I was very pleased to recently acquire this coin via a trade with another collector.
At first glance you might think it's just
Constantine's usual
Adventvs type from c.312, rounding up troops ready to battle
Maxentius, but in fact it's almost the opposite ...
Obv: FL
VAL CONSTANTINVS
NOB CRev:
ADVENTVS AVGGThis is
RIC VI London 82, and is very
scarce. At the time
RIC VI was written in 1967 the authors could only refer to a
cast in
Vienna. The BM subsequently acquired a specimen in 1983 (in somewhat similar condition to mine). I'm only aware of two other specimens, in private
collections, although presumably a few more are out there.
The
RIC VI Notes for
London say "
Constantine's
Adventvs Avgg, known only from a
cast, needs confirmation; if authentic, its meaning is not clear".
The coin is dated by
RIC to "summer 307", but a more accurate date might be sometime between 7/25/307 when
Maximianus was recognized as
senior Augustus by
Constantine, and before 12/25/307 when
Constantine married
Maximianus's daughter
Fausta and was himself elevated to
Augustus.
Depeyrot's chronology for this time period has:
7/25/306
Constantine's father dies (in York,
Britain, with
Constantine by
his side)
Summer 306
Constantine (evidentially now back in
Gaul) battles the Franks and Bructeri
8/25/306
Maxentius usurps in
RomeMarch/April 307 Maxmianus engages
Severus II (attempting to reclaim
Rome for
Galerius) at
RavennaMarch/April 307
Maximianus departs to
Gaul (to forge
alliance with
Constantine)
7/25/307
Maximianus recognized as
senior Augustus by
Constantine12/25/307
Constantine marries
Fausta, and is himself evelated to
Augustus by
MaximianusThis
Adventvs type, with plural
Avgg, seems to pair/coincide with a another
London type with plural
reverse,
Victoria Avgg (unlisted in
RIC, Downside
hoard #34, now in Somerset museum, UK), known only for
Maximianus.
The adventus, and plural "
avgg" (
RIC: "meaning is not clear") would appear to refer to a joint adventus of
Constantine and
Maximianus, most likely after (or on occasion of)
Constantine's recognition of
Maximianus as
senior augustus (as
per his title on the
Victoria Avgg type). What's unclear is where this adventus occurred, but it seems that
Gaul (Trier) is probably more likely than
Britain, and
London was just propagating the news.
As I said, almost the opposite of
Constantine's later
Adventvs type ... here celebrating
his alliance with
Maximianus (&
Maxentius), then later rounding up troops to go after
Maxentius, with
Maximianus already having chosen the honorable way out!
Ben
P.S. For anyone curious, here (from a 14yr old post!) is the coin I traded to get this one ... beauty for
history !
https://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=33846.0
