New coin - an extremely rare Marcus Aurelius denarius

[CPK]

Good evening everyone!
I was recently able to acquire this coin for my ongoing Roman Imperial denarii collection:
(apologies to those from other forums who've seen this already!)

MARCUS AURELIUS, AD 161-180
AR Denarius (18.15mm, 3.60g, 6h)
Struck AD 174. Rome mint
Obverse: M ANTONINVS AVG TR P XXVIII, laureate and cuirassed bust of Marcus Aurelius right
Reverse: IMP VII COS III, Victory seated left, holding patera and palm
References: RIC III 303 var. (bust type), MIR 281-4/35
Toned with an outstanding portrait. An extremely rare variant featuring a cuirassed bust.​

This coin interested me for a few reasons: first, the overall style of the portrait and condition of the coin is of the highest quality; second, it is an extremely rare type, and unlisted in any reference catalog of which I am aware.

The difference is in the bust type. RIC III no. 303 is the closest, but is listed for laureate only, whereas mine is laureate and cuirassed. Incidentally, I like the cuirassed bust style on these earlier denarii.

There is one other specimen that matches mine, and that one was sold in 2008 as 'unique'. I haven't been able to find any other matches, which I suppose makes mine possibly the second known specimen. Interestingly I don't think the two coins share a die.

Here's the coin in my gallery: https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=186283

Thanks for looking!

[Jay GT4]

Beautifully photographed too!

[CPK]

Beautifully photographed too!

Thanks! I will say, this coin was one of the harder ones to photograph - the darker toned, uniform surfaces made it tough to get the light right. It took some time, but I'm happy with how it came out.

[CPK]

Update. I submitted this coin to Dane at wildwinds.com, and she was able to find another specimen which sold through Gorny & Mosch about ten years ago, making a total of three known specimens of this type to date.

[Enodia]

Great image, great coin!

~ Peter

[CPK]

Great image, great coin!

~ Peter

Thanks!

[geetar]

Beautiful coin!  I really like the flow marks, very elegant looking.

[CPK]

Beautiful coin!  I really like the flow marks, very elegant looking.

Thanks geetar!

Welcome to the Forum and the hobby.

[Pavel L]

Magnificent denarius, congratulations.
In my album there are several rare variants of Marcus Aurelius' denarii, although not as beautiful as your coin
https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=7999

[Joe Sermarini]

Beautiful coin. Love the radiating flow lines and toning.