Constantine II (Issued under Constantine I) AE Follis 3.20g, 18.32mm London Mint, Circa 322-323 CE CONSTANTINVS IVN NC: Helmeted and cuirassed bust of Constantine right / BEAT TRANQLITAS: Altar inscribed VOT / IS / XX in three lines. F / B in field, PLON in exergue. RIC VII 258 (R2) Yes, yet another London Mint. What can I say? I like our British cousins, and I want their ancient coins. This is my second Constantine II minted during Constantin I's lifetime in London. It is an interesting bust type to say the least, which is what drew me to the coin. Feel free to comment, or post whatever you want. Here is my other London Constantine II coin, minted 5-6 years after the coin above. Aren't these London coins great, folks? What a delightful style those celators from old London had.
You are picking some really nice ones @Sallent. LOL, you better start ensuring they have some circulation wear, or they won't be considered coins! Nice job... How about a Votive coin since I just posted my few London mint versions? RI Constantine I Folles 306-337 CE Captives VOTA Banner RI Constantine II 337-340 CE AE3 VOT X
Well, it's just that I found a dealer in London that has them for a bit less than what some of these sell for in the states, which means I can buy better quality and still save money. I've gone a little crazy on London Mint coins...LOL. Seems like an interesting side collection to my main collection. I might pick 1 o 2 more next month. Besides, I'm doing the hobby a huge service. How long before we can't export any ancient coins whatsoever from Europe? It would be a shame to deprive future US collectors from owning some of these beauties. They are better off here in the states.
The Augustus denarius I posted the other day, came from a dealer in Spain. I see a lot of ancients being sold from Europe and was thinking this same thing. How long before we cant buy ancients from Europe? My problem is that Im impatient and dont like waiting so long to receive coins.
True...right now I have six coins on their way from Europe if I recall correctly. I dont even remember what two of them are anymore. Doesn't matter. I like to be surprised by coins I forgot all about.
I bought a coin relevant to this thread a couple of years back. Constantine II - Follis Obv:– CONSTANTINVS IVN N C, Laureate, cuirassed bust left wearing trabea, holding Victoriola in right hand Rev:– BEATA TRANQLITAS, Altar inscribed VOT/IS/XX, surmounted by globe with plain vertical lines and diagonals between horizontal lines, three stars above Minted in London (//PLON). Reference:– RIC VII London - (Not listed with this bust type from London). Leetoone proposes in his paper on the London mint in Numismatic Circular that all busts of this type with the Victoriola are poorly interpreted versions of the type with Victoriola and Mappa as in RIC VII London 288.
I used to limit myself from buying out of the states. But there were a lot of coins I wanted that were from European sellers... oh does Canada count too? This year almost half my purchases are from international sellers.
That's my grievance with the North American market. You'd think every variety would be plentiful here and at great prices (given the size of the market here), but that's not the case. For example, London Mint coins are relatively uncommon at auction and through dealer sites here, but in the old continent they are a dime a dozen and much cheaper to purchase and have shipped into the US. Ive also seen several types of RR denarii and Imperial coins that are available in generally more quantities and better conditions, and cheaper (even with the exchange rate) buying them from Europe than buying them here in the US. But I guess that would make sense...the original sources are in Europe and they are still finding new ancient coins over there all the time.
I'm not really sure (man thats sad) but I think I have 8 coins coming and 1 book. Luckily they're all from North America. But I'm considering a coin in London, just haven't commited yet.
CONSTANTINE II AE Follis OBVERSE: CONSTANTI-NVS IVN NC, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust left REVERSE: BEATA TRAN-QVILLITAS, globe on altar inscribed VOT / IS / XX, three stars above, PLON in ex. Struck at London 323-324 AD 2.5g, 19mm RIC VII 284
Those are some lovely London issues, Sallent. I just got my first London mint issue in the mail yesterday (eBay bottom-feeding). While trying to attribute it I came across your post. Mine is, I think, just like your top example, except mine isn't nearly so pretty. But I think you might have an error in your attribution - yours (and mine) are radiate, not helmeted. I think this would make them RIC 255 (there are two bust types, seen from front and seen from behind - ours are both from back, from what I can tell). I am pretty inexperienced at LRB attributions, but I thought I'd mention it. Here is mine, with attribution: Constantine II Æ 20 (322-323 A.D.) London mint CONSTANTI-NVS IVN N C, radiate, draped, cuirassed bust left, seen from back / BEAT TRA-NQLITAS, altar inscribed VOT-IS-XX, F-B across fields, three stars above, PLON in exergue. RIC VII London 255. (3.53 grams / 18 mm)
The London mint was influenced heavily by the many variations of the mint of Trier in the early 320s. Here's an interesting and possibly unique representation of Constantine II with spear and globe at London, from a Spanish collection:
I hold the minority opinion that it would be better if US coin dealers did not ship any coins already legally in the US to countries who limit export of any coins to the US. Doing so reduces the number of coins available to US collectors in the future. I am certain that there are enough coins currently in US collections to satisfy my needs for the rest of my life but I am less sure of this for younger collectors if we support unlimited export of what can not be imported. Dealer and seller/consignors want the coins to sell to whoever will pay the most today and show no concern for the long-term continuation of the hobby for the future. Constantine II PLON Crispus PLON Fausta PLON (weak but there) Constantine I PLN
Sorry to disappoint, but I ended up selling the OP coin, but I did acquire this other Constantine II from London which I intend to hang on to.
