Marcus Antonius Legionary denarius

Nice well detailed coins @Volodya

 

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Yes, lovely coins.

 

Very nice Orfew, you picked up one of the rarities of Antony's legions, only 5 examples in the Delos hoard of 1905.

Here's a couple of my favorites of the few legionary types in my collection.

First Leg VI.
Both common and very rare in that there were 36 examples of Leg VI in the Delos hoard but rare with genuine find patina. How often do we get to see any denarius the way it came out of the ground?

And Leg XV, even more common but with a beautiful patina.

 

Congrats on the the scarcer named legionary, Orfew! I only have one named Antony and I'm still looking for your type.

 

@Nemo Those are both beautiful, but my favourite is the "as found" Leg VI

 

@Carthago That is a great example!

 

Nice choice, Orfew. I have a few of these, but the Antiqvae picked up a couple years ago is one of my faves.


THE TRIUMVIRS
MARK ANTONY
Denarius
3.78g, 19mm
Military mint (Patrae?), autumn 32 - spring 31 BC
Crawford 544/9.
O: ANT AVG above, Praetorian galley right with rowers, III VIR R P C below.
R: LEG XII ANTIQVAE, Legionary eagle (aquila) between two standards (signa).
Ex Andrew McCabe Collection

Another favorite is the one struck for the Praetorian Cohort, this example being the Sear plate coin for the type .


MARK ANTONY
AR Denarius
3.61g, 17.8mm
Patrae (?) mint, autumn 32 - spring 31 BC
Sear RCV Vol. 1 p. 284, 1483 (this coin illustrated); Crawford 544/8
O: ANT AVG above Praetorian galley right, III VIR R P C below.
R: CHORTIVM PRAETORIARVM, Legionary eagle (Aquila) between two standards (signa).
Ex Stack's Sale December 2001, Lot #142
Ex Ponterio & Associates Sale 108 August 2000, Lot #307
Ex Gerhard Hirsch Auction 179, September 1993, Lot #770

 

@zumbly
Nice provenance on that first one. I was bidding on an example of your second example but I lost it.

 

i've had one of these on my list for three years, and it just hasn't worked out yet. yours in nice orfew, congrats to you!

some really sweet ones on this thread!

 

Lovely coins, gentlemen. I've always loved the type. One of them is on my to-buy list after I acquire another Caracalla denarii and either an Elgabalus or Philip I. That's the problem with ancient coins...there's just so many that it takes a while to get through each "want list", only to end up with a new and long want list. It's a never ending cycle.

 

That's the truth!!!

And the 'types' you run across that you've NEVER seen before are just as endless...and the 'want list' grows and grows...... LOL

 

200 years after the battle of Actium, Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus issued a Restitution commemorative based on the Legionary type of Antony. What I like most about them is the need to expand legends to avoid confusions that would not be a problem in 31 BC. The original read ANT AVG but the new ones spelled the words out since people 200 years later would read ANT as Antoninus rather than Antonius and AVG as Augustus rather than Auger. All of these honor Legion VI.

 

Great coin Doug. Thanks for the background information on the inscription, very interesting. It was not only the ancients who could mistake Aug for Augustus instead of Augur. Just last week someone made this mistake in a post on another board.

 

I don't think that ANY Marc Antony coin is too embarrassing. They all are AMAZING! Thousands of years old and still here. That alone makes them great.

 

I don't think that ANY Marc Antony coin is too embarrassing. They all are AMAZING! Thousands of years old and still here. That alone makes them great.

 

I don't think that ANY Marc Antony coin is too embarrassing. They all are AMAZING! Thousands of years old and still here. That alone makes them great.

 

Great coins all.