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Home ▸ Catalog ▸ |Roman Coins| ▸ |Crisis & Decline| ▸ |Gordian III||View Options:  |  |  |   

Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D.

Gordian III was the grandson of Gordian I and nephew of Gordian II. He was proclaimed Caesar shortly before the murder of Balbinus and Pupienus, and he succeeded them. Little is known about his reign. In 242 A.D. he embarked on a campaign against the Persian Kingdom which was so successful the Persians had to evacuate Mesopotamia. However, Gordian III died shortly after, through illness or the machinations of his Praetorian prefect and successor, Philip I.

Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Antiocheia, Pisidia

|Pisidia|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Antiocheia,| |Pisidia||AE| |33|
Antiochia in Pisidia, also know as Antiochia in Phrygia, and under the Roman Empire as Antiochia Caesareia or Antiochia Colonia Caesarea, was on the border of Pisidia and Phrygia, at the crossroads of the Mediterranean, Aegean and Central Anatolian regions. After the death of Alexander the Great, Seleucus I Nicator, founder of the Seleucid Dynasty, took control of Pisidia. Captured places were Hellenized and, in order to protect the population, nearly 60 fortified cities were founded at strategically important places, usually on an acropolis. Seleucus gave 16 of them the name of his father Antiochos. Colonists were brought from Magnesia on the Maeander to found Antiochia in Pisidia.Antioch
ME113244. Bronze AE 33, Krzyzanowska XI/58; RPC Online VII.2 2730; BMC Pisidia p. 194; 104; SNGvA 4952; SNG BnF 1199; SNG Hunter 2130; McClean 8945; SNG Pfalz 84, Choice VF, well centered, small central dimples, light deposits, light marks, weight 25.898 g, maximum diameter 33.3 mm, die axis 180o, Antioch in Pisidia (Yalvac, Turkey) mint, 29 Jul 238 - 25 Feb 244 A.D.; obverse IMP CAES M ANT GORDIANVS AV-G (Imperator Caesar Marcus Antonius Gordianus Augustus), laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right; reverse CAES ANTIOCH COL (Caesarea Antiochia Colonia), she-wolf standing right under fig-tree suckling the twins, Romulus and Remus, S R in exergue; $200.00 SALE PRICE $180.00
 


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Tomis, Moesia Inferior

|Tomis|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Tomis,| |Moesia| |Inferior||tetrassaria|
Tomis was founded by Greek colonists on the shore of the Black Sea around 600 B.C. for trade with the local Getic population. The Roman poet Ovid was banished by Augustus to Tomis in 8 A.D. and died there eight years later. By his account, Tomis was "a town located in a war-stricken cultural wasteland on the remotest margins of the empire." Constanta Romania today, the city was renamed to honor Constantine the Great.
RP112136. Bronze tetrassaria, AMNG I/II 3423 (same leg. breaks), Varbanov I 5555 (R3), RPC Online VII.2 1735, Sutzu I 671 var. (Δ left), SNG Cop 300 var. (same), VF, well centered, full legends, green patina, porosity, edge crack, central depressions, weight 12.028 g, maximum diameter 25.7 mm, die axis 0o, Tomis (Constanta, Romania) mint, obverse AVT K M ANTΩN ΓOPΔIANOC (OC ligate, Imperator Caesar Marcus Antonius Gordianus), laureate and draped bust right, seen from behind; reverse MHTPO ΠONTOY TOMEΩC, Athena standing slightly left, head left., right hand resting on grounded shield, spear vertical in right hand, Δ (mark of value) right; from Shawn Caza former diplomat, author of A Handbook of Late Roman Coins (Spink, 2021), collection assembled during postings and international travel; ex Dorotheum Vienna; $100.00 SALE PRICE $90.00
 


|Gordian| |III|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.||antoninianus|
After Apollo insulted him, Eros (cupid) shot Apollo with an arrow that caused him to fall in hopeless love with Daphne, a mortal woman. Eros shot Daphne with an arrow which made her incapable of loving Apollo. Nevertheless Apollo pursued her, and out of desperation Daphne escaped by having herself turned into a laurel. Ever after, winners of the games to honor Apollo wore wreaths of laurel in honor of Apollo's Daphne.
RS113149. Silver antoninianus, RIC IV 89, RSC IV 261, Hunter III 37, SRCV III 8648, Choice VF, well centered, nice portrait, flow lines, mild rev. due wear, weight 5.170 g, maximum diameter 22.6 mm, die axis 180o, Rome mint, 242 - Jul 243 A.D.; obverse IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse P M TR P V COS II P P, Apollo seated left on throne, nude to waist, himation around hips and legs, laurel branch in extended right hand, resting left arm on lyre; ex Numismatik Naumann auction 130 (2 Jul 2023), lot 1309 (part of); $90.00 SALE PRICE $81.00
 


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Nikopolis ad Istrum, Moesia Inferior

|Nikopolis|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Nikopolis| |ad| |Istrum,| |Moesia| |Inferior||tetrassarion|
Struck under Sabinus Modestus, legatus Augusti pro praetore at Nikopolis, 241 - 244 A.D.
RP113327. Bronze tetrassarion, H-H-J Nikopolis 8.36.32.1 (R5); RPC Online VII.2 1297; SNG Budapest III 489; AMNG I 2069; Varbanov 4220, aVF, struck on a broad flan, green-brown patina, deposits, minor roughness, flan crack, central depressions, weight 13.375 g, maximum diameter 29.8 mm, die axis 180o, Nicopolis ad Istrum (Nikyup, Bulgaria) mint, 241 - 244 A.D.; obverse AVT K M ANT ΓOPΔIANOC AVG (VΓ ligate), laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse VΠ CAB MOΔECTOV NIKOΠOΛEITΩN (ΩN ΠP ligate), River-god Istros reclining left, bearded, nude to waist, himation around hips and legs, reed in right hand, resting elbow on urn behind from which water flows, ΠPOC ICTPO/N (ΠP ligate, N in second line) in exergue; ex CNG e-sale 537 (26 Apr 2023), lot 276; ex Dr. Michael Slavin Collection; $90.00 SALE PRICE $81.00
 


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Hadrianopolis, Thrace

|Hadrianopolis|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Hadrianopolis,| |Thrace||tetrassarion|NEW
Hadrian refounded a Thracian tribal capital, changed its name to Hadrianopolis, developed it, adorned it with monuments, and made it the capital of the Roman province. The city is Edirne, Turkey today. From ancient times, the area around Edirne has been the site of no fewer than 16 major battles or sieges. Military historian John Keegan identifies it as "the most contested spot on the globe" and attributes this to its geographical location. Licinius was defeated there by Constantine I in 323, and Valens was killed by the Goths during the Battle of Adrianople in 378.
RP113332. Bronze tetrassarion, Jurukova Hadrianopolis 470 (V230/R456); RPC Online VII.2 733; Varbanov II 3837 var. (obv. legend); BMC Thrace p. 121, 36; SNG Hunterian 916, aVF, brown patina, small flan crack, area of weakness, central mint dimples, weight 8.913 g, maximum diameter 26.1 mm, die axis 180o, Hadrianopolis (Edirne, Turkey) mint, 29 Jul 238 - 25 Feb 244 A.D.; obverse AVT K M ANT ΓOPΔIANOC AVΓ (Imperator Caesar Marcus Antonius Gordianus Augustus, AVΓ ligate), laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse AΔPIANOΠO,ΛEITΩN (ending in exergue, ΩN ligate), river-god Tonzus or Hebros reclining left, reeds in raised right hand, rudder in left hand and crook of left arm, resting left elbow on overturned urn behind from which water flows; ex CNG e-sale 537 (26 Apr 2023), lot 297; From the Dr. Michael Slavin Collection; $90.00 SALE PRICE $81.00
 


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Anchialos, Thrace

|Anchialus|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Anchialos,| |Thrace||AE| |27|
Anchialus (Pomorie, Bulgaria today) was 15 km north of Apollonia on the opposite coast of the Gulf of Burgas. Ovid wrote of the fortified walls of Anchialus in 9 A.D. enroute to Tomis. Anchialos thrived in the 2nd and 3rd centuries serving as the most important import and export station of Thrace and acquired the appearance of a Roman city under the Severan Dynasty.
RP113306. Bronze AE 27, RPC Online VII.2 1166.3; McClean 4429; Tachev Anchialos 302; AMNG II 666.9; SNG Evelpidis 903; Varbanov II 711, F, near full legends, dark brown tone, porosity, central depressions, edge spits, weight 14.383 g, maximum diameter 26.9 mm, die axis 0o, Anchialos (Pomorie, Bulgaria) mint, May 241 - 25 Feb 244 A.D.; obverse AYT K M ANT ΓOPΔIANOC AVΓ CEB, TPANKYΛ/ΛEINA (her name in two lines below), confronted busts of Gordian on left, laureate, draped, and cuirassed, and Tranquillina on right, draped and wearing stephane; reverse OYΛΠIANΩN AΓXIAΛEΩN, Hygieia standing slightly right, head right, feeding snake in right hand from patera in left hand; $80.00 SALE PRICE $72.00
 


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Carrhae, Mesopotamia

|Mesopotamia| |&| |Babylonia|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Carrhae,| |Mesopotamia||AE| |31|
Tyche (Greek for luck; the Roman equivalent was Fortuna) was the presiding tutelary deity that governed the fortune and prosperity of a city, its destiny. Increasingly during the Hellenistic period, cities had their own specific iconic version of Tyche, wearing a mural crown (a crown like the walls of the city).
RP112711. Bronze AE 31, RPC Online VII.2 3445 (3 spec.); BMC Arabia p. 89, 55; SNG Cop 187 var. (crescent above Tyche), aVF, off center, dark tone, porosity, weight 14.920 g, maximum diameter 30.5 mm, die axis 0o, Carrhae (Altinbasak, Turkey) mint, 243 - 244 A.D.; obverse AYTOK K M ANT ΓOPΔIANOC CEB, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse MHTP KOΛ KAPPHNWN, draped, veiled and turreted bust of Tyche left, before her satyr Marsyas standing right on short column, carrying wineskin over shoulder; first specimen of this type handled by Forum; scarce; $70.00 SALE PRICE $63.00
 


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Caesarea, Cappadocia

|Cappadocia|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Caesarea,| |Cappadocia||AE| |23|
Kayseri, originally called Mazaka or Mazaca, is in central Turkey on a low spur on the north side of Mount Erciyes (Mount Argaeus in ancient times). During Achaemenid Persian rule, it was the capital of a Satrapy on the crossroads of the Royal Road from Sardis to Susa and the trade route from Sinope to the Euphrates. It was conquered by Alexander's general Perdikkas, was ruled by Eumenes of Cardia, then passed to the Seleucid empire after the battle of Ipsus. It became the capital of the independent Cappadocian Kingdom under Ariarathes III, around 250 B.C. During Strabo's time it was also known as Eusebia, after the Cappadocian King Ariarathes V Eusebes, 163 – 130 B.C. The name was changed again to "Caesarea in Cappadocia" in honor of Caesar Augustus, upon his death in 14 A.D. The city passed under formal Roman rule in 17 A.D. In Roman times, it prospered on the route from Ephesus to the East. Caesarea was destroyed by the Sassanid King Shapur I after his victory over the Emperor Valerian I in 260 A.D. At the time it was recorded to have around 400,000 inhabitants. Arabic influence changed Caesarea to the modern name Kayseri. The city gradually recovered and has a population of almost 1 million people today. Few traces of the ancient city survive.
RP112704. Bronze AE 23, RPC Online VII.2 3398; Henseler 907p; SNG Leypold 2812; SNG Hunterian 2285; Bland Caesarea 193; Sydenham Caesarea 616; BMC Galatia p. 93, 347, gF, green patina, light earthen deposits, slightly off center, weight 5.909 g, maximum diameter 23.3 mm, die axis 180o, Cappadocia, Caesarea (Kayseri, Turkey) mint, 243 - 244 A.D.; obverse AV KAI M ANT ΓOPΔIANO CE, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse MHTP KAI B NE, six stalks of grain bound together, ET - Z (year 7) across lower field; $50.00 SALE PRICE $45.00
 


|Gordian| |III|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.||aureus|
Providentia is the personification of the ability to foresee and to make provision for the future. This ability was considered essential for the emperor and providentia was among the embodiments of virtues that were part of the imperial cult. Cicero said that providentia, memoria (memory) and intellegentia (understanding) are the three main components of prudentia, the knowledge what is good or bad or neither.
SH97606. Gold aureus, RIC IV 23 (R), Calicó 3213, Cohen IV 195, SRCV III 8579, Hunter - (p. lxxxiii), gVF, well centered and struck, flow lines, bumps, light scrape on obverse, weight 4.732 g, maximum diameter 21.2 mm, die axis 0o, 5th officina, Rome mint, special emission, early 239 A.D.; obverse IMP CAES M ANT GORDIANVS AVG, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse P M TR P II COS P P (high priest, holder of Tribunitian power for two years, consul, father of the country), Providentia standing left, globe in right hand, transverse scepter in left; ex FORVM (2020); scarce; SOLD


Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Viminacium, Moesia Superior

|Viminacium|, |Gordian| |III,| |29| |July| |238| |-| |25| |February| |244| |A.D.,| |Viminacium,| |Moesia| |Superior||AE| |29|
Viminacium was a Roman Colony founded by Gordian III in 239 A.D. The usual legend is P.M.S. COL. VIM., abbreviating Provinciae Moesiae Superioris Colonia Viminacium. The usual type is a female personification of Moesia standing between a lion and a bull. The bull and the lion were symbols of the Legions VII and IV, which were quartered in the province.
SH63944. Bronze AE 29, H-J Viminacium 12 (R2); AMNG I/I 83; BMC Thrace p. 16, 12; SNG Cop 144; Varbanov I -, Nice VF, beautiful fern green patina, weight 17.726 g, maximum diameter 28.6 mm, die axis 0o, Viminacium (Stari Kostolac, Serbia) mint, 242 - 243 A.D.; obverse IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse P M S COL VIM, Moesia standing facing, head left, extending hands over bull on left standing right and lion on right standing left, AN IIII (year 4 of the Viminacium colonial era) in exergue; SOLD




  






OBVERSE LEGENDS

IMPCMANTGORDIANVSAVG
IMPCAESGORDIANVSPIVSAVG
IMPCAESMANTGORDIANVSAVG
IMPCAESMANTGORDIANVSPIVSAVG
IMPGORDIANVSPIVSFELAVG
IMPGORDIANVSPIVSFELIXAVG
MANTGORDIANVSCAES


REFERENCES

Banti, A. & L. Simonetti. Corpus Nummorum Romanorum. (Florence, 1972-1979).
Cohen, H. Description historique des monnaies frappées sous l'Empire Romain, Vol. 5: Gordian I to Valerian II. (Paris, 1885).
Mattingly, H., E. Sydenham & C. Sutherland. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol IV: From Pertinax to Uranius Antoninus. (London, 1986).
Michaux, B. Le monnayage impérial de Gordien III (238-244 après J.C.). (Bruxelles, 2020).
Robinson, A. Roman Imperial Coins in the Hunter Coin Cabinet, University of Glasgow, Vol. III: Pertinax to Aemilian. (Oxford, 1977).
Seaby, H. & D. Sear. Roman Silver Coins, Volume IV, Gordian III to Postumus. (London, 1982).
Sear, D. Roman Coins and Their Values III, The Accession of Maximinus I to the Death of Carinus AD 235 - AD 285. (London, 2005).
Vagi, D. Coinage and History of the Roman Empire. (Sidney, 1999).

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