe in-hand you can see indications of cutting?

[the10thlegion]

You are correct that it's a small flan. In hand I see no evidence of clipping. I'm glad I posted here as on my own I never would have guessed. What I find curious how/why only partial of die.

[djmacdo]

Great overlay!

[stultus]

Nice work with the photos!

I have met small flan, AE4 FTR pieces of this type, ca. the size of the Spes Rei Publice coins, sometimes even a bit smaller, but is most cases the size of the dies were adjusted to the small flans. I was wondering, whether the type was continued after the weight reduction in some mints for a very short time. But your coin is too small for these, that is why I wrote barbarous.

Under the reign of Valentinian I I have met small flan coins in several cases, instead of the AE3 size AE4 coins were struck with the regular AE3 dies, mostly dies of the city of Rome. I have met these coins mostly in hoards, where a "smaller denomination" could had been separated - there was a certain difference in the weight of the AE4 and AE3 coins. The closure of all hoards (as far as it could be determined) was before the introduction of a real AE4 denomination, but sometimes these small coins made up 10-20% of the hoards.
I am not sure wether they are unofficial small change, or the mint maunfactured so underweight flans (1-1.3 g). The coins were not clipped.

[the10thlegion]

Well I'm grateful to you Stultus,

I would have never figured this out on my own. It's the first time I've ever run across something like this. But more rewarding to me was seeing my kid get excited when we put it all together.

Thanks