Is that BD on the reverse?
And, hence, fourree?
PeteB
The coin is in "as found" condition with
hoard toning. The surface marks are from being in the ground next to copper coins. Also, at this point in Septimius' reign, the
denarius content was almost 50% copper, so surface copper corrosion from being near copper-containing coins tends to stain the surface.
On this coins, it's an encrustation and not flakey at all. It's just on the surface of the coin. I have similar stains on many low-purity
denarii from the period
The
weight and
diameter are also bang-on for a mid-grade silver
denarius. It's not a
fouree.
Here is an interesting chart to look at. The purple dots are
severan era coins. in the first couple years of Septimius' reign, the purity is pretty high. By the end of the dynasty, not so much.
Scholars often talk about this debasement being a reaction to massive pay increases for the army under Septimius.