Post your latest ancient!

[Limes]

1 hour ago, DonnaML said:

Can anyone decipher the German handwriting on the back?

gemeint ist wohl ein elch, meaning meant is probably an Elk. 

Interesting and appealing coin!

[expat]

I can finally post this new acquisition. Dane at Wildwinds has corrected the dealer attribution to;

PERGAMON (Mysia) AE16.
Obverse: Head of Athena right, wearing helmet decorated with 8 pointed star.
Reverse: AΘHNAΣ / NIKHΦOPOY. Owl standing facing on palm frond right, with wings spread. Monograms ΓΑ and ΑΡ either sides of owl in fields.
SNG Copenhagen 384. Leipzig 1102-1103.
 Pergamon mint, ca. 200-133 BC.  2,9 g - 16 mm

 

[ela126]

Had some luck with low cost acquisitions lately. This one was nicely misattributed to a more common type, due to the CON in exegue. I’m not super familiar with these but it’s one of the better I can remember, definitely worth the $18. Reverse is quite nice.

Maurice Tiberius 582-602

Decanummium 

Constantine in Numidia

4.1g, 21mm x 19.5mm

SB 578

 

[Prieure de Sion]

Vespasianus, 69-79 n. Chr. AR-Denar 72/73 n. Chr. Rom Vs.: [IMP C]AES VESP AVG P M COS IIII, Kopf mit Lorbeerkranz n. r., Rs.: VICTORIA AVGVSTI, Victoria steht mit Palmzweig n. r. und bekränzt rechts stehende Standarte RIC 362; Coh. 618. 3.24 g; Ex Giessener Münzhandlung, Auktion 78, 1996, Los 489

 

The seller describe the coin as a „Judaea Capta“ issue. Is that correct @David Atherton …? 

[DonnaML]

22 hours ago, DonnaML said:

Cornelia Salonina (wife of Gallienus), Billon Antoninianus, 267-268 AD, Rome Mint, 4^th Officina. Obv. Diademed and draped bust right, on crescent, COR SALONINA AVG / Rev. Antelope [Wolkow], doe [RIC & Sear], hind (female red deer) [Cohen], Capreolus (European roe deer) [Cunetio], or European elk (moose) [Münzen & Medaillen] walking left, IVNONI CONS AVG; in exergue (offset to right), Δ [Delta = 4th Officina]. RIC V-1 16, RSC IV 70 [doe or hind], Cohen 70, Sear RCV III 10643, Wolkow 29aa4 (ill. p. 98) [Cédric Wolkow, Catalogue des monnaies romaines - Gallien - L'émission dite "Du Bestiaire" - atelier de Rome (BNumis, édition 2019)], Göbl MIR [Moneta Imperii Romani] Band 36, No. 725; Cunetio 1418-1419 [Besly, E. & R. Bland, The Cunetio Treasure: Roman Coinage of the Third Century AD (London, 1983)]. 20 mm., 3.01 g. Purchased Sep 2023 from Münzen & Medaillen GmbH, Weil am Rhein, Germany; acquired from Münzen & Medaillen AG Basel, Switzerland (before 2004) (with coin tags from both)*; ex Collection M. Wedel.  

Wow, do I feel like an idiot, even though this is the first time I've ever made this kind of mistake: I realized today that I already had an example of the Salonina Zoo Series coin before buying this one!  And it's not as if I bought the first one years ago. I bought it at a Leu Numismatik auction in March of this year, together with a Theodosius I siliqua. Somehow, even though I entered the Theodosius I coin in my personal catalog, I never entered the Salonina, so when I checked my catalog for Salonina before buying the new example, as I usually do, it wasn't there, and I obviously had forgotten about it. 

So now I have two of them, which I really don't need. 

The new one:

The one I already had from Leu:

So now I have a dilemma. I can't think of any possible reason why I would want to keep both. If you were me, which one would you try to sell? The Leu specimen is clearly in better condition overall, with much better surfaces. On the other hand, the antelope-doe-hind-Capreolus-elk seems actually to be a bit better preserved in the new specimen. 

And, if there are any Zoo Series collectors out there interested in buying either one, please let me know! We could discuss price by private message. I can tell you that whichever one I decide to sell, I think I would charge the same price, something under 100 Euros -- i.e., no more than what I paid for the less expensive one. 

I can't believe I did this.

Edited October 6, 2023 by DonnaML

[Phil Anthos]

I've done the same thing twice this year. The last coin I bought was from Roma in February. There were two Tarentine fractions I was interested in, but on checking my files I saw that I already had one but not the other. Back to the auction where I immediately bid on the wrong one. I realized this just as I hit the confirmation button, kinda like when you realize you've left the keys in the ignition just as the door is swinging closed. 🤨  Ironically I hoped I would be outbid but no such luck. Oh well, I'll just sell the other one right? No, it's a Vlasto plate coin!

The other I just forgot I had.

The first image is the Roma coin, second is the Vlasto specimen. 

Getting old ain't for whimps.

~ Peter 

Edited October 7, 2023 by Phil Anthos

[Ancient Coin Hunter]

1 hour ago, DonnaML said:

Wow, do I feel like an idiot, even though this the first time I've ever made this kind of mistake: I realized today that I already had an example of the Salonina Zoo Series coin before buying this one!  And it's not as if I bought the first one years ago. I bought it at a Leu Numismatik auction in March of this year, together with a Theodosius I siliqua. Somehow, even though I entered the Theodosius I coin in my personal catalog, I never entered the Salonina, so when I checked my catalog for Salonina before buying the new example, as I usually do, it wasn't there, and I obviously had forgotten about it. 

So now I have two of them, which I really don't need. 

The new one:

The one I already had from Leu:

So now I have a dilemma. I can't think of any possible reason why I would want to keep both. If you were me, which one would you try to sell? The Leu specimen is clearly in better condition overall, with much better surfaces. On the other hand, the antelope-doe-hind-Capreolus-elk seems actually to be a bit better preserved in the new specimen. 

And, if there are any Zoo Series collectors out there interested in buying either one, please let me know! We could discuss price by private message. I can tell you that whichever one I decide to sell, I think I would charge the same price, something under 100 Euros -- i.e., no more than what I paid for the less expensive one. 

I can't believe I did this.

I did this by buying a coin of Licinius Junior. I forgot that I already had one with a Jovi Conservatori reverse. Completely slipped my mind as I had not photographed it. They say losing your keys and forgetting where you put them is a sign of mild cognitive impairment 😲boy I hope not

[DonnaML]

2 hours ago, Ancient Coin Hunter said:

I did this by buying a coin of Licinius Junior. I forgot that I already had one with a Jovi Conservatori reverse. Completely slipped my mind as I had not photographed it. They say losing your keys and forgetting where you put them is a sign of mild cognitive impairment 😲boy I hope not

Supposedly, you only have to start getting really worried when you find your keys in the freezer. But in all seriousness, just about every friend I have who's over 60 is a bit paranoid about possible signs of cognitive impairment or dementia. In my case, it's my increasing inability to call immediately to  mind the names of actors and actresses and other celebrities. Even though they almost always pop into my head unbidden after a while. When I start forgetting the names of Roman emperors and empresses I should know, then I'll worry!

Edited October 6, 2023 by DonnaML

[David Atherton]

6 hours ago, Prieure de Sion said:

Vespasianus, 69-79 n. Chr. AR-Denar 72/73 n. Chr. Rom Vs.: [IMP C]AES VESP AVG P M COS IIII, Kopf mit Lorbeerkranz n. r., Rs.: VICTORIA AVGVSTI, Victoria steht mit Palmzweig n. r. und bekränzt rechts stehende Standarte RIC 362; Coh. 618. 3.24 g; Ex Giessener Münzhandlung, Auktion 78, 1996, Los 489

 

The seller describe the coin as a „Judaea Capta“ issue. Is that correct @David Atherton …? 

I would say this type is too generic to be a 'Judaea Capta' type. Hendin in his catalogue doesn't list it as one either.

Regardless, that's a great looking coin!

[Furryfrog02]

I won two coins earlier this week and they arrived today. 

I've been wanting a Nero that actually says his name in the obverse legend. I have been bidding on Victory reverses but am always outbid at the end. I won this coin with a Neptune reverse for a decent price and I'm happy with it. 
 

Here is the wildwinds description:
Nero
AE As
Moesia or Balkan mint (Perinthus, Thrace?)
Obverse: NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM P M, Laureate head right
Reverse: S-C, Neptune standing left, holding dolphin and trident. RPC I 1760; BMCRE 391 note, pl. 48, 11; WCN pg. 245, 1 var. (obverse legend); RIC: not listed but mentioned on pp. 186-187

Obviously mine reads NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM.

I could only find one obverse match anywhere and it was from Vauctions Auction 252, Lot 40. Mine clearly isn't in as nice of shape BUT you are able to read more of the legend than that example. Plus mine was 1/10 the price:

 

Description

THRACE. Perinthus. Nero. 54-68 AD. Æ As (26mm - 11.11 g). NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM, laureate head right / S-C across fields, Neptune standing left, holding dolphin in right hand, trident in left. RIC I -; BMCRE -; RPC I -; RPC I Suppl. 1760A (same obverse die). Good VF, green patina, surfaces a little rough. Very Rare.
 

[Furryfrog02]

The other coin I won was an Alexandrian tetradrachm of Hadrian with an ancient Egyptian theme of a Canopus of Osiris.

Hadrian
Year 5
Billon Tetradrachm
Alexandria
Obverse: Laureate bust right
Reverse: Canopus of Osiris to right, dated LE
Emmett 827

Edited October 6, 2023 by Furryfrog02

[CPK]

7 hours ago, DonnaML said:

Wow, do I feel like an idiot, even though this is the first time I've ever made this kind of mistake: I realized today that I already had an example of the Salonina Zoo Series coin before buying this one!  And it's not as if I bought the first one years ago. I bought it at a Leu Numismatik auction in March of this year, together with a Theodosius I siliqua. Somehow, even though I entered the Theodosius I coin in my personal catalog, I never entered the Salonina, so when I checked my catalog for Salonina before buying the new example, as I usually do, it wasn't there, and I obviously had forgotten about it. 

So now I have two of them, which I really don't need. 

The new one:

The one I already had from Leu:

So now I have a dilemma. I can't think of any possible reason why I would want to keep both. If you were me, which one would you try to sell? The Leu specimen is clearly in better condition overall, with much better surfaces. On the other hand, the antelope-doe-hind-Capreolus-elk seems actually to be a bit better preserved in the new specimen. 

And, if there are any Zoo Series collectors out there interested in buying either one, please let me know! We could discuss price by private message. I can tell you that whichever one I decide to sell, I think I would charge the same price, something under 100 Euros -- i.e., no more than what I paid for the less expensive one. 

I can't believe I did this.

 

Overall, as you say, the Leu is better preserved, but I think in the end, I'd prefer the new one over the Leu one. Since the cervid on the reverse is the main focus. I like how the newer specimen has a much more clearly/artistically defined antler spread. The obverse portrait is not bad either.

But, both are nice specimens!

[CPK]

4 hours ago, Furryfrog02 said:

I won two coins earlier this week and they arrived today. 

I've been wanting a Nero that actually says his name in the obverse legend. I have been bidding on Victory reverses but am always outbid at the end. I won this coin with a Neptune reverse for a decent price and I'm happy with it. 
 

Here is the wildwinds description:
Nero
AE As
Moesia or Balkan mint (Perinthus, Thrace?)
Obverse: NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM P M, Laureate head right
Reverse: S-C, Neptune standing left, holding dolphin and trident. RPC I 1760; BMCRE 391 note, pl. 48, 11; WCN pg. 245, 1 var. (obverse legend); RIC: not listed but mentioned on pp. 186-187

Obviously mine reads NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM.

I could only find one obverse match anywhere and it was from Vauctions Auction 252, Lot 40. Mine clearly isn't in as nice of shape BUT you are able to read more of the legend than that example. Plus mine was 1/10 the price:

 

Description

THRACE. Perinthus. Nero. 54-68 AD. Æ As (26mm - 11.11 g). NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM, laureate head right / S-C across fields, Neptune standing left, holding dolphin in right hand, trident in left. RIC I -; BMCRE -; RPC I -; RPC I Suppl. 1760A (same obverse die). Good VF, green patina, surfaces a little rough. Very Rare.
 

Great score on a rare coin! 👍

[Furryfrog02]

11 hours ago, CPK said:

Great score on a rare coin! 👍

I assure you, it was totally by accident lol.

[DonnaML]

23 hours ago, DonnaML said:

Wow, do I feel like an idiot, even though this is the first time I've ever made this kind of mistake: I realized today that I already had an example of the Salonina Zoo Series coin before buying this one!  And it's not as if I bought the first one years ago. I bought it at a Leu Numismatik auction in March of this year, together with a Theodosius I siliqua. Somehow, even though I entered the Theodosius I coin in my personal catalog, I never entered the Salonina, so when I checked my catalog for Salonina before buying the new example, as I usually do, it wasn't there, and I obviously had forgotten about it. 

So now I have two of them, which I really don't need. 

The new one:

The one I already had from Leu:

So now I have a dilemma. I can't think of any possible reason why I would want to keep both. If you were me, which one would you try to sell? The Leu specimen is clearly in better condition overall, with much better surfaces. On the other hand, the antelope-doe-hind-Capreolus-elk seems actually to be a bit better preserved in the new specimen. 

And, if there are any Zoo Series collectors out there interested in buying either one, please let me know! We could discuss price by private message. I can tell you that whichever one I decide to sell, I think I would charge the same price, something under 100 Euros -- i.e., no more than what I paid for the less expensive one. 

I can't believe I did this.

I appreciate @CPK's opinion, but before I make a final decision on which one to keep, I'd love some more input, so I am hoping that someone can please explain how to create a separate thread on this question as a poll? I used to know how to do that on Coin Talk, but I've never done a poll here and don't know how. Thanks!

[expat]

@DonnaML when you create a new  thread first click on the Poll button

then you are taken to the poll details page. Fill in as required, then continue as normal with your thread title and then your content.

Hope this helps

[DonnaML]

3 minutes ago, expat said:

@DonnaML when you create a new  thread first click on the Poll button

then you are taken to the poll details page. Fill in as required, then continue as normal with your thread title and then your content.

Hope this helps

Thanks!

[Steppenfool]

16 hours ago, CPK said:

 

Overall, as you say, the Leu is better preserved, but I think in the end, I'd prefer the new one over the Leu one. Since the cervid on the reverse is the main focus. I like how the newer specimen has a much more clearly/artistically defined antler spread. The obverse portrait is not bad either.

But, both are nice specimens!

@DonnaML

I agree with this and it's no contest for me. Everyone knows my main criteria for coins is Historical and Artful reverses. The animal on the reverse is not only better preserved, but its depiction commmunicates something. It appears to be walking proudly, almost to the point of pomp and swagger. It's chin is up and the antlers protrude compellingly for some distance. It's legs are straight and elegant, and the contures of it's body and muscles add to the dynamism and vitality of the creature. It's easy to place this animal in some imagined context or story, and consider it's personality, and therefore we immediately ask ourselves if this depiction tells us anything about Salonina herself?

The old example looks like a barebones outline of some animal or another, and little more.

The observe in the new addition is indeed in worse condition, however, the name and all essential features are still present, and in fact, there is more detail around Salonina's facial features, which makes the portrait on the newer piece more expressive.

All in all, one coin is a piece of Roman money, the other seems to have some ineffable quality, or "art" as defined by Tolstoy.

Art begins when a man, with the purpose of communicating to other people a feeling he once experienced, calls it up again within himself and expresses it by certain external signs

[DonnaML]

32 minutes ago, Steppenfool said:

@DonnaML

I agree with this and it's no contest for me. Everyone knows my main criteria for coins is Historical and Artful reverses. The animal on the reverse is not only better preserved, but its depiction commmunicates something. It appears to be walking proudly, almost to the point of pomp and swagger. It's chin is up and the antlers protrude compellingly for some distance. It's legs are straight and elegant, and the contures of it's body and muscles add to the dynamism and vitality of the creature. It's easy to place this animal in some imagined context or story, and consider it's personality, and therefore we immediately ask ourselves if this depiction tells us anything about Salonina herself?

The old example looks like a barebones outline of some animal or another, and little more.

The observe in the new addition is indeed in worse condition, however, the name and all essential features are still present, and in fact, there is more detail around Salonina's facial features, which makes the portrait on the newer piece more expressive.

All in all, one coin is a piece of Roman money, the other seems to have some ineffable quality, or "art" as defined by Tolstoy.

Art begins when a man, with the purpose of communicating to other people a feeling he once experienced, calls it up again within himself and expresses it by certain external signs

Thank you for your very eloquently-expressed opinion. I think I agree with both you and @CPK. Perhaps I don't even need a poll!

If that's what I do decide, anyone interested in taking the other one off my hands can please let me know. I'd sell it at a very considerable discount from what I paid!

Edited October 7, 2023 by DonnaML

[Amarmur]

Added a Judea Capta with Titus to the collection. It has Nike with a shield on the reverse. Any Judea Capta is a milestone for me. It weighs 7.22 grams and is from Caesarea Maritimia or "liberated" Jerusalem. 

[DonnaML]

Some of you may remember from my posts in the last few pages of the thread at https://www.numisforums.com/topic/4437-leu-wins-thread/ that at the mid-July Leu auction I purchased three coins including sestertii of Commodus and Crispina, both of them from the collection of our own @Julius Germanicus. But that after they finally made their way across the Atlantic Ocean and were supposedly "out for delivery" to me on August 10 from my local post office branch, they vanished off the face of the Earth. And that after a futile missing mail search and much email correspondence, Leu finally agreed to give me a refund (I declined Leu's initial offer of a credit against future purchases!); I received that refund on September 20.

Well. Lo and behold, a week later, on September 27, I received an email from Leu saying that the package had been returned to them, with the contents intact: 

It appears that the US Post Office sent the package back to Leu 15 days earlier, on Sep. 12, but never notified me or Leu that the package had been found, despite the supposedly ongoing search. (The claim that delivery was attempted originally makes no sense at all, given that I was at home the entire day on August 10 and nobody attempted to deliver anything!) So who knows what really happened?

Anyway, Leu offered me the opportunity to repurchase the coins, and after thinking about it -- along with further correspondence -- I agreed to buy back the two sestertii (but not the other coin I had bought, a Nero tetradrachm from Antioch that I decided I had paid too much for), and Leu agreed to the partial repurchase. This time, I requested Federal Express shipping, since there was no way I was going to trust the US Post Office again. Leu charged me what I think is the rather outrageous sum of 80 CHF for Fedex shipping, about twice what other European dealers and auction houses have charged me, but I didn't feel I had a choice. (I'm not going to be too eager to deal with Leu in the future, though.)

The Fedex package arrived on Monday, and I must say I was very happy with the two coins. Despite the three-month wait!

Here's my photo of the happy couple together, which I think gives a more accurate idea of the chocolate brown color of the Crispina sestertius than the Leu photo below, which makes it look considerably paler:

And here are my write-ups.

Commodus (son of Marcus Aurelius), AE (Orichalcum) Sestertius, AD 186, Rome Mint. Obv. Laureate head right, M COMMODVS ANT P FELIX AVG BRIT / Rev. Concordia, draped, standing front, head to left, holding vertical standard with legionary eagle in each hand, P M TR P XI IMP VII CO[S V PP] (around), S - C across fields; in exergue, CONC MIL (for CONCORDIA MILITVM, “[dedicated to] harmony with the soldiers”; see Numiswiki at https://tinyurl.com/mr9ta53k). RIC III Commodus 465(A), BMCRE IV Commodus 576 (1^st ed. 1940) (ill. Pl. 106, no. 8 [rev. only]), Sear RCV II 5738, cf. Cohen 55 corr. (COS V not IIII as Cohen states). 29 mm., 20.19 g., 12 h. [Deep cut or flaw on obv. across emperor’s neck.] Purchased from Leu Numismatik AG, Winterthur, Switzerland, Web Auction 26, 11 July 2023, Lot 4520 [purchase canceled & refund obtained 20 Sep 2023, repurchased 6 Oct 2023], from Collection of Jens Georg Feierabend, Hamburg, Germany; ex Roma E-Auction 58, 20 June 2019, Lot 1137, Roma E-Auction 52, 10 January 2019, Lot 853, and Roma E-Auction 46, 5 June 2018, Lot 663.* 

*Accompanied by David R. Sear A.C.C.S. [Ancient Coin Certification Service] Certificate of Authenticity dated April 2, 2020, issued to Jens Georg Feierabend, No. 981CR/RI/E/O, grading coin as “a strong VF with light brown patina, struck on a typical short flan and with deep cut across emperor’s neck,” and stating, among other things, “This orichalcum sestertius, worth one-quarter of the silver denarius, was struck in the early  months of AD 186 following the downfall of the praetorian prefect Perennis and the rise of his rival Cleander. There was some military unrest at this time and the ‘war of the deserters’ in Gaul and Spain had to be put down by the future emperor Pescennius Niger. The reverse of this issue appeals to ‘the harmony of the soldiers’ (concordia militum) at a time of uncertainty when the emperor was clearly at pains to court the support of the armed forces. It is tempting to see in the deep slash across Commodus’ neck an expression of hatred for the regime, possibly following the emperor’s murder.”

A copy of the Sear Certificate:

Crispina (wife of Commodus), AE (Orichalcum) Sestertius, AD 178-182, Rome Mint. Obv. Draped bust right, hair waved in curls across head and fastened in chignon behind, CRISPINA - AVGVSTA / Rev. Salus seated left on throne, resting left elbow on its arm, holding patera in right hand and feeding from it a snake rising before her from altar at her feet, SALVS around, S – C across lower fields. RIC III Commodus 672a, BMCRE IV Commodus 422 (1^st ed. 1940), Sear RCV II 6010 (ill. p. 423), Cohen 33. 30 mm., 22.23 g., 12 h. Purchased from Leu Numismatik AG, Winterthur, Switzerland, Web Auction 26, 11 July 2023, Lot 4530 [purchase canceled & refund obtained 20 Sep 2023, repurchased 6 Oct 2023], from Collection of Jens Georg Feierabend, Hamburg, Germany; ex Ira & Larry Goldberg Auction 109, 29 Jan 2019, Lot 2194; ex Classical Numismatic Group, LLC (CNG) Auction 76, 12 Sep 2007, Lot 3330, from Collection of J. Alan Seeger; previously privately acquired from Tom Cederlind.*

 

The CNG photo from 2007, which is a bit closer to the coin's true color:

*Accompanied by David R. Sear A.C.C.S. [Ancient Coin Certification Service] Certificate of Authenticity dated 5 Jun 2019, issued to Jens Georg Feierabend, No. 907CR/RI/N/D, grading coin as “VF, with attractive portrait and nice glossy brown patina,” and stating, among other things, that “[t]his attractive orichalcum sestertius features a sensitive portrait of the teenage empress combined with a seated figure of Salus, goddess of health. Although a standard reverse type, the appearance of the goddess at this time may relate to an imperial pregnancy,” even though no surviving offspring are known to have resulted from Crispina’s marriage to Commodus. Sear also notes that the coinage of Crispina appears to have ceased four years after their AD 178 marriage, following the plot against Commodus in 182, despite the fact that it is unlikely that she was involved in the plot (by contrast to Lucilla).

A copy of the Sear Certificate:

So, all's well that ends well, despite the very long wait! And this Commodus has promised never to exile this Crispina to the Isle of Capri.

 

 

 

 

Edited October 11, 2023 by DonnaML

[expat]

Two arrivals this morning, here is the first

ANTONIUS FELIX AE Prutah. Roman Procurator of Judaea under Claudius. AD 54.
Coinage of Aelia Capitolina, Palestine
Obverse: NЄP(Ѡ) KΛAY KAICAP. Two oblong shields crossed, two crossed spears behind.
Reverse: Palm tree with dot and star and with L ΙΔ in field under branches either side of tree; BPIT above, K AI IΔ either side of tree across bottom.
Issue struck in the name of Nero Claudius Caesar and Britannicus.
 
RPC-4971, Sofaer 59-61. Jerusalem mint, RY 14 = 54 AD. 2,49 g - 17 mm
Volume: RPC I №: 4971
Reign: Claudius Persons: Britannicus (Caesar)
City: Jerusalem  Region: Judaea Province: Judaea
Denomination: Æ Average weight: 2.41 g. Issue: Year 14 (AD 54)
Obverse: ΒΡΙΤ ΚΑΙ, LΙΔ (in field); palm tree
Reverse: ΝƐΡW ΚΛΑΥ ΚΑΙϹΑΡ; two crossed spears and shields
Reference: Meshorer 29 Specimens: 12
Not too much known about Brittanicus, son of Claudius. He was named after his Father´s exploits in Britain around 50 AD. The sudden death of Britannicus shortly before his fourteenth birthday is reported by all extant sources as being the result of poisoning on Nero's orders; as Claudius' biological son, he represented a threat to Nero's claim to the throne.

EDIT: The reverse is pictured on the left, and I have no idea about orientation of the shields.

 

Edited October 11, 2023 by expat

[expat]

Todays other arrival

ANTONINUS PIUS AR Denarius CONSECRATIO
 DIVVS ANTONINVS, bare head right / CONSECRATIO, eagle standing right on garlanded altar, head turned left. RSC 156. BMC 48. SEAR 5192.
RIC 431 (Aurelius). Rome mint, after AD 161. 3,0 g - 18,5 mm

 

[DonnaML]

@Julius Germanicus was kind enough to send me the links to his own original posts on Coin Talk from when he originally bought the Commodus and Crispina sestertii. I highly recommend them for the many additional historical and numismatic details they provide, including everything you might want to know about their hairstyles! Something I've never been very good at describing myself.

https://www.cointalk.com/threads/new-commodus-sestertius-conc-mil-the-fall-of-perennis.341875/

https://www.cointalk.com/threads/beautiful-crispina-sestertius.335688/

@Julius Germanicus also sent me a copy of the original Tom Cederlind coin ticket for the Crispina sestertius, dating back to sometime before the CNG auction in 2007:

I would be extremely surprised if that $1500 represented a real price, or the coin ever actually sold for that amount. Especially given that the coin sold for $395 in the 2007 CNG sale, $210 in the 2019 Roma sale, and $382 (340 CHF) when I bought it this July. I know coin prices don't always go up, but I doubt this coin's market value has declined quite that much over the last couple of decades!

 

[Prieure de Sion]

A beautiful sestertius of the young Marcus Aurelius Caesar has come...

 

Marcus Aurelius as Caesar; Reign: Antoninus Pius; Mint: Rome; Date: 153/154 AD; Nominal: Sestertius; Material: AE Bronze; Diameter: 32mm; Weight: 24.74g; Reference: BMC 1955; Reference: Cohen 666; Reference: RIC III Antoninus Pius 1312; Obverse: Bust of Marcus Aurelius, bare-headed, draped, right; Inscription: AVRELIVS CAESAR AVG PII FIL; Translation: Aurelius Caesar, Augusti Pii Filius; Translation: [Marcus] Aurelius Caesar, son of Augustus [Antoninus] Pius; Reverse: Minerva, helmeted, draped, standing, right, holding spear, nearly vertical, in extended right hand and owl in left; Inscription: TR POT VIII COS II S C; Translation: Tribunicia Potestate Octava, Consul Secundum. Senatus Consultum; Translation: Holder of tribunician power for the eighth time, consul for the second time. Decree of the senate