Julia Paula Denarius

Posted on March 4, 2011 by Administrator

Julia Paula Denarius, wife (the first of three) of Elagabalus (Emperor AD 218-222), struck at Rome AD 219, RIC 211, RSC 6,  3.07 gms, Obverse:  draped bust of Julia Paula facing right, with her hair elaborately styled and made all the more fashionable by a braid up the back of her head, IVLIA PAVLA AVG, Reverse:  Concordia seated left, holding a patera in her outstretched right hand, a star in the coin’s left field, CONCORDIA, a very lustrous coin with nothing short of a wonderful and beautiful portrait in high relief of Julia Paula, a very detailed Concordia on the reverse, and full and clear legends on both sides, a gorgeous coin graded Near Mint State by the numismatist/dealer from whom I purchased it, and Julia’s portrait on this coin is the most fetching and downright cutest I’ve ever seen of her with its chubby cheeked sweetness,  and her coiffure with the braid taken up the back of that pretty head is rare from my researches, a real beauty of a coin of this first wife of Elagabalus who married him in mid-219 and found herself divorced and bereft of her status by late 220.  We can only hope that her life was spared.  Perhaps it was, because Elagabalus was shortly remarried to his second lucky bride.  A sharp and very detailed coin indeed.  Asking price:  $785 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (see shipping information page)

Posted in Julia Paula, The Severan Dynasty AD 193-235 | Comments Off

Macrinus Denarius

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Administrator

Macrinus Denarius, Emperor AD 217-218, minted at Rome AD 217, RIC 62, RSC 19,  3.11 gms, Obverse:  laureate and cuirassed bust of Macrinus facing right, IMP C M OPEL SEV MACRINVS AVG, Reverse:  Felicitas standing half-left, her head turned left, holding a short caduceus in her right hand and a long vertical scepter in her left arm, FELICTAS TEMPORVM, a very lustrous coin very well struck and centered with a fabulous and sharp portrait of Macrinus in high relief and in one of his more clean-cut and tonsored depictions very early in his short imperial career, a sharp and detailed Felicitas on the reverse, and full and clear legends on both sides, a quite scarce issue for Macrinus and graded Near Mint State by the numismatist/dealer from whom I purchased it, a beautiful coin and from my researches an exceptional example of this issue of Macrinus’s, Asking price:  $885 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (please see shipping information page)

Posted in Macrinus, The Severan Dynasty AD 193-235 | Comments Off

Julia Maesa Antoninianus

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Administrator

Julia Maesa Antoninianus, grandmother of Elagabalus (Emperor AD 218-222) and Severus Alexander (Emperor AD 222-235), struck at Rome AD 219, RIC 264, RSC 30,  5.31 gms, Obverse:  draped bust of Julia Maesa facing right wearing a stephane in her hair, set on a crescent, IVLIA MAESA AVG, Reverse:  Pietas veiled standing left, extending her right hand over a lighted altar and holding a box of incense in her left arm, PIETAS AVG, a very lustrous coin well struck and centered with a sharp, fantastic, and pretty portrait of Julia in high relief, a very detailed Pietas on the reverse, and full and clear legends on both sides, a very beautiful coin indeed graded EF by the numismatist/dealer from whom I purchased it and a scarce issue for Julia Maesa, Asking price:  $725 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (please see shipping information page)

Posted in Julia Maesa, The Severan Dynasty AD 193-235 | Comments Off

Orbiana Denarius

Posted on March 2, 2011 by Administrator

Orbiana Denarius, wife of Severus Alexander (Emperor AD 222-225), minted at Rome circa AD 226, RIC 319, RSC 1,  3.32 gms, Obverse:  draped bust of Orbiana facing right, wearing a stephane in her hair, SALL BARBIA ORBIANA AVG, Reverse:  Concordia seated left, holding a patera in her extended right hand and cradling two cornucopiae in her left arm, CONCORDIA AVGG, a very lustrous and beautiful coin with an equally pretty portrait of this ill-fated empress in very (very) high relief (the coin totters when I photographed the reverse), a detailed and well struck reverse, full and clear legends on both sides, graded Mint State by the numismatist/dealer from whom I purchased the coin, Asking price:  $1,250 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (please see shipping information page)

Posted in Orbiana, The Severan Dynasty AD 193-235 | Comments Off

Orbiana Denarius

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Administrator

Orbiana Denarius, wife of Severus Alexander (Emperor AD 222-235), struck at Rome AD 225, RIC 319, RSC 1,  19mm, 2.79 gms, Obverse:  diademed and draped bust of Orbiana facing right, SALL BARBIA ORBIANA AVG, Reverse:  Concordia seated left, holding a patera in her right hand and cradling two cornucopiae in her left arm, CONCORDIA AVGG, a lustrous coin with very, very light and attractive gray toning, a fetching and pretty and very high relief portrait of Orbiana, a detailed Concordia and devices on the reverse, full and clear legends on both sides with the exception of the S in SALL a touch off the flan, a real jewel of an Orbiana in my opinion, with beautiful toning and clearly struck from fresh dies and well centered, Asking price:  $1,250 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (see shipping information page)

Posted in Orbiana, The Severan Dynasty AD 193-235 | Comments Off

Aurelian Denarius

Posted on March 1, 2011 by Administrator

Aurelian Denarius, Emperor AD 270-275, struck at Rome AD 275, RIC 73, RSC 257,  19mm, 2.30 gms, Obverse:  laureate and curiassed bust of Aurelian facing right, IMP AVRELIANVS AVG, Reverse:  Victory advancing left, holding her wreath in her upraised right hand and her palm branch in her left arm, a bound captive at her feet in front, A in exergue, VICTORIA AVG, a glossy/lustrous coin well struck and centered with attractive medium toning with some silvering, a superb and sharp portrait of Aurelian, a very sharp and detailed Victory and devices on the reverse, full and clear legends on both sides, a very beautiful coin in its glossiness and detail, a scarce/rare denomination for Aurelian and graded EF by the numismatist/dealer from whom I purchased it, a hairline flan crack at ten o’clock on the obverse is noted for accuracy, but of no significance to the integrity of the coin and no detraction in my opinion, a difficult (for me) coin to photograph because of its gloss and silvering and it’s, indeed, even nicer in hand, an exceptional example from my researches of this issue of Aurelian’s, Asking price:  $295 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (see shipping information page)

Posted in Aurelian, Collapse of Order AD 235-284 | Comments Off

Maximus Denarius

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Administrator

Maximus Denarius, son of Maximinus (Emperor AD 235-238) and Caesar under him AD 235-238, struck as Caesar at Rome AD 236, RIC 1, RSC 1,  19 mm, 3.3 gms, Obverse:  bare-headed and draped bust of Maximus facing right, IVL VERVS MAXIMVS CAES, Reverse:  Roman sacrificial implements, from left to right:  lituus (curved wand, like a crozier), secespita (knife), capis (jug, pitcher, water vessel), simpulum (large spoon, ladle), and aspergillum (whisk, sprinkler), PIETAS AVG, a very lustrous coin with just the tiniest, tiniest touch of attractive and very subtle lovely golden toning, a fabulous, sharp, and expressive portrait of Maximus in high relief, superlatively detailed reverse with the implements as sharply struck and detailed as I’ve ever seen, full and clear legends on both sides, a beautiful coin indeed well struck and centered and graded EF by the numismatist/dealer from whom I purchased it, Asking price:  $1,390 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (see shipping information page)

Posted in Collapse of Order AD 235-284, Maximus | Comments Off

Caracalla Antoninianus

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Administrator

Caracalla Antoninianus, Emperor AD 198-217, minted at Rome AD 215, RIC 264c, RSC 287,  4.74 gms, Obverse:  radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Caracalla facing right, ANTONINVS PIVS AVG GERM, Reverse:  Sol standing half-right, his head turned left, raising his right hand in the air and holding a globe in his upraised left palm, P M TR P XVIII COS IIII P P, a very lustrous coin with just the tiniest, tiniest touch of attractive gray toning, a superlative portrait of Caracalla with a stern though not his usual scowling visage, with just a touch of wear to the high point of the portrait, a very detailed Sol on the reverse, and full and clear legends on both sides, a beautiful coin indeed that is well struck and centered and represents the first year of this issue for Caracalla, Asking price:  $565 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (please see shipping information page)

Posted in Caracalla, The Severan Dynasty AD 193-235 | Comments Off

Macrinus Denarius

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Administrator

Macrinus Denarius, Emperor AD 217-218, minted at Rome AD 218, RIC 26, RSC 47a, 19mm, 3.23 gms, Obverse:  laureate and draped bust of Macrinus facing right, IMP C M OPEL SEV MACRINVS AVG, Reverse:  Annona standing half-left, holding grain ears in her right hand over a modius and cradling a cornucopia in her left arm, PM TR P II COS P P, a very lustrous coin well struck and centered with a nothing short of a wonderful and sharp portrait of Macrinus in high relief, a sharp and detailed Annona and devices on the reverse, and full and clear legends on both sides, a very beautiful coin indeed with an impressive portrait and a bold Annona, Asking price:  $795 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (please see shipping information page)

Posted in Macrinus, The Severan Dynasty AD 193-235 | Comments Off

Caracalla Antoninianus

Posted on February 28, 2011 by Administrator

Caracalla Antoninianus, Emperor AD 198-217, minted at Rome AD 215-217, RIC 311c, RSC 608a, 23 mm, 4.37 gms, Obverse:  radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Caracalla facing right, ANTONINVS PIVS AVG GERM, Reverse:  Venus standing half-left, her head turned left, resting Victory in her outstretched right palm before her and holding a long scepter in her left arm which is resting on a shield set upon a helmet on the ground behind her, VENVS VICTRIX, a very lustrous coin well centered and struck with nearly full circles on both sides, a superlative portrait of Caracalla in high relief and a detailed Venus and devices on the reverse with full and clear legends on both sides, a gorgeous coin struck on a broad flan and graded Superb EF by the numismatist/dealer from whom I purchased it and a scarce issue from my researches, Asking price:  $695 includes priority shipping and insurance in the U.S., registered to other countries (please see shipping information page)

Posted in Caracalla, The Severan Dynasty AD 193-235 | Comments Off