Previously in parts one and two I had posted 18 different types of Elagabalus sestertii, and now post two more. I have always wondered whether the celator known as the Caracalla master, and whose beautiful coins are clearly distinguishable - I think - from other late sestertii of Caracalla, did any of the dies for Elagabalus. A beautiful proportionality in the figure, among other things. I cannot tell. After deciding to focus on sestertii of Elagabalus, fortunately, an unusual number of his coins were available along with (very unusual) the means, it has become much more difficult to find others. Then last January (2022) this coin was available at a reasonable price from a European auction house: Elagabalus Sestertius 219 AD TRP II COS II Roma Seated 30mm 21.18 grams RIC 293 Jet black patina The reverse is a repeat of the two earliest types of Elagabalus sestertii - I do not believe there any others of the same type struck after this. There were two examples of Elagabalus sestertii that I had heard of and RIC lists as common but on checking with asearch.info seemed not to be common at all: SALUS ANTONINI and MARS VICTOR. I was finally able to find an example with a Salus reverse on German ebay - and right after that at least two others were available either in a European auction or ebay, I forget which. Oddly enough both of the others were from the same reverse die as my coin - an indication of rarity?? RIC lists this type as common which hardly says anything. Also RIC lists a dated Salus type - RIC 283, which I have never seen offered for sale, and is not noted in acsearch.info, but nevertheless is noted as common in RIC. The mystery was why it was impossible to find an example of MARS VICTOR, RIC 362 which is also supposed to be common. Ascearch.info, a database of most major auction houses since 1999, notes only one example, sold by CNG in or around 2004 - and none since then (!). Then another appeared on ebay, which after saving for some months I was finally able to buy: Elagabalus Sestertius MARS VICTOR RIC 362 30mm, 20.88 grams Oddly enough, years ago I had actually owned another example, but it was in poor condition and I sold it long ago. I still have a photograph, which I can post at a later date. So this is it for now - it took an entire year to find these two after the last purchase of the Salus type in January, 2022. The search goes on - last summer a LIBERALITAS AUGUSTI example was listed for sale at auction on German ebay but one of the bidders contacted the seller before the auction ended, and bought the coin as an ebay sale - I didn't even know you can do that! I still need a handful of the major types - ADVENTUS (Elagabalus on horse); AEQUITAS AUGUSTI, which I now understand only exists as a medallion, which of course doesn't count for me, not that it could ever be affordable; SACERD DEI SOLIS ELAGAB, same reverse as others - there was one available on a European auction around last spring, but I lacked the means; the platform scene types, RIC 288 and RIC 290 - I only recall one of these ever being offered for sale some years back (I think CNG) and two or three LIBERALITAS examples. There are also many others with the same reverses but different years, plus as with Salus is dated, missing a horn, have or do not have a star etc. That is going a bit too far, for me. So, the search goes on - my next post will include my one and only dupondius of Elagabalus, also Julia Paula, a rather worn Aquilia Severa, same for mom - Julia Soaemias - whose sestertii are rare indeed, and Julia Maesa, probably the most powerful woman ever to rule in Rome. Also a writeup on his sick/sad reign, which is more interesting than his sestertii, which for the most part are stock types. I have wondered whether if there exists a type as an As or dupondius, for which an example as a sestertius exists and is waiting to be found. In other words, I would love to find an Elagabalus sestertius with an elephant on the reverse - according to RIC this exists as an As, but not as a sestertius. Also to do better than two in a year!
Are you sure it is a sestertius of Elagabalus and not Caracalla? Among the most commonly confused are two emperors both named Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Pius - known today as Caracalla (198-217 AD) and Elagabalus (218-222 AD).
It is actually easy to differentiate the sestertii of Caracalla and Elagabalus - the portraits do not really look the same.
There is this one in numismatic.org, unfortunately with no images, so one can't see the obverse portrait : http://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.4.crl.461
It is a sestertius of Caracalla with the reverse RESTITOR ORBIS - Roma Seared - is a very rare coin and I would love to see it - Blake
It is RIC 461 - I have never seen an example. I have a rare one with RECTOR ORBIS but it was struck much earlier -
