Unusual Trajan suberatus

[DzikiZdeb]

Hallo,

A colleague of mine acquired at polish auction site allegro.pl iteresting coin of Trajan. Could you take a look at photos attached to this e-mail and write your thougts about this coin in a few words?

Coin is much smaller than typical denarius, its diameter is 16-17 mm and weight 1,74 g. Reverse type is copied from one of rarest Trajan denarii - RIC 147A/MIR 269. Core is copper, and there is a little trace of silvering. A hole before Trajan's eye is quite deep (about half of coin thickness, probably a sign of coin check when the silvering was full or unfinished hole which allows to use coin as pendant). Style is unexpectedly good and it resembles a Rome mint products; but if it is a cast, why it is so small?

If it is necessary we of course can upload more photos.

Regards,
Pawel

[Rupert]

When you have a real coin and make a casting mould from it, the mould will shrink a little when it dries.
When you make a cast forgery using this mould, the cast coin will also shrink when it comes out of the mould and cools off.
So it's perfectly normal that ancient cast forgeries are small than original coins. The cast "Limesfalsa" asses are often 23 or 24 mm in size, and 4 to 7 gram in weight.

Rupert

[DzikiZdeb]

What you describe is process of production limes denarii, which are molded in form. Please note that the lettering on the presented coin is very sharp and clear, which suggests that it was produced using dies. If it was limes denarius, the letters should be more fuzzy and flat.

Another important argument for the suberatus is the copper core. There is no purpose to insert core like this in limes denarius - I have not met such a case so far.

The weight of the coin is also wondering - it is exactly half of the weight of original denarius and is similar to weight of quinarius.

[SC]

It may be a core.

But it could also be a limes falsa.  While it is true that some have very little detail, others have as much detail as your coin.

Depending on the alloy used (including Sn and Pb content), the temperature of the molten alloy, and the skill of the maker more detail can be created.

SC

[DzikiZdeb]

it could also be a limes falsa.

There's too little probability in this theory. The reverse is so rare that false limes denarius of that type seems like something to cut by Occam's razor at once.

[SC]

I am sorry but I don't understand that argument at all.

The rarity of a type has little relevance to the consideration of whether it is a falsa.  Falsas are based on the use of real coins to press into clay and make moulds.  Studies have shown that the casters used whatever coins were at hand.  The same batch has yielded coins that vary in date by decades so people could use old and new.

If you look at.a study of a large number of falsa, such as the relevant chapters in Numismatic Carnuntina, you can see that both common and rare coins were used.

So I don't think the argument of rarity of the type is very important and the question of quality does not matter either.

I do think that the dating of the coin makes it slightly more likely that it was a sub-aeratus than a falsa.  But I don't think you can definitely eliminate either option.

SC