RIC 552 Domitian

AR Denarius, 3.16g
Rome mint, 88 AD
Obv: IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VII; Head of Domitian, laureate, bearded, r.
Rev: COS XIIII across field; Minerva adv r., with spear and shield (M1)
RIC 552 (R2). BMC -. RSC -. BNC -.
Acquired from Germania Inferior Numismatics, February 2020. Ex Spink 20120, 13 February 2020, lot 228 (part), The Michael Kelly Collection.

In 88 AD Domitian struck a brief special issue of Minerva denarii with abbreviated legends and austere reverse designs. The reverses feature a shortened legend across field (here just the COS date) instead of the usual full legend begging from the lower left. All the coins from the issue are quite scarce, likely owing to the brief time span in which they were produced. RIC cites one lone example from Berlin. Perhaps the issue was struck in conjunction with a special event that year (the Secular Games?) and are commemorative in nature. Regardless, the mint soon returned the denarius to its conventional Minerva arrangement, hinting that these scarce issues were indeed struck for a special occasion.

Fine style and well centred.