Hello from Wales and a request for help.

I have been watching this site for a couple of weeks and have been impressed by the cordiality and generous advice offered by members.
I used to collect pattern shillings many years ago but marriage and school fees put paid to that. I visit the USA several times a year through work and have an affinity with the people and the Country. I have collected Morgan Dollars for a few years but they really don't "ring my bell" anymore. As a result of reading Simon Scarrow novels and others and having been taught Latin at school ( which I hated as what point was it?) I am now revisiting Latin and find myself enthralled with ancient coins. I probably have 20 years left on this mortal coil but could do with another 100 to exhaust this interest.
I have bought the Sear series and whatever I could but find myself flummoxed and seek help from my peers.
I drove 100 miles to a coin show last weekend to find it was mainly stamps and modern coins and bullion but two dealers had coins and I bought two because the dealer didn't know what they were so that intrigued me. The first I think is an Albinus but I can't find the reverse. Oddly a scratch or dent makes him look like he is wearing spectacles.
The second was marked as a Republican Denarius but again I cannot find it.
Any help would be very appreciated. It just tickled me that I am writing this enquiry on Easter Eve and we still have ties to two centuries ago!
Many thanks

Dafydd

 

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Perhaps @GDJMSP could move this to the Ancients Forum for you and you will have an answer shortly. Welcome to the Forum.
BTW, no need to do a poll.

 

Thank you for your welcome , I couldn't understand the poll bit and was wading in deep waters!

 

Welcome to the forum Dafydd........don't know much about ancients but the boys and girls over in that section know their stuff. Let's see if we can get ya there.....

 

Welcome! The poll is gone, and the topic is now in the Ancient Coins forum.

Christian

 

The obverse inscription on the Albinus reads D CLOD SEPT ALBIN CAES and identifies it as being issued from AD 193-195, when Albinus had the rank of Caesar under Septimius Severus. However, the major references--RIC and Sear--don't mention a denarius of Albinus as Caesar with a CONCORDIA seated reverse type.

This, along with a general impression that it just doesn't look right (tooled?), makes me suspect that the coin is not genuine.

I am unable to comment about the Republican issue, but we have a couple of experts in Republican coinage who frequent the forum and could tell you.

 

Welcome. First coin is definitely suspect. I would say tooled too.

Hope you stick around and become a regular of the dark side of collecting. Join the dark side, Luke Skywalker, and have a cookie.

 

I was able to pull the following link from acsearch and it lists numerous examples of C. Albinus as Caesar with a seated Concordia (bronze)....although I can't comfortably comment on authenticity or tooling of the 'denarius' you posted:

https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?term=clodius albinus concordia&category=1-2&en=1&de=1&fr=1&it=1&es=1&ot=1&images=1&curren

The second (obverse) is so familiar it's driving me crazy but the reverse is certainly unusual to me...I'll try to 'google' a bit on it.

Ah yes, The second has an obverse of a youthful bust of Vejovis---more info later


https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?term=youthful vejovis&category=1-2&en=1&de=1&fr=1&it=1&es=1&ot=1&images=1&currency=usd&

 

Welcome, @Dafydd!

I'm not sure what to think of either coin in terms of authenticity. Sometimes it's difficult to say one way or another based on images alone.

I have an example of the Caesius:


Roman Republic, L. Caesius
112-111 BCE
AR denarius, 3.92 gm
Obv: bust of Vejovis from behind, head turned left, holding a thunderbolt, legend AP; dotted border.
Rev: Lares praestites seated with heads left, dog between, bust of Vulcan above; legend LA-RE; dotted border.
Ref: Crawford 298/1. Sydenham 564. RSC Caesia 1

 

Croeso, @Dafydd !

Rwy'n caru Cymru, yn byw yno am rai blynyddoedd. Fodd bynnag, ni allaf siarad Cymraeg. Yr wyf yn anrhydeddu eich treftadaeth drwy gyfieithydd.

 

Welcome to CoinTalk, Dafydd, I hope you will find yourself a place here. I learnt quite a lot in the 15 months that I'm walking around in this Ancient section. There's a lot of knowledge and a good atmosphere at that.
Wales always fascinated me. I only visited it twice, though. Are there any Roman towns or ruins in Wales? Maybe you can tell us when the first coins in Wales were minted and how they look like.
I have one early British coin, this is it, a sceatta of Eadhberht of Northumbria. Don't know how far that is from you.

 

Translation thanks to Google:

God bless Google Translator.

 

Pellinore, I lived perhaps 10mi / 15km from Isca, now Caerleon. WAY cool Roman fort...

 

LOL, Google Translator will eventually become Earth's Common Language.

I know JUST enough Welsh to get me into trouble. Both my kids speak it as the Welsh language was compulsory in school.

 

The Lucius Caesius unfortunately seems to share the same dies as this modern fake:

 

A gentleman speaking before a group of local tribesmen.

"I'm just tickled to death to be here."

The interpreter winces as he chooses his words of translation.

"This man scratches himself incessantly to the point of death to be here with you tonight."

 

Welcome to the forum and if you are ever in the Newport, Gwent area please give a shout to my friend Tom Doyle.

 

Yes, it's a reverse that appears on sestertii (RIC 62) and minor bronzes (RIC 63); not known in silver or gold.

 

The Clodius Albinus is a known fake as well. See here: http://www.forumancientcoins.com/fakes/displayimage.php?pos=-12591

Hopefully you can get your money back OP but either way, stick around and we can certainly point you in the direction of good coins in the future.

 

The worst problem with the Clodius Albinus is that the reverse was proper for Vitellius many years earlier. Even the Concordia bronzes of Albinus did not have the PR legend. The wear is a lot more than we usually see on coins in the market so I suspect someone was trying to turn a new fake into a more believable item by tumbling it like gemstones. Red's link to the unworn one looks like a Bulgarian Slavey fake but adding wear to cover such issues is an old trick.