Constantius II reduced nummus

[Flav V]

Hello,

With only 1 standard this coin wolud be reduced nummus. But there is two standard and the size is 14.00 mm for 0.88 grs. The coin has imitative style but looks realy nicely made if its imitation. We can only distinguish S ant end of exergue.

[Callimachus]

Toward the end of the 2-standard reverse time period, the size of the flans fluctuated greatly in some areas.
As for weight: You coin has 10-20% of the flan missing, so it will be under-weight.
To me, the style is likely official.

[Laurentius]

According to C.F. Zschucke, such pieces are also named as "semi-official emergency money", after the closure
of the mint in Trier by Constantius II in 354/355.

Your example shown here, could be one of them. In any case, the weight, the style and the "S" at the end of
the mintmark would speak for it.

br Laurentius

[Flav V]

According to C.F. Zschucke, such pieces are also named as "semi-official emergency money", after the closure
of the mint in Trier by Constantius II in 354/355.

Your example shown here, could be one of them. In any case, the weight, the style and the "S" at the end of
the mintmark would speak for it.

br Laurentius

Thanks both, why the S at end speak for it? I dont know C.F. Zschucke works. Ill try to find it.

[Laurentius]

why the S at end speak for it?

As an an example for the mintmark:  TR"S", Treveri SECVNDA, the 2. officina

I didnt read C.F. Zschucke works, it dont understand german. Ill try to find it.

Found at work: "Zschucke, Die Römische Münzstätte Trier, side 16"

I am aware of the situation.
I don't have this edition myself, but I can quote a colleague.

"In my experience, these imitations appear quite frequently in British hoards in the coin trade.
On the other hand, similar pieces can also be found in the finds from the Trier Moselle bridge,
albeit less frequently.
In his notes on the "Roman emergency money" from Trier, Carl-Friedrich Zschucke explains that the barbaric
coins of the late Constantine era with reverses such as e.g. B. GLORIA EXERCITVS and Trier or Lyon mint marks
are an expression of a considerable money shortage in connection with a money shortage of 355 - 367 AD."
Like Zschucke and Hans-Joachim Kann, I am also firmly convinced that this is "semi-official emergency money". I would like to question whether these pieces, as Zschucke points out, were possibly even minted in the Trier mint itself. I think it is quite conceivable that there may have been other mints in the North-West Provinces, such as e.g. B. in Britain."

PS: Now regardless of whether it was cast or minted, this only affects the numismatic assignment of your coin.

br Laurentius

[SC]

This is a very similar phenomenon to the cast coins from Egypt which could also be labelled semi-official emergency money.

Semi-official means they were at minimum tolerated by the government and perhaps requested by them or even made by them - at least by local officials.

Emergency means they were meant to meet a severe shortage in official coinage.

The way the shortage was addressed varied by region to region and time to time.  Sometimes cast as in Egypt or the Danube region, in other cases struck with designs that varied from close to official to outright "barbaric".

SC
 

[Flav V]

You think my coin is cast or minted? Its hard to define, in hand the coin looks minted but i have a doubt. Is there any reference in the book for this coin if we consider it as TRS? I thinked about SMNS or other but as you said, the style is closer to Trier.

[SC]

It is always hard to be certain from a photo but I am pretty sure it is struck not cast.

As Laurentius mentioned, such semi-official coins are quite common in Gaul, imitating Trier and Lugdunum mintmarks.  They are far far scarcer from Anatolia or with Anatolian mintmarks.

SC