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Here is an example of a cabinet showing three different available styles of trays for storage. At the top is a standard round recess type tray....very traditional.
In the middle is an open format tray for displaying items "free form", or for items of unusual sizes/shapes such as large medals, military decorations or pocket watches.
On the bottom is a new offering; a drawer for slabs. Each drawer can hold 30 slabs from any of the three major slabbing firms; PCGS, NCG, or ANACS. Other commercial, or "DIY" slabs should also fit, provided they are no larger than any from the "big three" firms.
www.CabinetsByCraig.netcmcdon0923
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This "Otho" with "VÍCTORIA PR" reverse is an ingenious fabrication created by the famous forger "Tardani". He had obviously realized that there were a few VICTORIA OTHONIS dies recut from Galba's VICTORIA PR dies and created this fictitious but possible coin with copies of real dies. I used to have this coin and another with the same dies is in the Berlin coin cabinet. Both are overweight, around 3.9 gr. It took some time to find a Galba minted with this particular reverse die but finally I succeeded. The final proof is seen in this coin, there are a few regions were the die has broken, ie before the die ever could have been used for an Otho coin. The coin is quite convincing because of the dies, but the surfaces were a bit strange and the legends unusual in profile.jmuona
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INDIA, Post-Mauryan (Deccan). Ishvakus. Mathariputra Sri Vira Purishadatta, circa 250-270. Unit (Lead, 15 mm, 3.31 g). SIRI VIRA (in Brahmi) Elephant with raised trunk standing to right. Rev. Four-orbed Ujjain Symbol. Pieper 723. Rare and unusually attractive. Minor deposits, otherwise, very fine.
Quant.Geek
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Chersonesos, Thrace, c. 386 - 338 B.C. Silver hemidrachm, Weber 2422; BMC Thrace p. 185, 43; McClean II 4071; HGC 3.2, 1437; SNG Cop -, Choice gVF, attractive neat style, toned, Cherronesos (Gallipoli peninsula) mint, weight 2.323g, maximum diameter 14.1mm, c. 386 - 338 B.C.; obverse lion forepart right, head turned back left, tongue protruding; reverse quadripartite incuse with alternating shallow and deeper sunken quarters, pellet and VE ligature in one sunken quarter (pellet mostly off flan), pellet and five-point star (pentagram) in the opposite sunken quarter. Coin & photography ex Forum Ancient Coins.
This example is unusually well centered on the obverse, which motivated me to purchase it. Overall I believe it is an attractive coin. paul1888
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5 ClaudiusClaudius. A.D. 41-54.
Æ as (29 mm, 12.16 g, 6 h). Rome, ca. A.D. 50(?)-54.
TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TR P IMP P P, bare head of Claudius left / LIBERTAS AVGVSTA, S C across field, Libertas standing facing, head right, holding pileus and extending left hand.
RIC 113; BMCRE 204; Cohen -.
Unusual red, green and red-brown patina. Light porosity and chipping on obverse edge. Very fine.
Ex-Triskeles Auction, June 2013
RI0024Sosius
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ROME
PB Tessera (23mm, 6.90 g, 12h
Rudder
Flaccid male genitals (or leaf?)
Rostovtsev –
The obverse type differs from the phallic imagery sometimes scene on Roman tesserae. This example depicts a flaccid, rather than engorged penis, often conservatively described in numismatics as a "pudenda virilia." The unusual shape of this piece, combined with the differing obverse type, makes me think this may be a fertility amulet.Ardatirion
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D.626 Charles II the Bald (denier, class 1d, Melle)Charles the Bald, king of the Franks (840-877)
Denier (Melle, class 1d, 840-864)
Silver, 1.73 g, 21 mm diameter, die axis 5h
O/ +CΛRLVS REX; cross pattée
R/ +METVLLO; carolingian monogram
This coinage with the shorter legend CΛRLVS REX is much rarer than the common one with the legend CΛRLVS REX FR. The composition of a hoard in Poitou suggests that this type can be unambiguously attributed to Charles the Bald. This coinage may have been minted at the beginning of Charles the Bald's reign, just before Pippin II took the control of Melle in 845.
Among the 12 known specimens, 5 have a deformed monogram, with the L and the S exchanging places, and on their sides. This feature, the shorter legend, as well as the unusual position of the legend opening cross on top of the monogram may suggest that there was some confusion in Melle at this time, when Charles gave back (temporarily) Aquitaine to Pippin.
The reverse is slightly double struck.
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Dy.134 Louis VII (the Young): denier (Bourges)Louis VII, king of the Franks (1137-1180)
Denier (Bourges)
Billon, 0.70 g, diameter 19 mm, die axis 1h30
O/ +LVDOVICVS REX; facing bearded and crowned head of the king
R/ +VRBS BI - TVRICA; latine flowered cross that interrups the legend
This type of coin with the king's face is quite unusual for the Capetian coinage. However, it was hard to recognize the king's face !
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"As de Nîmes" or "crocodile" Ӕ dupondius of Nemausus (9 - 3 BC), honoring Augustus and AgrippaIMP DIVI F , Heads of Agrippa (left) and Augustus (right) back to back, Agrippa wearing rostral crown and Augustus the oak-wreath / COL NEM, crocodile right chained to palm-shoot with short dense fronds and tip right; two short palm offshoots left and right below, above on left a wreath with two long ties streaming right.
Ó”, 24.5 x 3+ mm, 13.23g, die axis 3h; on both sides there are remains of what appears to be gold plating, perhaps it was a votive offering? Rough edges and slight scrapes on flan typical for this kind of coin, due to primitive technology (filing) of flan preparation.
IMPerator DIVI Filius. Mint of COLonia NEMausus (currently Nîmes, France). Known as "As de Nîmes", it is actually a dupontius (lit. "two-pounder") = 2 ases (sometimes cut in halves to get change). Dupondii were often made out of a golden-colored copper alloy (type of brass) "orichalcum" and this appears to be such case.
Key ID points: oak-wreath (microphotography shows that at least one leaf has a complicated shape, although distinguishing oak from laurel is very difficult) – earlier versions have Augustus bareheaded, no PP on obverse as in later versions, no NE ligature, palm with short fronds with tip right (later versions have tip left and sometimes long fronds). Not typical: no clear laurel wreath together with the rostral crown, gold (?) plating (!), both features really baffling.
But still clearly a "middle" kind of the croc dupondius, known as "type III": RIC I 158, RPC I 524, Sear 1730. It is often conservatively dated to 10 BC - 10 AD, but these days it is usually narrowed to 9/8 - 3 BC.
It is a commemorative issue, honoring the victory over Mark Antony and conquest of Egypt in 30 BC. The heads of Augustus and Agrippa were probably positioned to remind familiar obverses of Roman republican coins with two-faced Janus. Palm branch was a common symbol of victory, in this case grown into a tree, like the victories of Augustus and Agrippa grown into the empire. The two offshoots at the bottom may mean two sons of Agrippa, Gaius and Lucius, who were supposed to be Augustus' heirs and were patrons of the colony. Palm may also be a symbol of the local Nemausian deity, which was probably worshiped in a sacred grove. When these coins were minted, the colony was mostly populated by the settled veterans of Augustus' campaigns, hence the reminiscence of the most famous victory, but some of the original Celtic culture probably survived and was assimilated by Romans. The crocodile is not only the symbol of Egypt, like in the famous Octavian's coins AEGYPTO CAPTA. It is also a representation of Mark Antony, powerful and scary both in water and on land, but a bit slow and stupid. The shape of the crocodile with tail up was specifically chosen to remind of the shape of ship on very common "legionary" denarius series, which Mark Antony minted to pay his armies just before Actium. It is probably also related to the popular contemporary caricature of Cleopatra, riding on and simultaneously copulating with a crocodile, holding a palm branch in her hand as if in triumph. There the crocodile also symbolized Mark Antony.
Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa was born c. 64-62 BC somewhere in rural Italy. His family was of humble and plebeian origins, but rich, of equestrian rank. Agrippa was about the same age as Octavian, and the two were educated together and became close friends. He probably first served in Caesar's Spanish campaign of 46–45 BC. Caesar regarded him highly enough to send him with Octavius in 45 BC to train in Illyria. When Octavian returned to Rome after Caesar's assassination, Agrippa became his close lieutenant, performing many tasks. He probably started his political career in 43 BC as a tribune of the people and then a member of the Senate. Then he was one of the leading Octavian's generals, finally becoming THE leading general and admiral in the civil wars of the subsequent years.
In 38 as a governor of Transalpine Gaul Agrippa undertook an expedition to Germania, thus becoming the first Roman general since Julius Caesar to cross the Rhine. During this foray he helped the Germanic tribe of Ubii (who previously allied themselves with Caesar in 55 BC) to resettle on the west bank of the Rhine. A shrine was dedicated there, possibly to Divus Caesar whom Ubii fondly remembered, and the village became known as Ara Ubiorum, "Altar of Ubians". This quickly would become an important Roman settlement. Agrippina the Younger, Agrippa's granddaughter, wife of Emperor Claudius and mother of Emperor Nero, would be born there in 15 AD. In 50 AD she would sponsor this village to be upgraded to a colonia, and it would be renamed Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium (colony of Claudius [at] the Altar of Agrippinians – Ubii renamed themselves as Agrippinians to honor the augusta!), abbreviated as CCAA, later to become the capital of new Roman province, Germania Inferior.
In 37 BC Octavian recalled Agrippa back to Rome and arranged for him to win the consular elections, he desperately needed help in naval warfare with Sextus Pompey, the youngest son of Pompey the Great, who styled himself as the last supporter of the republican cause, but in reality became a pirate king, an irony since his father was the one who virtually exterminated piracy in all the Roman waters. He forced humiliating armistice on the triumvirs in 39 BC and when Octavian renewed the hostilities a year later, defeated him in a decisive naval battle of Messina. New fleet had to be built and trained, and Agrippa was the man for the job. Agrippa's solution was creating a huge secret naval base he called Portus Iulius by connecting together lakes Avernus, Avernus and the natural inner and outer harbors behind Cape Misenum at the northern end of the Gulf of Naples. He also created a larger type of ship and developed a new naval weapon: harpax – a ballista-launched grapnel shot with mechanisms that allowed pulling enemy ships close for easy boarding. It replaced the previous boarding device that Romans used since the First Punic War, corvus – effective, but extremely cumbersome. A later defence against it were scythe blades on long poles for cutting ropes, but since this invention was developed in secret, the enemy had no chance to prepare anything like it. It all has proved extremely effective: in a series of naval engagements Agrippa annihilated the fleet of Sextus, forced him to abandon his bases and run away. For this Agrippa was awarded an unprecedented honour that no Roman before or after him received: a rostral crown, "corona rostrata", a wreath decorated in front by a prow and beak of a ship.
That's why Virgil (Aeneid VIII, 683-684), describing Agrippa at Actium, says: "…belli insigne superbum, tempora navali fulgent rostrata corona." "…the proud military decoration, gleams on his brow the naval rostral crown". Actium, the decisive battle between forces of Octavian and Mark Antony, may appear boring compared to the war with Sextus, but it probably turned out this way due to Agrippa's victories in preliminary naval engagements and taking over all the strategy from Octavian.
In between the wars Agrippa has shown an unusual talent in city planning, not only constructing many new public buildings etc., but also greatly improving Rome's sanitation by doing a complete overhaul of all the aqueducts and sewers. Typically, it was Augustus who later would boast that "he had found the city of brick but left it of marble", forgetting that, just like in his naval successes, it was Agrippa who did most of the work. Agrippa had building programs in other Roman cities as well, a magnificent temple (currently known as Maison Carrée) survives in Nîmes itself, which was probably built by Agrippa.
Later relationship between Augustus and Agrippa seemed colder for a while, Agrippa seemed to even go into "exile", but modern historians agree that it was just a ploy: Augustus wanted others to think that Agrippa was his "rival" while in truth he was keeping a significant army far away from Rome, ready to come to the rescue in case Augustus' political machinations fail. It is confirmed by the fact that later Agrippa was recalled and given authority almost equal to Augustus himself, not to mention that he married Augustus' only biological child. The last years of Agrippa's life were spent governing the eastern provinces, were he won respect even of the Jews. He also restored Crimea to Roman Empire. His last service was starting the conquest of the upper Danube, were later the province of Pannonia would be. He suddenly died of illness in 12 BC, aged ~51.
Agrippa had several children through his three marriages. Through some of his children, Agrippa would become ancestor to many subsequent members of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. He has numerous other legacies.Yurii P
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001 Ribe sceatSceatta of uncertain origin, probably Ribe, Denmark
Series X
S.797
O: Facing bust, possibly Odin/Woden
R: Monster right
These coins are generally believed to have been produced in Ribe and had a fairly extensive production with wide distribution throughout the North Sea world.
This particular coin is of an unusual variety, which has quaterfoils of pellets surrounding the face, rather than crosses.
Ex- AMR CoinsSt. George's Collection
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004 Harald "Bluetooth" GormssonBracteate penny of Harald "Bluetooth", king of Denmark 958-986 and Norway 970-986
Mint: Hedeby
Dorestad type
Harald, known as Bluetooth for uncertain reasons, but possibly due to a discolored or painted tooth, is known for introducing Christianity, and coinage, to Denmark. His unusual nickname has survived to the modern day, in the form of Bluetooth devices, named after Harald
Ex- Oslo Myntgalleri auction 36 (lot 620), CJ Simensen, Hornung auction 1 (lot 33)St. George's Collection
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009. Vespasian, 69-79AD. AR Denarius.Vespasian 69-79. Rome mint, AR Denarius. Struck in 75A.D.
Obv. Laureate head right IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG
Rev. Pax seated left, holding branch PON MAX TRP COS VI
19.5mm, 2.84g. RSC 366, RIC 772 (90).
A very craggy Vespasianic portrait. Pax appears to be bared to the waist, unusual. LordBest
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0114 Lucius Appuleius Saturninus - AR denariusRome
²101 BC / ¹104 BC
helmeted head of Roma left
Saturn in quadriga right holding harpa and reins
·T·
L·SATVRN
¹Crawford 317/3a, SRCV I 193, Sydenham 578, RSC I Appuleia 1
²Mark Passehl - Roman moneyer & coin type chronology, 150 – 50 BC
3,5g 19mm
As quaestor Saturninus superintended the imports of grain at Ostia, but had been removed by the Roman Senate (an unusual proceeding), and replaced by Marcus Aemilius Scaurus, one of the chief members of the Optimates. Standard view is that injustice of his dismissal drove him into the arms of the Populares. In 103 BC he was elected tribune. Marius, on his return to Rome after his victory over the Cimbri, finding himself isolated in the senate, entered into a compact with Saturninus and his ally Gaius Servilius Glaucia, and the three formed a kind of triumvirate, supported by the veterans of Marius and many of the common people. By the aid of bribery and assassination Marius was elected (100 BC) consul for the sixth time, Glaucia praetor, and Saturninus tribune for the second time. Marius, finding himself overshadowed by his colleagues and compromised by their excesses, thought seriously of breaking with them, and Saturninus and Glaucia saw that their only hope of safety lay in their retention of office. Saturninus was elected tribune for the third time for the year beginning December 10, 100, and Glaucia, although at the time praetor and therefore not eligible until after the lapse of 2 years, was a candidate for the consulship. Marcus Antonius Orator was elected without opposition; the other Optimate candidate, Gaius Memmius, who seemed to have the better chance of success, was beaten to death by the hired agents of Saturninus and Glaucia, while the voting was actually going on. This produced a complete revulsion of public feeling. The Senate met on the following day, declared Saturninus and Glaucia public enemies, and called upon Marius to defend the State. Marius had no alternative but to obey. Saturninus, defeated in a pitched battle in the Roman Forum (December 10), took refuge with his followers in the Capitol, where, the water supply having been cut off, they were forced to capitulate. Marius, having assured them that their lives would be spared, removed them to the Curia Hostilia, intending to proceed against them according to law. But the more impetuous members of the aristocratic party climbed onto the roof, stripped off the tiles, and stoned Saturninus and many others to death. Glaucia, who had escaped into a house, was dragged out and killed. (wikipedia)J. B.
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019. Caesar Augustus.Denarius, 2 BC - 4 AD, Lugdunum mint.
Obverse: CAESAR AVGVSTVS DIVI F PATER PATRIAE / Laureate bust of Augustus.
Reverse: C L CAESARES AVGVSTI F COS DESIG PRINC IVVENT / Caius and Lucius, each holding spear and shield. Lituus and Simpulum above.
3.85 gm., 19 mm.
RIC #350; RSC 43c; Sear #1597.
The reverse of this coin is unusual in that the Lituus is on the left and the Simpulum is on the right. Most coins have it the other way around.Callimachus
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019a08. Marcus AureliusDenarius. 161 AD. Obv: IMP M AVREL ANTONINVS AVG, bare head right. Rev: CONCORD AVG TR P XV, COS III in ex, Concordia seated left, holding patera; cornucopiae under seat. RIC 2, RSC 30.
COIN NOTE: This coin has an unusually high-relief striking of the portrait.lawrence c
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0475 Hadrian Dupondius Roma 119-23 AD PietasReference.
C.1043; RIC 601b; BMC1233; Strack 542; RIC 475
Bust A2
Obv. IMP CAESAR TRAIAN HADRIANVS AVG PM TRP COS III
Radiate, bust with drapery
Rev. PIETAS AVGVSTI; S C in field
Pietas veilt, standing right before altar, raising one hand and holding box of incense in other.
12.67 gr
29 mm
6h
ex. CNG 124 124 lot 255 in 2005
Note.
An unusual coin that was overstruck on another coin with a different reverse type. Parts of the undertype is clearly visible on the reverse; the beginning of the legend PM, the last letter of the legend I, the lower part of the border of dots. Also, the feet of Pietas and the lower SC are from the undertype. Interestingly, the obverse shows no traces of over striking.
During various periods in Rome's history, the mint employed a system where two reverse dies of different types were used with one obverse die, the Celators switching back and forth between reverses with each successive strike. In this case though, no coins are recorded with this obverse die that have reverse legends that begin PM, nor do any earlier issues of Hadrian. An interesting coin.okidoki
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0543 Hadrian Denarius Roma 119-23 AD RomaReference.
RIC II, 78; Strack 121; RIC 543
Bust B1 crop
Obv. IMP CAESAR TRAIAN HADRIANV(S) AVG (sic)
Laureate, cuirassed bust cropped of its pteryges
Rev. P M TR P COS III
Roma helmeted seated left on cuirass, holding Victory in right. hand and spear in left, shield behind.
3.00 gr
17 mm
6h
Note.
Die-engraver's error on obv. legend - no 'S', and unusual placement of 'G' overlapping with bust, RIC states that errors are common on this type (RIC II.3, p. 109)okidoki
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06 Nero RIC I 15Nero. 54-68 A.D. AR Denarius. Rome Mint. 54 A.D. Oct.-Dec.. (3.43g, 19.1mm, 9h) . Obv: NERO CAESAR AVG IMP, bare head right. Rev: PONTIF MAX TR P IIII PP around oak-wreath enclosing EX SC. RIC I 15 (R2).
A worn but scarce pre-reform denarius from early in Nero’s reign. Despite the wear, the weight of this specimen is quite nice. The EX SC with the oak wreath could allude to the Senate’s awarding of the corona civica to Nero. This specimen also has a very unusual die axis for imperial coinage of the Roman mint from this time.Lucas H
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0620 Focus, 602-610AV solidus, 22.8mm, 4.49g, EF
Struck 607-610 at Constantinople
DN FOCAS PERP AVG, draped and cuirassed bust facing, wearing crown and holding globus cruciger / VICTORIA [AVGU] I, Angel standing facing, holding staff surmounted with Rho and globus cruciger; CONOB in exg. Unusual double strike.
Sear 620; Hahn 9
Lawrence W
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - O2 - RIC -Obv:– IMP CA L SEP SEV - PER AVG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– BONA SPES, Spes standing holding flower and lifting skirt
Minted in Emesa. A.D. 194 – A.D. 195
Reference:– BMCRE -. RIC -. RSC -
A nice example from this unusual obverse legend variant
1.80g, 16.87mm, 0omaridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - O3 - RIC -Obv:– IMP CA L SEP SEV PER AVG COS II, laureate head right
Rev:– BONI EVENTVS, Fides standing left holding basket of fruit and corn ears
Minted in Emesa. A.D. 194
Reference:– BMC -. RIC -. RSC -.
Very unusual obverse legend variety.maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - O3 - RIC -Obv:– IMP CA L SEP SEV - PER AVG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– BONI EVENTVS, Fides (Bonus Eventus - RIC) standing left, basket of fruit in right, two heads of grain in left
Minted in Emesa. A.D. 194 – A.D. 195
Reference:– BMCRE -. RIC - (369 var.). RSC 68 var.
A nice example from this unusual obverse legend variant.
Ex- Forum Ancient Coinsmaridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - O3 - RIC -Obv:–IMP CA L SEP SEV PER AVG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– VICTO-R AV-G, Victory advancing left, holding wreath and palm
Minted in Emesa. A.D. 194 - 195
References:– BMCRE -. RIC -. RSC -.
Unusual shortened legend.
maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - O4 - RIC -Obv:– IMP CA L SE SEV PER AV COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– IOVI VICTORI, Jupiter, seated left, holding Victory and sceptre
Minted in Emesa, A.D. 194-195
References:– RIC -, RSC -, BMCRE -
3.05g, 17.93mm, 0o
Unusual obverse legend variety with shortened forms from the normal legend. Scarce reverse type. maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - O9 - RIC -Obv:– IMP CA L SE SEV PER AG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– FORT REDVC, Fortuna standing left, holding rudder & cornucopia
Minted in Emesa, A.D. 194
References:– RIC -. BMCRE -. RSC -.
2.40g, 18.83mm, 0o
A very unusual obverse legend variant. maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - O9 - RIC -Obv:– IMP CA L SE SEV PER AG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– FORT REDVC, Fortuna standing left, holding long scepter & cornucopia
Minted in Emesa, A.D. 194
References:– RIC -. BMCRE -. RSC -.
3.17g, 18.54mm, 0o
This is an unusual legend with several spelling errors. It is an obverse die match to a coin in the Doug Smith collection (different reverse type). A reverse die match exists in the British Museum (different obverse die). maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - O9 - RIC -Obv:– IMP CA L SE SEV PER AG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev– LIBER AVG, Liberalitas standing left, holding abacus in right hand, cornucopiae in left
Minted in Emesa. A.D. 194-195
Reference:– BMCRE -. RIC - RSC -.
Another reverse type for this unusual obverse die bringing my total to FIVE different reverses. maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - RIC -Obv:– IMP CAE L SEP SEV PERT AVG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– BONA SPEI, Spes standing holding flower and lifting skirt
Minted in Emesa, A.D. 194 - 195
References:– BMCRE -, RIC -, RSC 55d (citing Tinchant cat.)
Die axis 0 degrees. Weight 2.61g
Unusual obverse legend break P-ERT. maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - RIC -Obv:– L SEPT SEVER PERT AVG IMP VIII, Laureate head right
Rev:– VIRTVT-I AVG, Mars walking right holding spear and trophy
Minted in Laodicea-ad-Mare. A.D. 196-197
Reference(s) – BMCRE -. RIC IV - (cf. RIC 847, an Aureus of the type). RSC -.
A very unusual obverse legend with SEVER.maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - RIC 406aObv:– I-M-P CAE L SEP SEV PERT AVG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– MART VICTOR, Mars advancing right carrying spear and trophy
Minted in Emesa. A.D. 194-194
Reference:– RIC 406a (Scarce)
Unusual with the split start to the obverse legend.maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - RIC 424Obv:– IMP CAE L SEP SEV PERT AVG COS II, Laureate head right
Rev:– VICT AVG, Victory walking left, holding wreath in right hand, palm in left
Minted in Emesa, A.D. 194 - 195
References:– BMCRE 395, RIC 424, RSC 675a
Slightly unusual style on the bust (a new die for me). Some minor lamination issues on the reverse. maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - RIC 479A (b)Obv:– L SEPT SEV PER-T AVG IMP VIII, laureate head right
Rev:– FORT REDVC, Fortuna (Hilaritas) standing front, head left, holding long palm and cornucopiae
Minted in Laodicea-ad-Mare. A.D. 196
Ref:– BMCRE 443a. RIC IV 479A (b) (R2)
Unusual obverse legend break PER-T as opposed to the more usual PE-RT. maridvnvm
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064 - Septimius Severus denarius - RIC 479A (b)Obv:– L SEPT SEV PER-T AVG IMP VIII, laureate head right
Rev:– FORT REDVC, Fortuna (Hilaritas) standing front, head left, holding long palm and cornucopiae
Minted in Laodicea-ad-Mare. A.D. 196
Ref:– BMCRE 443a. RIC IV 479A (b) (R2)
Unusual obverse legend break PER-T as opposed to the more usual PE-RT. maridvnvm
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071. Crispina.Denarius, 180 -182 AD, Rome mint.
Obverse: CRISPINA AVGVSTA / Bust of Crispina.
Reverse: DIS GENITALIBVS / Lighted altar.
3.49 gm., 18 mm.
RIC #281; Sear #5999.
This coin of Crispina has an unusual reverse type: an altar dedicated to the gods of childbirth. We know of no children born to Crispina and Commodus. Stevenson says of this reverse (p. 332): "It would seem that the empress had dedicated an altar to the dii genitales, either for having had children, or that she might obtain fertility from them, or that she might commend the child with which she was pregnant to their care and protection.Callimachus
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076b Philippus II. (244-7 A.D., Caes, 247-9 A.D. Aug.), RIC IV-III 240a var., Antioch, AR-Antoninianus, AEQVITAS AVG, Aequitas standing left, Rare! #1076b Philippus II. (244-7 A.D., Caes, 247-9 A.D. Aug.), RIC IV-III 240a var., Antioch, AR-Antoninianus, AEQVITAS AVG, Aequitas standing left, Rare! #1
avers:- IMP M IVL PHILIPPVS AVG, Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right. Not AVGG!!.
revers:- AEQVITAS AVG, Aequitas standing left, holding scales and cornucopia.
exergo: -/-//--, diameter: 20,5-22 mm, weight: 3,76 g, axis: 0 h,
mint: Antioch, date: 247-48 A.D., ref: RIC-IV-III-240a variation, RIC Listed AVGG!!, RSC 1var., (known = 5)
Q-001
Note: Only Cohen lists as AVG. RIC and Seaby state that Cohen is in error. The AVG legend is unusual since Philip II never ruled without his father.quadrans
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087. Caracalla.Antoninianus, 215-217 AD, Rome mint.
Obverse: ANTONINVS PIVS AVG GERM / Radiate bust of Caracalla.
Reverse: VENVS VICTRIX / Venus standing, holding Victory and spear, leaning on a shield set on a helmet.
4.87 gm., 23.5 mm.
RIC #311c.
The reverse is unusual for an Emperor, and may refer to Caracalla's plan to solve the Parthian problem by marrying the daughter of the Parthian king (RIC Vol. IV, pt, 1, p, 88).Callimachus
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089 - Philip I Antoninianus - RIC -Antoninianus
Obv:– IMP M IVL PHILIPPVS AVG, Radiate, draped, cuirassed bust right
Rev:– AEQVITAS AVG, Aequitas standing left, holding scales and cornucopia
Minted in Antioch. A.D. 247
Reference:– RIC -; RSC -; Cohen 8; Tulln Hoard 894
This coin bears the unusual reverse ending in AVG instead of AVGG. Cohen listed this legend, but RIC and RSC cite this as erroneous. But both legend varieties are now known.
The issues from Antioch wich ending on reverse with AVG are scarce among Philip's coinages.
Uneven strike.maridvnvm
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089 - Philip I Antoninianus - RIC -Antoninianus
Obv:– IMP M IVL PHILIPPVS AVG, Radiate, draped, cuirassed bust right
Rev:– AEQVITAS AVG, Aequitas standing left, holding scales and cornucopia
Minted in Antioch. A.D. 247
Reference:– RIC -; RSC -; Cohen 8; Tulln Hoard 894
3.73g, 22.32mm, 0o
This coin bears the unusual reverse ending in AVG instead of AVGG. Cohen listed this legend, but RIC and RSC cite this as erroneous. But both legend varieties are now known.
The issues from Antioch wich ending on reverse with AVG are scarce among Philip's coinages.maridvnvm
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1 Innocent XI undated Half Piastre M53An interesting obverse type featuring a completely unsymmetrical 3/4 view of the pope's arms. The lion and eagle are remarkably lifelike, quite unusual for elements of coats of arms, and both appear to be ready to leave the coin. The eagle seems particularly interested in testing his wings, perhaps having noticed the lion is watching him with a lean and hungry look.
The reverse translates to "to the greedy it shall not be given." A number of the reformed coins of this pope featured legends encouraging charity. stlnats
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102a. PlotinaPlotina, wife of Trajan.
Under Trajan, his female relations played enormously important roles in the empire's public life, and received honors perhaps unparalleled. Trajan's wife, Pompeia Plotina, is reported to have said, when she entered the imperial palace in Rome for the first time, that she hoped she would leave it the same person she was when she entered. She received the title Augusta no later than 105. She survived Trajan, dying probably in 121, and was honored by Hadrian with a temple, which she shared with her husband, in the great forum which the latter had built.
Æ trial strike of denarius dies (23 mm, 7.42 g). Rome. [PL]OTINA AVG IMP TRAIANI, diademed and draped bust right, hair in queue down neck / CAES AVG GERMA [D]A[C] COS V[I P P], Vesta seated left, holding palladium in right hand, sceptre in left. Cf. RIC 730 (Trajan); cf. BMC 526 (Trajan); cf. RSC 3. VF, rough green patina. Very unusual and probably unique. Ex Spink 160 (9-10 October 2002), 852. ecoli
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116-115 BC M. Sergius SilusHelmeted head of Roma right
EX SC before, ROMA and XVI in monogram gehind
Helmeted horseman galloping left, holding sword and severed Gallic head in left hand
M SERGI below, SILVS in ex, Q below horses's forelegs
Rome 116-115 BC
3.91g
VF+
Sear 163, RRC 286/1
This issuer strikes as a quaestor and by special decree of the Senate (EX Senatus Consulto). Quaestors were the immediate superiors of the moneyers and under unusual circumstances occasionally utilized their authority to produce coins.
Ex-Lucernae
2011 Forum Best of Type winnerJay GT4
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132 - Probus - RIC 112 var - (Lugdunum) (IIII)Obv:– IMP C PROBVS P F AVG, Radiate, cuirassed bust right (see from the rear)
Rev:– VIRTVS AVG, Soldier standing left, holding Victory and spear, left hand on shield
Minted in Lugdunum (IIII in exe) Emission 6 Officina 4. A.D. 278 to 279
Reference:– Cohen 816 (Bust not differentiated from Cuirassed from front). Bastien 300 (1 example cited). RIC 112 var (Not listed with this bust type in RIC)
3.99 gms. 0 degrees.
This is an unusual bust type for Probus but especially so at Lugdunum. This would appear to be the third known example of this type. maridvnvm
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132 - Probus - RIC 431- Bust Type G (Ticinum) (PXXT)Obv:– VIRTVS PROBI AVG, Radiate, helmeted, cuirassed bust left, holding spear and shield (buckler)
Rev:– VIRTVS AVG, Mars walking right, holding spear and trophy
Minted in Ticinum (//PXXT) Emission 4, Officina 1. A.D. 278
Reference:– RIC 431 Bust Type G (Unusual with the buckler rather than a shield)maridvnvm
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132 - Probus - RIC 551 - Bust Type F (Ticinum) (BXXI)Obv:– IMP C PROBVS P F AVG, Radiate, cuirassed bust right
Rev:– PROVIDENT AVG, Providentia standing left, holding globe and sceptre
Minted in Ticinum (BXXI in exe) Emission 6 Officina 3. A.D. 279
Reference:– RIC 551 Bust type F
This coin shows an unusual positioning of the officina. It is raised compared to the remainder of the exe. with respect to the ground line.maridvnvm
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132 - Probus - RIC 551 - Bust Type F (Ticinum) (BXXI)Obv:– IMP C PROBVS P F AVG, Radiate, cuirassed bust right
Rev:– PROVIDENT AVG, Providentia standing left, holding globe and sceptre
Minted in Ticinum (BXXI in exe) Emission 6 Officina 3. A.D. 279
Reference:– RIC 551 Bust type F
3.30 gms, 21.95 mm. 180 degrees
This coin shows an unusual positioning of the officina. It is raised compared to the remainder of the exe. with respect to the ground line. maridvnvm
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132 - Probus - RIC 811 var - Bust Type C (Siscia) (_ | V / XXI)Obv:– IMP C M AVR PROBVS AVG, Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
Rev:– VIRTVS PROBI AVG, Mars walking right, holding spear and trophy.
Mint – Siscia (_ | V / XXI) Emission 7 Officina 5. A.D. 280
Reference:– Alföldi Unlisted. RIC 811 var. Bust type C Unlisted Bust type for this RIC.
Unusually late appearance of the cuirassed and draped bust seen from front. Typically, these are from earlier emissions.
Not in Alföldi with this combination. He notes one frontal C bust from a different emission (4), with mark XXIVI. Another is known with mark XXIS. maridvnvm
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132 - Probus - RIC 812 var - Radiate, cuirassed bust left, holding spear shield (Siscia) (P | _ / XXI)Obv:– IMP C PROBVS P F AVG, Radiate, cuirassed bust left, holding spear
Rev:– VIRTVS PROBI AVG, Mars walking right, holding spear and trophy
Minted in Siscia (P in left field, XXI in exe) Emission 7 Officina 1. A.D. 280
Reference(s) – Alföldi unlisted, would belong to Alföldi type 96, n° -cf. n° 55, which is _ | P, P in left field very unusual. RIC 812 var Radiate, cuirassed bust left, holding spear and shield (not listed in RIC with P in left field.maridvnvm
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138-161 AD - ANTONINUS PIUS AR denarius - struck 140-143 ADobv: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P TR P COS III (bare head right)
rev: GENIVS POP ROMANI (Genius standing front, head right, with scepter & cornucopiae)
ref: RIC III 70, RSC 405 (6frcs), BMC 207
3.15gms, 18mm
The Roman genius, representing man's natural optimism, always endeavoured to guide him to happiness; that man was intended to enjoy life is shown by the fact that the Roman spoke of indulging or cheating his genius of his due according as he enjoyed himself or failed to do so, when he had the opportunity. The genius publicus Populi Romani - probably distinct from the genius Urbis Romae, to whom an old shield on the Capitol was dedicated, stood in the forum near the temple of Concord, in the form of a bearded man, crowned with a diadem, and carrying a cornucopiae and sceptre. In imperial times the genius of Augustus and of the reigning emperor, as part of the sacra of the imperial family, were publicly worshipped. The reverse probably commemorate this (the scepter as Genius attributum is unusual).berserker
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138-161 AD - ANTONINUS PIUS AR denarius - struck 150-151 ADobv: IMP CAES T AEL HADR ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P (laureate head right)
rev: TR POT XIIII COS IIII / PIETAS (Pietas standing right, holding hind by the neck & plate of fruits over altar to right)
ref: RIC 201 (S), RSC 616 (5frcs)
3.25gms, 18mm,
Rare
Unusual and rare reverse. Piety meant the right and proper observance of religious ritual, a duty which fell to every citizen, and to the emperor as much or more than to anyone else. In this coin Pietas is holding a bowl of fruits above an altar with one hand, while the other trails a hind for the sacrifice. The bowl of fruits as an offering is also seen in coins showing Fides. berserker
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1380 Hadrian, Cistophorus CARIA, Mylasa Zeus Karios Reference.
RPC III, 1380/3; Metcalf Type 42, BM-1063, C-274 (citing BM, 100 Fr.), RIC-495; Pinder 51.
Obv. HADRIANVS - AVGVSTVS P P
Head bare right
Rev. COS - III
Zeus Karios standing front, holding spear and shield, both of which rest on ground; in front of the shield an eagle on a curving pedestal.
10.50 gr
25 mm
6h
Ex HJB 2016, Gemini III, 29 Jan. 2007, lot 373; CNG 70, 21 Sep. 2005, lot 995
Note.
Unusual image of a local Carian form of Zeus, which appears nowhere else in ancient coinage or ancient art. Very rare: only two specimens known to Metcalf. Our coin shares its obverse die with Metcalf's specimen 192, but is from a new reverse die. Apparently overstruck on a PAX cistophorus of Augustus, RPC-2203: the AX of PAX and the outline of Pax's lower body is faintly visible in reverse left field to the right of the C of COS, and above Zeus' head we can probably make out a leaf and two berries from the wreath encircling the original reverse type. The curious triangular indentation at 5 o'clock on obverse edge may be the lower corner of an IMP VES AVG countermark that had been applied to the cistophorus of Augustus and that was largely filled in when the coin was restruck for Hadrian.okidoki
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141 - Diocletian - Follis - RIC VI Trier 677a (corr. Cyzicus)Obv:– D N DIOCLETIANO FELICISSIMO SEN AVG, laureate bust right in imperial mantle, olive branch in right hand, mappa in left
Rev:– PROVIDENTIA DEORVM QVIES AVGG, Providentia standing right, extending right hand to Quies standing left, branch upward in right hand, vertical sceptre in left
Minted in Cyzicus (not Trier) ( S | F / KS //PTR)
Reference:– RIC VI Trier 677a (R) (see notes)
Notes:- This is perhaps one of the most unusual issues in the entire follis series. It is nearly always attributed to Trier (Treveri), but a comparison of portrait styles and an examination of follis hoards reveals that this issue was not struck in Trier but in Cyzicus. Two officinae struck this issue, and the KS in the field between the two figures is actually the mintmark, not the PTR. A look at the coins of Cyzicus (RIC 22-23) shows that the same two officinae struck this issue without the PTR also. The Senior Augustus issues of Diocletian and Maximianus were struck at every mint currently in operation. Apparently, the first coins of this type were prepared at Trier and examples were sent to the various mints for the individual mints to copy. At Cyzicus, the die engravers copied everything, including the Trier mintmark and put their own mintmark in the field. Eventually someone soon realized the mistake and new dies were prepared with the mintmark in its proper location.
Nicely silvered with little / no visible wear.maridvnvm
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1505b, Theodosius I, 19 January 379 - 17 January 395 A.D. (Antioch)Theodosius I, 19 January 379 - 17 January 395 A.D. Bronze AE 3, RIC 44(b), VF, Antioch, 2.17g, 18.1mm, 180o, 9 Aug 378 - 25 Aug 383 A.D. Obverse: D N THEODOSIVS P F AVG, rosette-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right; Reverse: CONCORDIA AVGGG, Constantinopolis enthroned facing, r. foot on prow, globe in l., scepter in r., Q and F at sides, ANTG in ex; scarce.
De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families
THEODOSIUS I (379-395 A.D.)
David Woods
University College of Cork
Origin and Early Career
Flavius Theodosius was born at Cauca in Spain in about 346 to Thermantia and Theodosius the Elder (so-called to distinguish him from his son). Theodosius the Elder was a senior military officer serving in the Western empire and rose to become the magister equitum praesentalis under the emperor Valentinian I from late 368 until his execution in early 375. As the son of a soldier, Theodosius was legally obliged to enter upon a military career. He seems to have served under his father during his expedition to Britain in 367/8, and was the dux Moesiae Primae by late 374. Unfortunately, great controversy surrounds the rest of his career until Gratian had him hailed as his imperial colleague in succession to the emperor Valens at Sirmium on 19 January 379. It is clear that he was forced to retire home to Spain only to be recalled to active service shortly thereafter, but the circumstances of his forced retirement are shrouded in mystery. His father was executed at roughly the same time, and much speculation has centred on the relationship between these events.
[For a very detailed and interesting discussion of the Foreign Policy of Theodosius and the Civil Wars that plagued his reign, please see http://www.roman-emperors.org/theo1.htm]
Family and Succession
Theodosius married twice. His first wife was the Spanish Aelia Flavia Flaccilla. She bore him Arcadius ca. 377, Honorius on 9 September 384, and Pulcheria ca. 385. Theodosius honoured her with the title of Augusta shortly after his accession, but she died in 386. In late 387 he married Galla, daughter of Valentinian I and full-sister of Valentinian II. She bore him Gratian ca. 388, Galla Placidia ca. 388/390, and died in childbirth in 394, together with her new-born son John. Of his two sons who survived infancy, he appointed Arcadius as Augustus on 19 January 383 and Honorius as Augustus on 23 January 393. His promotion of Arcadius as a full Augustus at an unusually young age points to his determination right from the start that one of his own sons should succeed him. He sought to strengthen Arcadius' position in particular by means of a series of strategic marriages whose purpose was to tie his leading "generals" irrevocably to his dynasty. Hence he married his niece and adoptive daughter Serena to his magister militum per Orientem Stilicho in 387, her elder sister Thermantia to a "general" whose name has not been preserved, and ca. 387 his nephew-in-law Nebridius to Salvina, daughter of the comes Africae Gildo. By the time of his death by illness on 17 January 395, Theodosius had promoted Stilicho from his position as one of the two comites domesticorum under his own eastern administration to that of magister peditum praesentalis in a western administration, in an entirely traditional manner, under his younger son Honorius. Although Stilicho managed to increase the power of the magister peditum praesentalis to the disadvantage of his colleague the magister equitum praesentalis and claimed that Theodosius had appointed him as guardian for both his sons, this tells us more about his cunning and ambition than it does about Theodosius' constitutional arrangements.
Theodosius' importance rests on the fact that he founded a dynasty which continued in power until the death of his grandson Theodosius II in 450. This ensured a continuity of policy which saw the emergence of Nicene Christianity as the orthodox belief of the vast majority of Christians throughout the middle ages. It also ensured the essential destruction of paganism and the emergence of Christianity as the religion of the state, even if the individual steps in this process can be difficult to identify. On the negative side, however, he allowed his dynastic interests and ambitions to lead him into two unnecessary and bloody civil wars which severely weakened the empire's ability to defend itself in the face of continued barbarian pressure upon its frontiers. In this manner, he put the interests of his family before those of the wider Roman population and was responsible, in many ways, for the phenomenon to which we now refer as the fall of the western Roman empire.
Copyright (C) 1998, David Woods.
Published: De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families http://www.roman-emperors.org/startup.htm. Used by permission.
There is a nice segue here, as we pick-up John Julius Norwich's summation of the reign of Theodosius, "Readers of this brief account of his career may well find themselves wondering, not so much whether he deserved the title of 'the Great' as how he ever came to acquire it in the first place. If so, however, they may also like to ask themselves another question: what would have been the fate of the Empire if, at that critical moment in its history after the battle of Adrianople, young Gratian had not called him from his Spanish estates and put the future of the East into his hands? . . . the probability is that the whole Empire of the East would have been lost, swallowed up in a revived Gothic kingdom, with effects on world history that defy speculation.
In his civil legislation he showed, again and again, a consideration for the humblest of his subjects that was rare indeed among rulers of the fourth century. What other prince would have decreed that any criminal, sentenced to execution, imprisonment or exile, must first be allowed thirty days' grace to put his affairs in order? Or that a specified part of his worldly goods must go to his children, upon whom their father's crimes must on no account be visited? Or that no farmer should be obliged to sell his produce to the State at a price lower than he would receive on the open market?
Had he earned his title? Not, perhaps, in the way that Constantine had done or as Justinian was to do. But, if not ultimately great himself, he had surely come very close to greatness; and had he reigned as long as they did his achievements might well have equalled theirs. He might even have saved the Western Empire. One thing only is certain: it would be nearly a century and a half before the Romans would look upon his like again" (Norwich, John Julius. Byzantium, the Early Centuries. London: Penguin Group, 1990. 116-7;118).
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.
Cleisthenes
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1505c, Theodosius I, 379 - 395 A.D. (Constantinople)Theodosius I (379 - 395 AD) AE3. 388-394 AD, RIC IX 27(a)3, Third Officina. Seventh Period. 20.27 mm. 4.8gm. Near VF with black and earthen patina. Constantinople. Obverse: DN THEODO-SIANVS P F AVG, pearl-diademed, draped, & cuirassed bust right; Reverse: GLORIA-ROMANORVM, Theodosius I standing, facing, holding labarum and globe, CONSB in exergue (scarcer reverse). A Spanish find.
De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families
THEODOSIUS I (379-395 A.D.)
David Woods
University College of Cork
Origin and Early Career
Flavius Theodosius was born at Cauca in Spain in about 346 to Thermantia and Theodosius the Elder (so-called to distinguish him from his son). Theodosius the Elder was a senior military officer serving in the Western empire and rose to become the magister equitum praesentalis under the emperor Valentinian I from late 368 until his execution in early 375. As the son of a soldier, Theodosius was legally obliged to enter upon a military career. He seems to have served under his father during his expedition to Britain in 367/8, and was the dux Moesiae Primae by late 374. Unfortunately, great controversy surrounds the rest of his career until Gratian had him hailed as his imperial colleague in succession to the emperor Valens at Sirmium on 19 January 379. It is clear that he was forced to retire home to Spain only to be recalled to active service shortly thereafter, but the circumstances of his forced retirement are shrouded in mystery. His father was executed at roughly the same time, and much speculation has centred on the relationship between these events.
[For a very detailed and interesting discussion of the Foreign Policy of Theodosius and the Civil Wars that plagued his reign, please see http://www.roman-emperors.org/theo1.htm]
Family and Succession
Theodosius married twice. His first wife was the Spanish Aelia Flavia Flaccilla. She bore him Arcadius ca. 377, Honorius on 9 September 384, and Pulcheria ca. 385. Theodosius honoured her with the title of Augusta shortly after his accession, but she died in 386. In late 387 he married Galla, daughter of Valentinian I and full-sister of Valentinian II. She bore him Gratian ca. 388, Galla Placidia ca. 388/390, and died in childbirth in 394, together with her new-born son John. Of his two sons who survived infancy, he appointed Arcadius as Augustus on 19 January 383 and Honorius as Augustus on 23 January 393. His promotion of Arcadius as a full Augustus at an unusually young age points to his determination right from the start that one of his own sons should succeed him. He sought to strengthen Arcadius' position in particular by means of a series of strategic marriages whose purpose was to tie his leading "generals" irrevocably to his dynasty. Hence he married his niece and adoptive daughter Serena to his magister militum per Orientem Stilicho in 387, her elder sister Thermantia to a "general" whose name has not been preserved, and ca. 387 his nephew-in-law Nebridius to Salvina, daughter of the comes Africae Gildo. By the time of his death by illness on 17 January 395, Theodosius had promoted Stilicho from his position as one of the two comites domesticorum under his own eastern administration to that of magister peditum praesentalis in a western administration, in an entirely traditional manner, under his younger son Honorius. Although Stilicho managed to increase the power of the magister peditum praesentalis to the disadvantage of his colleague the magister equitum praesentalis and claimed that Theodosius had appointed him as guardian for both his sons, this tells us more about his cunning and ambition than it does about Theodosius' constitutional arrangements.
Theodosius' importance rests on the fact that he founded a dynasty which continued in power until the death of his grandson Theodosius II in 450. This ensured a continuity of policy which saw the emergence of Nicene Christianity as the orthodox belief of the vast majority of Christians throughout the middle ages. It also ensured the essential destruction of paganism and the emergence of Christianity as the religion of the state, even if the individual steps in this process can be difficult to identify. On the negative side, however, he allowed his dynastic interests and ambitions to lead him into two unnecessary and bloody civil wars which severely weakened the empire's ability to defend itself in the face of continued barbarian pressure upon its frontiers. In this manner, he put the interests of his family before those of the wider Roman population and was responsible, in many ways, for the phenomenon to which we now refer as the fall of the western Roman empire.
Copyright (C) 1998, David Woods.
Published: De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families http://www.roman-emperors.org/startup.htm. Used by permission.
There is a nice segue here, as we pick-up John Julius Norwich's summation of the reign of Theodosius, "Readers of this brief account of his career may well find themselves wondering, not so much whether he deserved the title of 'the Great' as how he ever came to acquire it in the first place. If so, however, they may also like to ask themselves another question: what would have been the fate of the Empire if, at that critical moment in its history after the battle of Adrianople, young Gratian had not called him from his Spanish estates and put the future of the East into his hands? . . . the probability is that the whole Empire of the East would have been lost, swallowed up in a revived Gothic kingdom, with effects on world history that defy speculation.
In his civil legislation he showed, again and again, a consideration for the humblest of his subjects that was rare indeed among rulers of the fourth century. What other prince would have decreed that any criminal, sentenced to execution, imprisonment or exile, must first be allowed thirty days' grace to put his affairs in order? Or that a specified part of his worldly goods must go to his children, upon whom their father's crimes must on no account be visited? Or that no farmer should be obliged to sell his produce to the State at a price lower than he would receive on the open market?
Had he earned his title? Not, perhaps, in the way that Constantine had done or as Justinian was to do. But, if not ultimately great himself, he had surely come very close to greatness; and had he reigned as long as they did his achievements might well have equalled theirs. He might even have saved the Western Empire. One thing only is certain: it would be nearly a century and a half before the Romans would look upon his like again" (Norwich, John Julius. Byzantium, the Early Centuries. London: Penguin Group, 1990. 116-7;118).
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.Cleisthenes
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1633 - Mark Antony, DenariusStruck in a travelling mint, moving with Mark Antony in 41 BC
ANT AVG IMP III VI R P C, Head of Mark Antony right
Fortuna standing left, holding rudder in right hand and cornucopiae in left; at feet, stork; below, PIETAS COS
3,82 gr - 20 mm
Ref : Crawford # 516/2, Sydenham # 1174, HCRI # 241, C # 77
Ex. Auctiones.GmbH
The following comment is copied from NAC auction # 52/294 about the very rare corresponding aureus :
The year 41 B.C., when this aureus was struck at a mint travelling in the East with Marc Antony, was a period of unusual calm for the triumvir, who took a welcomed, if unexpected, rest after the great victory he and Octavian had won late in 42 B.C. against Brutus and Cassius at the Battle of Philippi. Antony’s original plan of organising an invasion of Parthia was put on hold after he sailed to Tarsus, where he had summoned Cleopatra VII, the Greek queen of Egypt. She was to defend herself against accusations that she had aided Brutus and Cassius before Philippi, but it is generally agreed that the summons was merely a pretext for Antony’s plan to secure aid for his Parthian campaign. Their meeting was anything but a source of conflict; indeed, they found much common ground, including their agreement that it was in their mutual interests to execute Cleopatra’s sister and rival Arsinoe IV, who had been ruling Cyprus. In addition to sharing political interests, the two agreed that Antony would winter in Egypt to share a luxurious vacation with Cleopatra that caused a further postponement of Antony’s designs on Parthia. Thus began another of the queen’s liaisons with noble Romans, a prior having been Julius Caesar (and, according to Plutarch, Pompey Jr. before him). During the course of his stay in Egypt Cleopatra was impregnated, which resulted in twins born to her in 40 B.C. But this care-free period was only a momentary calm in the storm, for trouble was brewing in both the East and the West. Early in 40 B.C. Syria was overrun by the Parthians, seemingly while Antony travelled to Italy to meet Octavian following the Perusine War, in which Octavian defeated the armies of Antony’s wife and brother. The conflict with Octavian was resolved when they signed a pact at Brundisium in October, and Syria was eventually recovered through the efforts of Antony’s commanders from 40 to 38 B.C.{/i]
Potator II
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169 - Constans - AE Folis - RIC VII Siscia 238 AE3
Obv:- FL CONSTANTIS BEA C, Laureate, draped & cuirassed bust right / . //dot DSIS dot.
Rev:- GLORIA EXERCITVS, Two helmeted soldiers standing with spears & shields, facing two standards between them
Minted in Siscia, (// dot DSIS dot), A.D. 334-335.
Reference:– RIC VII Siscia 238 (R1)
Unusual obverse legend.maridvnvm
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170 - Constantius II - AE2 - RIC VIII Constantinople 106AE2
Obv:– D N CONSTANTIVS P F AVG, Pearl diademed, draped & cuirassed bust right
Rev:– FEL TEMP REPARATIO, Helmeted soldier to left, shield on left arm, spearing falling horseman; shield on ground at right. Horseman is bearded and falls forward clutching his horse. his hair is tied in a top-knot.
Minted in Constantinople (G | dot | _ //CONSI).
Reference:- RIC VIII Constantinople 106
Unusual 3 dimensional wave effect created on shield.maridvnvm
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170 - Constantius II - AE2 - RIC VIII Cyzicus 092AE2
Obv:– D N CONSTANTIVS P F AVG, Pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right
Rev:– FEL TEMP RE-PARATIO, Helmeted soldier left, shield on left arm, spearing falling horseman; shield at ground to right. Horseman turns to face the soldier, and reaches his left arm up towards him. He is bare headed and is bearded
Minted in Cyzicus (Gamma | _ // SMKE)
Reference:- RIC VIII Cyzicus 92 (C2)
Unusual shield decoration. Central boss surrounded by four small dots forming a square, additional dots at either end of the shield.
Weight 4.33g. 23.49mm. 30 degreesmaridvnvm
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1793 AE Farthing, London, Middlesex.Obverse: Ic • NEWTON. Bare headed bust of Isaac Newton facing left.
Reverse: FARTHING. Britannia, helmeted and draped, facing left seated on globe, shield at her side, holding olive-branch in her extended right hand and spear in her left; in exergue, 1793.
Edge: “Plain".
Diameter : 21mm
Dalton & Hamer : 1160 | Cobwright : I.0010/F.0050 (listed as an evasion piece)
The die engraver for this token was most likely Thomas Wyon but the manufacturer is uncertain.
Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727), was an English physicist and mathematician who is widely recognised as one of the most influential scientists of all time and as a key figure in the scientific revolution. Newton shares credit with Gottfried Leibniz for the invention of calculus and also made seminal contributions to optics. He built the first practical reflecting telescope and developed a theory of colour based on the observation that a prism decomposes white light into the many colours of the visible spectrum.
Newton's “Principia” formulated the laws of motion and universal gravitation, which came to dominate scientists' view of the physical universe for the next three centuries.
Newton was a fellow of Trinity College and a Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge. Unusually for a member of the Cambridge faculty of the day, he refused to take holy orders in the Church of England, perhaps because he privately rejected the doctrine of the Trinity.
In his later life, Newton became president of the Royal Society and became Warden of the Royal Mint in 1696. He became Master of the Royal Mint in 1699 and was very instrumental in developing techniques to try and prevent the counterfeiting of English coinage.*Alex
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1922B ALEXIUS METROPOLITAN TETARTERON S-1922 DOC 35 CLBC 2.4.3 OBV Christ Bearded and nimbate wearing tunic and kolobion, seated on a throne without back; holds gospel in l. hand.
REV: Bust of emperor wearing stemma, divitision, and chlamys; holds in r. hand scepter cruciger and in l. hand Globus crucifer.
Size 14/12mm
Weight 3.6 gm
Metropolitan Issues were minted in Constantinople, each of these coins had an added silver content of 3% and were also issued with a very light silver wash (Silver traces are common on Metropolitan issues but intact fully silvered coins are very rare.) These more than likely were tariffed at a higher rate than the Thessalonica issues that have been shown to have no silver content. Metropolitan issues are in general far scarcer than the Thessalonica issues.
This is a thick square coin, very unusual beveled edges.Simon
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1929C ALEXIUS AE TETARTERON S-1929 DOC 38 CLBC 2.4.5 OBV Bust of Christ, bearded and nimbate, wearing tunic and kolobion; holds gospels open in l. hand. Pellet in each limb of nimbus cross.
REV. Bust facing wearing stemma, divitision, and chlamys; holds in r. hand scepter cruciger, and in l. Globus cruciger.
Size 20mm
Weight 2.2gm
This coin is interesting for its details, more than most but the jagged edge flan is very unusual.
DOC lists 9 examples with weight s running from 1.82gm to 5.10gm and size from 18mm to 22mm
Simon
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1930 ALEXIUS AE TETARTERON S-1930 DOC 39 CLBC 2.4.6 OBV Bust of Virgin nimbate, orans, wearing tunic and maphorion.
REV Bust of emperor wearing stemma, divitision and chlamys; holds in r. hand labarum on a long shaft and in l. Globus cruciger.
Size 20.10
Weight 2.8gm
This is a Thessalonica minted coin, it contains no silver. It is believed to be valued at 1/864 Hyperpyron and the Metropolitan (Constantinople) issues at 1/288 Hyperpyron. This coins are much more common than Metropolitan coins and very abundant in today’s marketplace.
DOC lists 5 examples with weights ranging from 2.05gm to 4.02gm and sizes ranging from 20mm to 22m
It is difficult to find a clean strike of this issue. This one is unusually clean. They way to differ this coin from Manuel's version is the position of Alexius arm on the labrum.Simon
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198Caracalla
Denarius
Obv: ANTONINVS AVGVSTVS
Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right viewed from front
Rev: PONTIF TRP III
Sol standing facing, head left, holding globe and spear
Rome mint
RIC - (cf 30)
Note from Curtis L Clay:
Denarii with bust seen from front in this era are very unusual.
With obv. legend ANTONINVS - AVGVSTVS I had previously been aware of only a single bust-front denarius obv. die: with rev. SECVRIT ORBIS in coll. of Forvm member septimus, used as his avatar, and with rev. PONT TR P II, same Securitas seated rev. type, in Oxford (Evans), from the East of England hoard of 1898.
Your coin is a new bust variety to my knowledge, of 200 AD and thus, as was to be expected, from a different obv. die than those two other bust-front denarii of 199.mauseus
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1bg AeliusCaesar, 136-138
As
Bare head, right, AELIVS CAESAR
Pannonia standing and holding a standard, PANNONIA SC
RIC 1071
According to the Historia Augusta (note: scholars view this biography in the text as among those particularly suspect regarding veracity): Aelius Verus was adopted by Hadrian at the time when, as we have previously said, the Emperor's health was beginning to fail and he was forced to take thought for the succession. He was at once made praetor and appointed military and civil governor of the provinces of Pannonia ; afterwards he was created [in AD 136] consul, and then, because he had been chosen to succeed to the imperial power, he was named for a second consulship. . . . [I]n the province to which he had been appointed he was by no means a failure ; for he carried on a campaign with
success, or rather, with good fortune, and achieved the reputation, if not of a pre-eminent, at least of an
average, commander.
Verus had, however, such wretched health that Hadrian immediately regretted the adoption, and since he often considered others as possible successors, he might have removed him altogether from the imperial family had Verus chanced to live longer. . . .
Verus was a man of joyous life and well versed in letters, and he was endeared to Hadrian, as the malicious say, rather by his beauty than by his character. In the palace his stay was but a short one; in his private life, though there was little to be commended, yet there was little to be blamed. Furthermore, he was considerate of his family, well-dressed, elegant in appearance, a man of regal beauty, with a countenance that commanded respect, a speaker of unusual eloquence, deft at writing verse, and, moreover, not altogether a failure in public life.
This sad little flan looks a bit tubercular, like the subject of the portrait.Blindado
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1ep Valentinian364-375
AE3
Pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right , D N VALENTINIANVS P F AVG
Emperor in military dress, advancing right, head left, holding labarum, dragging captive behind him. No fieldmarks. Mintmark: dot GSISC, GLORIA ROMANORVM
RIC 5a
According to Zosimus: Several discussions were held among the soldiers and their officers, and various persons were nominated. At length Sallustius, the prefect of the court, was unanimously elected. He excused himself on the pretext of his advanced age, which disabled him from being of service in the present critical circumstances. They then desired that his son might be emperor in lieu of himself. But his son he told them was too young, and from that as well as other causes unable to sustain the weight of an imperial diadem. They thus failed in their wish to appoint so distinguished a person, who was the most worthy of the age. They therefore elected Valentinian, a native of Cibalis in Pannonia. He was an excellent soldier, but extremely illiterate. They sent for him, he being then at some distance: and the state was not long without a ruler. Upon his arrival at the army, at Nicaea in Bithynia, he assumed the imperial authority, and proceeded forward. . . .
I have now to state, that while Valentinian was on his journey towards Constantinople, he was seized with a distemper, which increased his natural choleric temper to a degree of cruelty, and even to madness, so that he falsely suspected his sickness to proceed from some charm or poison which Julian's friends had prepared for him through malice. Accusations to that effect were drawn up against some distinguished persons, which were set aside by the discretion of Sallustius, who still was prefect of the court. After his distemper abated, he proceeded from Nicaea to Constantinople. The army and his friends in that city advised him to choose an associate in the empire, that if occasion should require, he might have some one to assist him, and prevent their again suffering as at the death of Julian. He complied with their advice, and after consideration, selected his brother Valens, whom he thought most likely to prove faithful to him. He declared him associate in the empire. . . . Affairs being thus disposed, Valentinian deemed it most prudent to place the east as far as Egypt, Bithynia, and Thrace, under the care of his brother, and to take charge of Illyricum himself. From thence he designed to proceed to Italy, and to retain in his own possession all the cities in that country, and the countries beyond the Alps, with Spain, Britain, and Africa. The empire being thus divided, Valentinian began to govern more rigorously, correcting the faults of the magistrates. He was very severe in the collection of the imposts, and particularly in observing that the soldiers were duly paid. . . .
Meantime the Barbarians beyond the Rhine, who while Julian lived held the Roman name in terror, and were contented to remain quiet in their own territories, as soon as they heard of his death, immediately marched out of their own country, and prepared for a war with the Romans. Valentinian. on bring informed of this, made a proper disposition of his forces, and placed suitable garrisons in all the towns along the Rhine. Valentinian was enabled to make these arrangements by his experience in military affairs. . . . [T] he emperor Valentinian, having favourably disposed the affairs of Germany, made provisions for the future security of the Celtic nations. . . . Valentinian was now attacked by a disease which nearly cost him his life. Upon his recovery the countries requested him to appoint a successor, lest at his decease the commonwealth should be in danger. To this the emperor consented, and declared his son Gratian emperor and his associate in the government, although he was then very young, and not yet capable of the management of affairs. . . .
Valentinian, thinking he had sufficiently secured himself from a German war, acted towards his subjects with great severity, exacting from them exorbitant tributes, such as they had never before paid; under pretence that the military expenditure compelled him to have recourse to the public. Having thus acquired universal hatred, he became still more severe; nor would he enquire into the conduct of the magistrates, but was envious of all whe had the reputation of leading a blameless life. . . . For this cause, the Africans, who could not endure the excessive avarice of the person who held the military command in Mauritania, gave the purple robe to Firmus, and proclaimed him emperor. This doubtless gave much uneasiness to Valentinian, who immediately commanded some legions from the stations in Pannonia and Moesia, to embark for Africa. On this the Sarmatians and the Quadi, who had long entertained a hatred for Celestius, the governor of those countries, availing themselves, of the opportunity afforded by the departure of the legions for Africa, invaded the Pannonians and Moesians. . . . .
Valentinian, roused by the intelligence of these events, marched from Celtica into Illyricum, for the purpose of opposing the Quadi and the Sarmatians, and consigned the command of his forces to Merobaudes, who was a person of the greatest military experience. The winter continuing unusually late, the Quadi sent ambassadors to him with insolent and unbecoming messages. These so exasperated the emperor, that through the violence of his rage, the blood flowed from his head into his mouth, and suffocated him. He thus died after having resided in Illyricum nearly nine months, and after a reign of twelve years.Blindado
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2 Victories & AltarBust has very unusual hair style; this coin has a very crude style.simmurray
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22. Celtic Alexander Tetradrachm (?)Tetradrachm, ca 2'nd century BC, Danube region.
Obverse: Head of Alexander as Herakles, wearing lion's skin headdress.
Reverse: ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ / Zeus sitting, holding his attendant eagle and sceptre. Tripod at left.
17.25 gm., 28 mm.
In researching this coin, I found five coins which are from the same pair of dies as this one. These are the only examples of this type (tripod on reverse) that I've been able to find.
1. Palladium sale #10 (Nov. 1995), attributed to the mint at Pella and catalogued as Muller #146.
2. Palladium sale #11 (April 1996), described as "unlisted in Price, and apparently unknown before a recent hoard find. Variant of Price 633."
3. CNG sale #54, lot 99, described as a Celtic imitation of Alexander's coinage from the Danube region, ca 2'nd century BC. c.f. Goble, OTA, 566. This is the coin pictured above.
4. CNG sale #72, lot 13, described as "Celtic, Lower Danube, uncertain tribe, early 3'rd century BC . . . . Unpublished in the standard references . . . . By virtue of its style, fabric, and weight, this Alexander imitation is certainly an early issue, probably struck during the first decades of the third century BC."
5. Harlan J Berk 156th Buy or Bid Sale (Oct. 2007), lot 75, described as "Possibly unpublished . . . Somewhat unusual style on the obverse."
Five coins from the same pair or dies, five different attributions. I will agree, though, with the last statement of coin #4 above, that this appears to be an early issue. This coin is on a thick flan resembling coins minted during Alexander's lifetime and immediately thereafter and is made from good silver. There is something a bit barbaric about the style of this coin, although there are genuine Alexander coins listed and pictured in Martin J. Price's book which are more barbaric than this one. An interesting coin.Callimachus
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268-270 AD - CLAUDIUS II (GOTHICUS) AE antoninianus obv: IMP.CLAVDIVS.CAES.AVG (radiate bust right)
rev: RESTITVTOR.ORBIS (emperor standing left, sacrifacing at altar and holding sceptre)
ref: RIC189, C.247(20fr)
mint: Siscia, struck 268-270 AD
2.98gms, 19mm
Rare
Unusual and rare using the title Caesar!berserker
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3.13 Crispus: Heraclea.AE3, 324, Heraclea mint.
Obverse: CRISPVS NOB CAES / Laureate bust of Crispus.
Reverse: DOMINOR . NOSTROR . CAESS / Laurel wreath enclosing VOT X.
Mint mark: SMHB
2.85 gm., 18 mm.
RIC #58; PBCC & LRBC unlisted; Sear #16788.
This coin is from the first coinage minted at Heraclea after the defeat of Licinius in July 324. The unusual reverse legend was previously used at Ticinum, so this coinage from Heraclea must have somehow been influenced by that of the Italian mint.Callimachus
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3159 CAPPADOCIA, Caesarea. Hadrian 124 AD Sol on Mt ArgaeusReference.
Cohen -, cf. 457 (laureate and without aegis). Henseler -, cf. X29a var. (without aegis). RIC -. RPC III -, cf. 3158-9 (differing bust types). Sydenham -, cf. 290a (laureate and without aegis). An unpublished variety of a very rare type.
Issue Bronze with latin legends and Mount Argaeus as reverse design
Obv. HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS
Radiate head of Hadrian to right, with aegis on his left shoulder.
Rev. COS III
Mount Argaeus surmounted by statue of Sol-Helios, radiate, holding globe in his right hand and long scepter with his left.
4.81 gr
19 mm
6h
Note.
From the Collection of Sir A. J. Evans, Ars Classica XVII, 3 October 1934, 1400.
While usually being attributed to Caesarea, the style of the very rare small bronzes of Hadrian with Latin legends showing the Mount Argaios is clearly that of Rome. It is generally believed that the Rome mint shipped its dies to the East in such cases to have the coins struck on the spot, but the fact that RPC records an obverse die match between an Argaios-semis and a regular Rome mint piece in Vienna with a modius on the reverse (RPC III 3159.3 resp. BMC p. 442*) strongly indicates that all semisses were struck in Rome. The emergence of a local motive on a Roman Imperial coin is, in any case, very unusual and the coins may have been struck to commemorate Hadrian's visit to Cappadocia in 124 or 130/1. okidoki
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394/1b. Postumia - denarius (74 BC)AR Denarius (Rome, 74 BC)
O/ Bust of Diana right, draped, with bow and quiver over shoulder.
R/ Hound running right; spear below; C POSTVMI in exergue.
3.96g; 17mm
Crawford 394/1b (192 obverse dies/213 reverse dies, both varieties)
- ex Lockdales 145, lot 1414.
* Gaius Postumius At. or Ta. (Albinus Atilianus?):
This variant without the monogram in exergue is very rare; only three reverse dies seem to exist.
The moneyer belonged to the great patrician gens Postumia, but his family is much more difficult to ascertain. The patrician Postumii had few different branches and only one had survived by the 1st century: the Albini. There were also plebeian Postumii.
His obverse with Diana reproduces those of Aulus Postumius S.f. S.n. Albinus (RRC 335/9), and his probable son Postumius A.f. S.n. Albinus (RRC 372/1), thus implying that he was a member of the patrician family. However, the Albini never used the praenomen Gaius. It is nonetheless possible that our moneyer was adopted into the gens, as it occurred with Decimus Junius Brutus (RRC 450), adopted by an Aulus Albinus. The Postumii seem to have had difficulties producing male heirs; they indeed had 9 consulships between 186 and 99 BC, but very few magistrates bore that name in the 1st century. The disaster of the campaign against Jugurtha by the brothers Spurius and Aulus Postumius Albinus might have hit the gens hard; Aulus was also murdered during the Social War (Livy, Periochae, 75).
The monogram in exergue could therefore be deciphered as AT for the plebeian gens Atilia -- the possible family of Gaius Albinus before his adoption. Another moneyer, Lucius Atilius Nomentanus, likewise ligatured the first two letters of his name on his denarii in 141 (RRC 225/1). This theory would explain both the unusual praenomen for the gens and the monogram. His adoptive father could also be one of the two moneyer mentioned above.
Crawford links the moneyer with a Gnaeus Postumius who accused Lucius Licinius Murena, the consul elect for 62, of bribery in the famous Pro Murena by Cicero (56-58), who also says that Postumius was a (unsuccessful) candidate to the praetorship that year. The case was won by Cicero and no doubt that accusing a Consul of bribery did not help his career and the fate of the Albini, as they disappeared from history after this. Joss
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40. Gallienus.Antoninianus, 260 - 268 AD, unidentified mint.
Obverse: GALLIENVS AVG / Radiate bust of Gallienus.
Reverse: MINEREA AVG / Minerva standing, with spear and shield. Palm branch below.
3.48 gm., 22 mm.
RIC #651 var; Sear #10290 var.
This coin has a spelling error on the reverse: MINEREA instead of MINERVA.
The city where this coin was minted is unknown, but it could possibly be Antioch or Cyzicus. For a discussion of the unusual style of this coin, and possible mint attributions, See RIC vol. V, part 1, p. 24.Callimachus
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400. Severus Alexander / RIC 302Denarius, ca 222-223 AD, Antioch mint.
Obverse: IMP SEV ALEXAND AVG / Laureate bust of Severus Alexander.
Reverse: VICTORIA AVG / Victoria running, holding wreath and palm.
2.61 gm., 19 mm.
RIC #302.
The obverse legend is the shortened legend that was occasionally used in Antioch, and is enough to attribute this coin to Antioch. Perhaps unusual, though, is the broken obverse legend -- IMPSEVALE XANDAVG -- which I have not seen on other coins of Severus Alexander. If this were a coin of Elagabalus from Antioch, the broken legend would be significant because it divides the Antioch denarii into two different issues: the large first issue (unbroken legend) and the second smaller issue (broken legend). So, at this point I do not know if this broken obverse legend is significant or not.Callimachus
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50. Edward IIPenny, London mint.
Obverse: +EDWAR R ANGL DNS HYB / Crowned bust, facing.
Reverse: CIVITAS LONDON / Long cross with three pellets in each angle.
1.41 gm., 19 mm.
North #1065; Seaby #1468.
Classification from North, Vol. 2, p. 24-25; and Seaby 1994:
- E with angular back = types 11b - 15b.
- Bifoliate crown = types 10a - 15b.
- The distinguishing feature is the central fleur of the crown with straight sides and tall lis (fig. 13 on p. 25 of North, vol. 2.)
- Along with this goes the "large smiling face with leering eyes."
- This coins is therefore type 14 -- which is attributed to Edward II.
Perhaps unusual is the obverse legend with two Rs in it, not mentioned by North or Seaby.
Callimachus
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5713 EGYPT, Alexandria. Hadrian Tetradrachm 127-28 AD Mummiform OsirisReference.
Emmett 883.12; RPC III, 5713; Köln 982; Dattari (Savio) 1445; K&G 32.458.
Issue L ΔWΔƐΚΑΤΟΥ = year 12
Obv. ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙ - ΤΡΑΙAN ΑΔΡ CΕΒ
Laureate, draped, cuirassed bust right, seen from back.
Rev. LΔωΔΕ ΚΑΤΟV
Mummiform Osiris (Ptah-Sokar-Osiris) standing right, holding scepter tipped with jackal-head (Was-sceptre)
12.66 gr
24 mm
6h
Note.
Giovanni Dattari summarizes the unusual reverse type seen on this billon tetradrachm of Hadrian. The image of the Ptah-Sokar-Osiris divinity belongs to Egyptian theology, and in particular to funeral worship. It brings together three famous members of the Pharaonic Pantheon through their respective symbols: the headdress and scepter for Ptah, the solar disk for Osiris, and the mummiform wrappings for Sokar – the “Lord of the Necropolis.” These three associated divinities call upon the concepts of “mourning” and “life”, evoking at the same time the pain associated with death and the hope of resurrection. The main sanctuaries of Ptah, Sokaris, and Osiris were at Memphis and Abydos.okidoki
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5823 EGYPT, Alexandria. Hadrian Tetradrachm 132-33 AD Mummiform SokarReference.
Emmett 883.17; RPC III, 5823/5; Dattari (Savio) 1446
Issue L IZ = year 17
Obv. ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙС ΤΡΑΙΑΝ - ΑΔΡΙΑΝΟС СƐΒ
Laureate draped and cuirassed bust of Hadrian, r., seen from rear
Rev. L ΙΖ
Mummiform Sokar (Ptah-Sokar-Osiris) standing right, holding sceptre tipped with falon (Horus?)
13.00 gr
27 mm
12h
Note.
Giovanni Dattari summarizes the unusual reverse type seen on this billon tetradrachm of Hadrian. The image of the Ptah-Sokar-Osiris divinity belongs to Egyptian theology, and in particular to funeral worship. It brings together three famous members of the Pharaonic Pantheon through their respective symbols: the headdress and scepter for Ptah, the solar disk for Osiris, and the mummiform wrappings for Sokar – the “Lord of the Necropolis.” These three associated divinities call upon the concepts of “mourning” and “life”, evoking at the same time the pain associated with death and the hope of resurrection. The main sanctuaries of Ptah, Sokaris, and Osiris were at Memphis and Abydos.okidoki
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6 oboloi weightunusual 2 gamma(3) 2 times 3 = 6
1 obulos equals approx. to 0.6 g (7th ct. AD) .
6 oboloi = 0.6 x 6= 3,6 g
a bit over weight at 11/10/3mm;3.93gwileyc
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707a, Galba, 3 April 68 - 15 January 69 A.D.Galba AE As, 68-69 AD; cf. SRC 727, 729ff; 27.85mm, 12g; Rome: Obverse: GALBA IMP CAESAR…, Laureate head right; Reverse: S P Q R OB CIV SER in oak wreath; gF+/F Ex. Ancient Imports.
De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families
Galba (68-69 A.D.)
John Donahue
College of William and Mary
Introduction
The evidence for the principate of Galba is unsatisfactory. The sources either concentrate on the personality of the man, thereby failing to offer a balanced account of his policies and a firm chronological base for his actions; or, they focus on the final two weeks of his life at the expense of the earlier part of his reign. As a result, a detailed account of his principate is difficult to write. Even so, Galba is noteworthy because he was neither related to nor adopted by his predecessor Nero. Thus, his accession marked the end of the nearly century-long control of the Principate by the Julio-Claudians. Additionally, Galba's declaration as emperor by his troops abroad set a precedent for the further political upheavals of 68-69. Although these events worked to Galba's favor initially, they soon came back to haunt him, ending his tumultuous rule after only seven months.
Early Life and Rise to Power
Born 24 December 3 BC in Tarracina, a town on the Appian Way, 65 miles south of Rome, Servius Galba was the son of C. Sulpicius Galba and Mummia Achaica. Galba's connection with the noble house of the Servii gave him great prestige and assured his acceptance among the highest levels of Julio-Claudian society. Adopted in his youth by Livia, the mother of the emperor Tiberius, he is said to have owed much of his early advancement to her. Upon her death, Livia made Galba her chief legatee, bequeathing him some 50 million sesterces. Tiberius, Livia's heir, reduced the amount, however, and then never paid it. Galba's marriage proved to be a further source of disappointment, as he outlived both his wife Lepida and their two sons. Nothing else is known of Galba's immediate family, other than that he remained a widower for the rest of his life.
Although the details of Galba's early political career are incomplete, the surviving record is one of an ambitious Roman making his way in the Emperor's service. Suetonius records that as praetor Galba put on a new kind of exhibition for the people - elephants walking on a rope. Later, he served as governor of the province of Aquitania, followed by a six-month term as consul at the beginning of 33. Ironically, as consul he was succeeded by Salvius Otho, whose own son would succeed Galba as emperor. Over the years three more governorships followed - Upper Germany (date unknown), North Africa (45) and Hispania Tarraconensis, the largest of Spain's three provinces (61). He was selected as a proconsul of Africa by the emperor Claudius himself instead of by the usual method of drawing lots. During his two-year tenure in the province he successfully restored internal order and quelled a revolt by the barbarians. As an imperial legate he was a governor in Spain for eight years under Nero, even though he was already in his early sixties when he assumed his duties. The appointment showed that Galba was still considered efficient and loyal. In all of these posts Galba generally displayed an enthusiasm for old-fashioned disciplina, a trait consistent with the traditional characterization of the man as a hard-bitten aristocrat of the old Republican type. Such service did not go unnoticed, as he was honored with triumphal insignia and three priesthoods during his career.
On the basis of his ancestry, family tradition and service to the state Galba was the most distinguished Roman alive (with the exception of the houses of the Julii and Claudii) at the time of Nero's demise in 68. The complex chain of events that would lead him to the Principate later that year began in March with the rebellion of Gaius Iulius Vindex, the governor of Gallia Lugdunensis. Vindex had begun to sound out provincial governors about support for a rebellion perhaps in late 67 or early 68. Galba did not respond but, because of his displeasure with Neronian misgovernment, neither did he inform the emperor of these treasonous solicitations. This, of course, left him dangerously exposed; moreover, he was already aware that Nero, anxious to remove anyone of distinguished birth and noble achievements, had ordered his death. Given these circumstances, Galba likely felt that he had no choice but to rebel.
In April, 68, while still in Spain, Galba "went public," positioning himself as a vir militaris, a military representative of the senate and people of Rome. For the moment, he refused the title of Emperor, but it is clear that the Principate was his goal. To this end, he organized a concilium of advisors in order to make it known that any decisions were not made by him alone but only after consultation with a group. The arrangement was meant to recall the Augustan Age relationship between the emperor and senate in Rome. Even more revealing of his imperial ambitions were legends like LIBERTAS RESTITUTA (Liberty Restored), ROM RENASC (Rome Reborn) and SALUS GENERIS HUMANI (Salvation of Mankind), preserved on his coinage from the period. Such evidence has brought into question the traditional assessment of Galba as nothing more than an ineffectual representative of a bygone antiquus rigor in favor of a more balanced portrait of a traditional constitutionalist eager to publicize the virtues of an Augustan-style Principate.
Events now began to move quickly. In May, 68 Lucius Clodius Macer, legate of the III legio Augusta in Africa, revolted from Nero and cut off the grain supply to Rome. Choosing not to recognize Galba, he called himself propraetor, issued his own coinage, and raised a new legion, the I Macriana liberatrix. Galba later had him executed. At the same time, 68, Lucius Verginius Rufus, legionary commander in Upper Germany, led a combined force of soldiers from Upper and Lower Germany in defeating Vindex at Vesontio in Gallia Lugdunensis. Verginius refused to accept a call to the emperorship by his own troops and by those from the Danube, however, thereby creating at Rome an opportunity for Galba's agents to win over Gaius Nymphidius Sabinus, the corrupt praetorian prefect since 65. Sabinus was able to turn the imperial guard against Nero on the promise that they would be rewarded financially by Galba upon his arrival. That was the end for Nero. Deposed by the senate and abandoned by his supporters, he committed suicide in June. At this point, encouraged to march on Rome by the praetorians and especially by Sabinus, who had his own designs on the throne, Galba hurriedly established broad-based political and financial support and assembled his own legion (subsequently known as the legio VII Gemina). As he departed from Spain, he abandoned the title of governor in favor of "Caesar," apparently in an attempt to lay claim to the entire inheritance of the Julio-Claudian house. Even so, he continued to proceed cautiously, and did not actually adopt the name of Caesar (and with it the emperorship) until sometime after he had left Spain.
The Principate of Galba
Meanwhile, Rome was anything but serene. An unusual force of soldiers, many of whom had been mustered by Nero to crush the attempt of Vindex, remained idle and restless. In addition, there was the matter concerning Nymphidius Sabinus. Intent on being the power behind the throne, Nymphidius had orchestrated a demand from the praetorians that Galba appoint him sole praetorian prefect for life. The senate capitulated to his pretensions and he began to have designs on the throne himself. In an attempt to rattle Galba, Nymphidius then sent messages of alarm to the emperor telling of unrest in both the city and abroad. When Galba ignored these reports, Nymphidius decided to launch a coup by presenting himself to the praetorians. The plan misfired, and the praetorians killed him when he appeared at their camp. Upon learning of the incident, Galba ordered the executions of Nymphidius' followers. To make matters worse, Galba's arrival was preceded by a confrontation with a boisterous band of soldiers who had been formed into a legion by Nero and were now demanding legionary standards and regular quarters. When they persisted, Galba's forces attacked, with the result that many of them were killed.
Thus it was amid carnage and fear that Galba arrived at the capital in October, 68, accompanied by Otho, the governor of Lusitania, who had joined the cause. Once Galba was within Rome, miscalculations and missteps seemed to multiply. First, he relied upon the advice of a corrupt circle of advisors, most notably: Titus Vinius, a general from Spain; Cornelius Laco, praetorian prefect; and his own freedman, Icelus. Second, he zealously attempted to recover some of Nero's more excessive expenditures by seizing the property of many citizens, a measure that seems to have gone too far and to have caused real hardship and resentment. Third, he created further ill-will by disbanding the imperial corps of German bodyguards, effectively abolishing a tradition that originated with Marius and had been endorsed by Augustus. Finally, he seriously alienated the military by refusing cash rewards for both the praetorians and for the soldiers in Upper Germany who had fought against Vindex.
This last act proved to be the beginning of the end for Galba. On 1 January 69 ("The Year of the Four Emperors"), the troops in Upper Germany refused to declare allegiance to him and instead followed the men stationed in Lower Germany in proclaiming their commander, Aulus Vitellius, as the new ruler. In response, Galba adopted Lucius Calpurnius Piso Frugi Licinianus to show that he was still in charge and that his successor would not be chosen for him. Piso, although an aristocrat, was a man completely without administrative or military experience. The choice meant little to the remote armies, the praetorians or the senate, and it especially angered Otho, who had hoped to succeed Galba. Otho quickly organized a conspiracy among the praetorians with the now-familiar promise of a material reward, and on 15 January 69 they declared him emperor and publicly killed Galba; Piso, dragged from hiding in the temple of Vesta, was also butchered.
Assessment
In sum, Galba had displayed talent and ambition during his lengthy career. He enjoyed distinguished ancestry, moved easily among the Julio-Claudian emperors (with the exception of Nero towards the end of his principate), and had been awarded the highest military and religious honors of ancient Rome. His qualifications for the principate cannot be questioned. Even so, history has been unkind to him. Tacitus characterized Galba as "weak and old," a man "equal to the imperial office, if he had never held it." Modern historians of the Roman world have been no less critical. To be sure, Galba's greatest mistake lay in his general handling of the military. His treatment of the army in Upper Germany was heedless, his policy towards the praetorians short sighted. Given the climate in 68-69, Galba was unrealistic in expecting disciplina without paying the promised rewards. He was also guilty of relying on poor advisors, who shielded him from reality and ultimately allowed Otho's conspiracy to succeed. Additionally, the excessive power of his henchmen brought the regime into disfavor and made Galba himself the principal target of the hatred that his aides had incited. Finally, the appointment of Piso, a young man in no way equal to the challenges placed before him, further underscored the emperor's isolation and lack of judgment. In the end, the instability of the post-Julio-Claudian political landscape offered challenges more formidable than a tired, septuagenarian aristocrat could hope to overcome. Ironically, his regime proved no more successful than the Neronian government he was so eager to replace. Another year of bloodshed would be necessary before the Principate could once again stand firm.
Copyright (C) 1999, John Donahue.
Published: De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families http://www.roman-emperors.org/startup.htm. Used by permission.
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.
Cleisthenes
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712a, Domitian, 13 September 81 - 18 September 96 A.D.Domitian, as Caesar, AR Denarius. 77-78 AD; RIC 242, VF, 18mm, 3.18grams. Obverse: CAESAR AVG F DOMITIA[NVS], laureate head right ; Reverse: COS V below man with hand raised out behind him on horse prancing right. RSC 49a. Scarce. Ex Zuzim Judaea.
De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families
Titus Flavius Domitianus(A.D. 81-96)
John Donahue
College of William and Mary
Domitian was born in Rome on 24 October A.D. 51, the youngest son of Vespasian, Roman emperor (A.D. 69-79) and Domitilla I, a treasury clerk's daughter. Little is known about Domitian in the turbulent 18 months of the four (five?) emperors, but in the aftermath of the downfall of Vitellius in A.D. 69 he presented himself to the invading Flavian forces, was hailed as Caesar, and moved into the imperial residence.
As emperor, Domitian was to become one of Rome's foremost micromanagers, especially concerning the economy. Shortly after taking office, he raised the silver content of the denarius by about 12% (to the earlier level of Augustus), only to devaluate it in A.D. 85, when the imperial income must have proved insufficient to meet military and public expenses.
Domitian's reach extended well beyond the economy. Late in A.D. 85 he made himself censor perpetuus, censor for life, with a general supervision of conduct and morals. The move was without precedent and, although largely symbolic, it nevertheless revealed Domitian's obsessive interest in all aspects of Roman life. An ardent supporter of traditional Roman religion, he also closely identified himself with Minerva and Jupiter, publicly linking the latter divinity to his regime through the Ludi Capitolini, the Capitoline Games, begun in A.D.86. Held every four years in the early summer, the Games consisted of chariot races, athletics and gymnastics, and music, oratory and poetry.
Beyond Rome, Domitian taxed provincials rigorously and was not afraid to impose his will on officials of every rank. Consistent with his concern for the details of administration, he also made essential changes in the organization of several provinces and established the office of curator to investigate financial mismanagement in the cities. Other evidence points to a concern with civic improvements of all kinds, from road building in Asia Minor, Sardinia and near the Danube to building and defensive improvements in North Africa.
While the military abilities of Vespasian and Titus were genuine, those of Domitian were not. Partly as an attempt to remedy this deficiency, Domitian frequently became involved in his own military exploits outside of Rome. He claimed a triumph in A.D. 83 for subduing the Chatti in Gaul, but the conquest was illusory. Final victory did not really come until A.D. 89. In Britain, similar propaganda masked the withdrawal of Roman forces from the northern borders to positions farther south, a clear sign of Domitian's rejection of expansionist warfare in the province.
Domitian's autocratic tendencies meant that the real seat of power during his reign resided with his court. The features typically associated with later courts - a small band of favored courtiers, a keen interest in the bizarre and the unusual (e.g., wrestlers, jesters, and dwarves), and a highly mannered, if somewhat artificial atmosphere, characterized Domitian's palace too, whether at Rome or at his Alban villa, some 20 kilometers outside of the capital.
On 18 September, A.D. 96, Domitian was assassinated and was succeeded on the very same day by M. Cocceius Nerva, a senator and one of his amici. The sources are unanimous in stressing that this was a palace plot, yet it is difficult to determine the level of culpability among the various potential conspirators.
In many ways, Domitian is still a mystery - a lazy and licentious ruler by some accounts, an ambitious administrator and keeper of traditional Roman religion by others. As many of his economic, provincial, and military policies reveal, he was efficient and practical in much that he undertook, yet he also did nothing to hide the harsher despotic realities of his rule. This fact, combined with his solitary personality and frequent absences from Rome, guaranteed a harsh portrayal of his rule. The ultimate truths of his reign remain difficult to know.
Copyright (C) 1997, John Donahue.
Published: De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families http://www.roman-emperors.org/startup.htm. Used by permission.
Perhaps the reverse of this Domitian/Horseman specimen depicts Domitian as he rode a white horse behind his father, Vespasian, and his brother, Titus, during their joint triumph celebrating their victory over Judaea (see: Suetonius. The Twelve Caesars. Trans. Robert Graves. London: Penguin, 2003. 304).
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.
Cleisthenes
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aA3. RSC 1a. AR Denarius. CONCORDIA AVGGAR Denarius. Rome mint.
Obv. Draped bust right PLAVTILLAE AVGVSTAE
Rev. Concordia standing left holding patera and sceptre CONCORDIA AVGG.
RIC 269
An unusual variant of a common type featuring the common CONCORDIA AVGG reverse with the first obverse type of Plautilla featuring a youthful portrait (type A) and the PLAVTILLAE AVGVSTAE (a) legend. LordBest
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AE 12; Zeus/ HibiscusRhodos, Caria, c. 225 B.C. Bronze AE 12, SNG Cop 797, nice F, Rhodos mint, 1.967g, 11.7mm, 0o, c. 225 BC; obverse laureate head of Zeus right; reverse PO, rose, sun-disk behind; rare. Based on the unusual Zeus obverse, this small bronze could be connected to Ptolemy III of Egypt. A devastating earthquake struck Rhodes in 226 B.C. It knocked down the Colossus of Rhodes and destroyed the city. Polybius records that Ptolemy III promised the Rhodians '300 talents of silver, a million artabae of corn, ship-timber for 10 quinqueremes and 10 triremes, consisting of 40,000 cubits of squared pine planking, 1000 talents of bronze coinage, 180,000 pounds of tow (for ropes), 3000 pieces of sailcloth, 3000 talents (of copper?) for the repair of the Colossus, 100 master-builders with 350 workmen, and 14 talents yearly to pay their wages. Beside this, he gave 12,000 artabae of corn for their public games and sacrifices, and 20,000 artabae for victualling 10 triremes. The greater part of these goods were delivered at once, as well as one-third of the money named.' This issue shows perceived harmony with, or thanks to Ptolemaic Egypt. -- J. Ashton, Rhodian Bronze Coinage and the Earthquake of 229. Ex FORVMPodiceps
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AE follis Justin II SB 360 yr 6Obverse: DN IVSTINVS PP AVG (or similar), Justin on l., and Sophia on r., seated facing on double throne, both nimbate; he holds gl. cr., she holds cruciform sceptre; rarely with cross between their heads
Reverse: Large M, ANNO to l., unusual chi rho above, regal yr G (6) to rt, CON in exergue.
Date: 570/1 CE
Mint: Constantinople
Sear 360
25mm 14.06gwileyc
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Aelia Flacilla Victory RIC IX 54 AntiochAelia Flaccilla, Antioch, 3g, 16mm, RIC IX Antioch 54 Unlisted officina
OBV: AEL FLAC-CILLA AVG, draped bust right with elaborate headdress,
REV: SALVS REI-PVBLICAE, Victory seated right, writing chi-rho on shield
resting on small column.
ANTΓ in exergue. Listed as rare with an Epsilon mint mark.
This is unlisted with this mintmark.
The fields do not appear to have any marks which is also unusual for the type.
SRukke
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Aemilius Lepidus Paullus - Aemilia-10ROMAN REPUBLIC L. Aemilius Lepidus Paullus. 62 BC. AR Denarius (18mm - 4.38 g). Rome mint. Diademed and veiled head of Concordia right / L. Aemilius Paullus standing to right of trophy, Perseus and his two sons captive on the left. Unusually heavy flan. Crawford 415/1; Sydenham 926; Aemilia 10. RSC 366 Bud Stewart
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Aequitas CldcfObverse: IMPCAESMAVRSEVALEXANDERAVG
Bust laureate right, draped and cuirassed, front view
Reverse: AEQVITAS_AVGVSTI, SC left and right, very low in field
Aequitas draped, standing front, head left holding scales in right hand and cornucopiae in left, fold of drapery over left arm
BMC 333-6 (are draped, side view), RIC 547
Weight, 20.92g; die axis, 11h
An unusual portrait variety in a sestertius from year 226 (issue 6) that became the standard portrait for draped and cuirassed portraits from 231 AD (issue 14) on.mix_val
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Aiolis, Kyme, SNG Copenhagen 113-114Aiolis, Kyme, 2nd century BC (after 190)
AE 17, 3.25g, 16.6mm
obv. K - Y
Artemis, in long garment, quiver over r. shoulder, stg. r., holding bow and long torch in l. hand, clasping
hands with amazone Kyme(?), in short military cloak, stg. l., with l. hand holding shield set on ground
behind.
rev. 2 female figures, in quadriga r., one holding transverse spear
SNG Copenhagen 113-114; SNG von Aulock 1644; BMC 96; Grose 7908
VF, unusual depiction
From Forum Ancient Coins, thanks
Jochen
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Alexander III Tetradrachm Price 2999KINGS OF MACEDON. Alexander III ‘the Great’, 336-323 BC. Tetradrachm (Silver, 25 mm, 17.13 g, 12 h), Tarsos, struck under Balakros or Menes, circa 333-327.
O: Head of Herakles to right, wearing lion skin headdress.
R: AΛEΞANΔPOY Zeus seated left on low throne, holding long scepter in his left hand and eagle standing right with closed wings in his right.
- Price 2999. A rare early and unusual issue from Tarsos, "Officina B", bearing no symbol.
Alexander the Great (356 B.C.–323 B.C.) has been recognized as the greatest stratelates (roughly, ‘general’) in history. His army consisted of 30,000 infantryman and 5,000 cavalrymen. In 334 B.C., when he was 22 years old, he embarked on a campaign starting from the capital of Macedonia, Pella, and he created the Macedonian Empire within 8 years, by 326 B.C. The Macedonian Empire extended from Greece to India and North Africa. Alexander fought in the front lines in every battle, thereby encouraging his fellow warriors to do their best. He was never a spectator in battles, and the rear line was not for him. In each battle, just as any of his soldiers, he faced the risk of not seeing the sunset. He was in danger of “dining in Hades,” as they said about soldiers who died during battle. All his soldiers saw Alexander’s back in every battle.
By comparing these early Tarsos tetradrachms to the staters of Mazaios (Pictured below) it is easy to see the identical forms of the throne, scepter, footstool and other details. The drapery is rendered in a similar manner, the Aramaic inscription of the one and the Greek inscription of the other share the same curve following the dotted border. This evidence indicates the two series of coins were the common product of a single mint.
 Nemonater
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ALFOLDI 027.60OBVERSE: IMP C M AVR PROBVS P F AVG
REVERSE: CONSERVAT AVG
BUST TYPE: E1 (BASTIEN'S CLASSIFICATION)
FIELD / EXERGUE MARKS: --//XXIQ
WEIGHT 3.97g / AXIS: 1h / WIDTH 22mm
RIC 670
ALFOLDI 027.60
COLLECTION NO. 174
EX S.L. COLLECTION
NOTE: VERY UNUSUAL STYLE OF EMPEROR'S PORTRAIT
Barnaba6
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ALFOLDI 096.055 VAR. - UNLISTED WITH P IN LEFT FIELDOBVERSE: IMP C PROBVS P F AVG
REVERSE: VIRTVS PROBI AVG (Mars walking right, holding trophy)
BUST TYPE: F1 = radiate, cuirassed bust left, holding spear and shield
FIELD / EXERGUE MARKS: P/-//XXI
WEIGHT 3.78g / AXIS: 6h / WIDTH 21mm
RIC 812 VAR. (MINTMAR IN LEFT FIELD UNLISTED)
ALFOLDI 096 / - (096.055 VAR. - UNLISTED WITH P IN LEFT FIELD)
COLLECTION NO. 1159
Unusual position of the P mintmark in left field instead of right
This is the only example of this type in my database. Possibly an unicum!
Ex. M. Griffiths collectionBarnaba6
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ANNONA AVGG, RIC 69 RomeValerian I, October 253 - c. June 260 A.D. Bronze antoninianus, RIC V 69, aVF, Rome mint, 3.073g, 19.0mm, 0o, 255 - 256 A.D.; obverse IMP C P LIC VALERIANVS P F AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right; reverse ANNONA AVGG, Annona standing left holding grain-ears over modius and cornucopia; unusual reverse type for the period. Ex FORVMPodiceps
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AnonymousObv: Head of Roma facing right, wearing a winged and crested Corinthian helmet, X behind, ROMA below.
Rev: Roma seated right on a pile of shields, holding a spear, two birds flying in field on the left and right, she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus at Roma's feet.
Note: Anonymously issued denarii were an unusual occurrence at this time. Many years later, the reverse design was reused on an aureus of Titus during the Flavian era.
Silver Denarius, Rome mint, 115 - 114 BC
3.9 grams, 20.5 mm, 270°
RSC Anonymous 176, S164Matt Inglima
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