Hello-
I recently picked up this
Aes Graves on a whim and have been spending some time trying to properly attribute it. The photos when listed were
poor showing it as dark brown when it really has a charming dark green
patina. Further it was listed without a
weight which made it hard to classify. On my kitchen
scale (not the most accurate)-this coin weighs 105g. So would one classify this as towards the lighter end of a Semilbral reduction coin (ca. 132g)? or towards the heavier end of
a Post Semilibral reuction coin (ca. 81g)? I know that design elements can
help further refine this but I have neither the references or experience to nail that one down. Do we simply guess or do we label something like this more of a transitional piece? I added it to my
gallery as being of 'Semilibral' reduction based on
weight an appearance with the
attribution below? Does this seem reasonable-or should I make changes?
Thanks for the
help,
Justin
AE
Aes Grave As: 217-215 BC
ID: AE
Aes Grave As; Semilibral
weight standardDenomination:
Aes Grave As
Year: 217-215 BC
Obverse: Bearded
Head of
Janus (without mark of value on
obv.)
Reverse: Prow of Galley Left.
Mint:
RomeWeight & Measures: ~105g
References:
Sear 572, CR-38/1,
CRR 89, ICC 63.
Provenance: Ex Stacks Bowers Galleries (January 2024 NYINC
Auction); Lot 55206.
Notes:
Janus (/ˈdʒeɪnəs/ JAY-nəs; Latin: Ianvs [ˈi̯aːnʊs]) is the god of beginnings, gates, transitions, time, duality, doorways, passages, frames, and endings. The “Prow” series (
Reverse) was not a commemoration of a specific event but more a general assertion of mastery over the Mediterranean Sea and subsequent trade.