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Gallery of Holed Coins - Third Century Roman

My holed ancient coins page gives an overview of different types of holed coins. These are my holed coin galleries:

Hellenic Coins — Roman Republican and Augustan Coins — First Century Roman Coins — Second Century Roman Coins — Third Century Roman Coins (this page) — Fourth Century Roman Coins — Fifth Century Roman Coins — Byzantine or Romaion Coins of Later Centuries — Other Holed Coins of Varying Origins and Times

A holed cast brass as of Caracalla with a reverse showing the Dea Caelestis riding a lion Cast brass as of Caracalla,
203 CE.
24mm across,
5.82 grammes.		 This coin of Caracalla, the son of Septimius Severus, has a reverse that was also shown on his father's coins. It shows the goddess Dea Caelestis astride a lion, and is thought to commemorate some act of generosity to the city of Carthage. This is a contemporary copy, a fake or a "coin of necessity", perhaps cast in Gaul. The way this coin is pierced preserves and could show off both sides. It could have been a lucky token just because of the strange image of the goddess riding a lion. Both the hole and the coin are quite worn, even allowing for the lack of sharpness of the cast compared to a struck coin, so it must have seen a lot of use.
A holed brass coin of Plautilla from Pautalia in Thrace with a reverse showing a coiled serpent Bronze AE29 of Plautilla from Pautalia in Thrace,
202-205 CE.
29mm across,
14.8 grammes.		 This very pleasant coin shows Caracalla's young wife looking untypically plump. On the reverse is a coiled, bearded serpent which looks quite unusual to modern eyes, but which was a common reverse in the Eatern empire. The hole has been hammered through from the snake side, so that was most likely what was displayed.
A holed bronze coin of Elagabalus from Hippos-Susita with a reverse showing Pegasos Bronze AE28 of Elagabalus from Hippos-Susita in Syria,
218-222 CE.
28mm across,
11.21 grammes.		 A worn coin, but an unusual one, and so deserving a place on this page. It is from a town in the Dekapolis, an area on the eastern fringe of the Roman empire containing ten towns which had a Greek-influenced culture. This coin comes from the time of Roman rule, and has the head of Elagabalus sliglty misplaced, just enough to allow the hole not to affect it. This might be why this coin was chosen to be made into an ornament. The reverse shows the mythical winged horse Pegasos.
A holed silver and base metal denarius of Julia Maesa with a reverse showing Pietas with an altar Fourrée denarius of Julia Maesa,
after 218-222 CE.
19 x 20mm across,
2.51 grammes.		 I thought this was just going to be another example that shows how coins known to be fakes were holed for use as decoration. The large brown area, where the silver layer has come away, would probably not have been so large or conspicuous at that time, and the coin could still have looked quite pretty. But the silver coating extends to the inside of the hole! That is very strange. Making a fake with a hole would just have drawn unwanted attention, and adding silver to a hole that has just been made does not sound a sensible action. So the silvering inside the hole is a bit of a mystery. An official and unholed example of this coin is here.
A holed bronze coin of Severus Alexander from Bostra with a reverse showing Zeus Bronze AE21 of Severus Alexander,
222-235 CE.
19 x 21mm across,
3.78 grammes.		 This provincial bronze coin denotes that the town of Bostra was refounded as a Roman "colonia" by Severus Alexander. These colony towns in the eastern provinces were places where retired legionary veterans were given some land and allowed to settle.
The reverse of this coin shows the eastern deity Zeus-Ammon wearing a symbolic solar disc as a headdress. The coin looks to have been pierced from this side, but the hole is not particularly worn, so it may have been pinned or nailed up as a votive display.
Bronze AE33 of Singara Bronze AE33 of Gordian III from Singara in Mesopotamia,
241-244 CE.
33mm across,
14.6 grammes.		 This is a strange-looking coin! It looks almost pentagonal, but that's probably accidental. Some provincial bronzes have a dimple near the centre, probably made when the coin blank was formed, and at first I thought this might have been a badly made coin. But this type doesn't have them, so maybe this hole was to allow the coin to be nailed or pinned up.
This coin was among a mixed cheap batch on eBay, so it cost me about 2 pounds. Worth every penny!
Bronze AE32 of Singara Bronze AE32 of Gordian III from Singara in Mesopotamia,
241-244 CE.
32mm across,
22.3 grammes.		 And now I also have this one. I couldn't resist it – though it was rather more expensive than the previous example. This one has been holed for use as a pendant, which gives it that personal touch.
These coins show Gordian III and his wife Tranquillina facing each other on one side, and on the other is Tyche seated on a rock, with the centaur Saggitarius above her head (very small) and a sea god below.
A bronze coin of the emperor Gordian III from Viminacium showing the city goddess between a bull and a lion. Bronze AE31 of Gordian III from Viminacium in Moesia Superior,
239-240 CE.
31mm across,
18.5 grammes.		 Here's another large provincial bronze of Gordian III, this time from Viminacium. The reverse design was standard for this province, and shows the city goddess between the symbols of the 4th and 7th legions, which were stationed in Upper Moesia; the bull for Legio VII Claudia Pia Fidelis, and the lion for Legio IIII Flavia Felix.
A small neat hole has been made just below Gordian's head, but the bronze has broken away from the far side of the hole as it was made, so that side is not so neat. If this coin were worn as a pendant, the head would be upside down to others, but the right way up if the wearer looked at it.
Bronze sestertius of Philip I showing Laetitia Bronze sestertius of Philip I,
244-249 CE.
28mm across,
9.3 grammes.		 This sestertius must have had a very different appearance when it was found. You can see the remeins of patination and deposits in the flan cracks. All that has been stripped off, leaving quite a bit of corrosion, but the portrait and the reverse type are stiill clearly to be seen.
The hole in this coin is quite neat and small, avoiding the emperor's head, which is probably what was intended for display. The hole was drilled from that side.
The legend, LAET FVNDATA, means that rejoicing (Laetitia), perhaps in a religious sense, is the foundation of things.
Bronze AE24 of Philip II from Perga in Pamphylia Bronze AE24 of Philip II from Perga in Pamphylia,
247-249 CE.
24mm across,
8.4 grammes.		 The son of Philip I was given the status of Augustus, and hence the right to be shown wearing a laurel wreath on the coinage, in 247 CE. This pleasant provincial coin has on its reverse a prize chest with three purses on top. This may have been to celebrate a victory in the Olympic games, or one of the other national games, by a native of the town. As this coin celebrates the acquisition of wealth, it's not hard to guess what sort of a good luck token it was!
Holed billon antoninianus of Valerian Billon antoninianus of Valerian,
257-259 CE.
20x24mm across,
2.7 grammes.		 A worn and clearly well-used coin, pierced from the bust side. The image of the sun-god rising in the east on the reverse would have made a powerful charm, and as the hole is well clear of Sol as well as the emperor, perhaps this was also intended.
Silvered billon antoninianus of Severina Billon antoninianus of Severina,
270-275 CE.
21x22mm across,
4.0 grammes.		 This silvered coin is holed above and below the bust, and shows hardly any wear at all. It might have been strung together with other coins to make a necklace, only worn occasionally, or perhaps attached to some object as decoration.
Holed billon antoninianus of Probus showing the emmperor on horseback Billon antoninianus of Probus,
281 CE.
21x23mm across,
3.58 grammes.		 An antoninianus of Probus in quite good condition as regards wear and of a popular type, showing the emperor on horseback with a bound and subdued prisoner. The legend, ADVENTVS AVG, relates to a triumphant entry into Rome. It has a patchy green patina, and this and the small hole reduce its market value. The hole was placed in a position that shows off the emperor's bust on the obverse.
Bronze quinarius of Allectus Bronze quinarius of Allectus,
293-296 CE.
18x19mm across,
2.45 grammes.		 A so-called "quinarius" of the breakaway British Roman Empire. These are called quinarii because of the letter Q in the exergue, but no-one knows for sure. This coin was most likely made in a London mint.

Hellenic Coins — Roman Republican and Augustan Coins — First Century Roman Coins — Second Century Roman Coins — Third Century Roman Coins (this page) — Fourth Century Roman Coins — Fifth Century Roman Coins — Byzantine or Romaion Coins of Later Centuries — Other Holed Coins of Varying Origins and Times

The content of this page was last updated on 6 November 2010.
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