My first Crocodile

I must excuse myself for showing another Nemausus Crocodile here, and one that is not on par with most of the ones usually seen here.

It is heavily worn and from the crack on the reverse and a very slight corresponding bend in between the two portraits it also looks like someone in antiquity has tried to break it into two halves to create two pieces of small change, which must have been common practice as proven by hundreds of surviving half pieces with only either Augustus or Agrippa left. Luckily he didn´t succeed in this case



But this particular coin came with some assets that made me fall in love at first sight:
1) Contrary to most collectors, I like my bronzes shiny and without patina and this does have substantial eye appeal to me
2) This is the scarce brass Dupondius and not the common copper As
3) The coin is reasonably well centered, and despite it´s heavy wear the Crocodile, Portraits and Legends are complete
4) For a 2000+ year old artifact of such historic value, commemorating the world-changing Victory of Actium, it came with a history-for-money ratio that will be hard to beat.



Mint state examples may cost a fortune (I think someone on this forum has paid 5.000 USD for one of those), but this Crocodile, which I am totally happy with, waited for a new home with a price tag of just 18 Euros .

 

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That's a nice-looking piece for the price, with a good deal of eye appeal, too. Mine with its deposits and dark patina is sort of like the negative version of yours .

 

A decent example, especially for the price. I'm currently after a specimen of quite a good style that I will show should I win the battle

My halved example :


Augustus & Agrippa, AE halved dupondius struck in Nemausus, after 10 BC
3rd type
[IM]P [DI]VI F , Laureate head of Augustus right
[COL NEM], Crocodile chained to palm tree
6.70 gr
Ref : RCV #1730, Cohen # 10

Q

 

That alone makes it super cool to me.!!!! Not to mention, like so many others, I LOVE the type!

I have a modest half and a worn but nice full Dupondius confused: photo deleted except this small 'half' of it)......perhaps i'll up-grade again sometime in the future.

 

SUPER job @Julius Germanicus ! I like the coloring and patina!

Here is an example of mine I picked up at a Show in Raleigh, NC:


RI Augustus oak crown -Agrippa rostral crown L AE Dupondius 26mm 12.6g 10-14 CE Nemausus chained Croc wreaths RIC I 158

 

Nice bargain for 18 euro.

 

Nice coins all!

 

Nice example

 

Congrats on the coin @Julius Germanicus The crack and corresponding bend make it a really interesting piece.

 

I can contribute, yay!



Erin

 

Indeed, it seems that these crocodile issues are found halved in disproportionately large numbers as compared to, say, other bronze issues of similar size. Has it been been theorized that the dual obverse portraits sort of "invite" or "suggest" cutting between the two busts, whereas other coins with a single portrait don't invite such halving?

 

It's one of my favorite coin types and I love the version with the teeth on top of the snout. I hope to pick one of those up some day but I have this one to hold me for now.

 

If there is anyone new wo has not seen my page on these:
http://www.forumancientcoins.com/dougsmith/impossible.html

 

Here is one I scored from JA:



I just posted this on the two headed coins thread.

Don't let it go to your head Mr. Crocodile!

 

Doug’s Page is great, as always. “Nemausus did not strike coins of a 1/2 value. Instead they cut these in half (almost always between the two portraits) making two asses for the needs of commerce.” So I’m reading this as a suggestion that it was really the dearth of small coinage, not necessarily coin design, that invited the halving? Or maybe a combination of the two?

 

And very nice too, love the patina.

 

Okay why not stick another croc on the thread.

 

Thank you everybody for showing your reptiles !

That is a very instructive article of yours, Doug!

Now I wonder which of the four emissions mine belongs to and if it is possible to date it.

I cannot see a PP on it but that may be due to the heavy wear. Also I see nothing that looks like traces of a laurel wreath on Augustus´ head, but I am not sure either.
If both would indeed be the case, shouldn´t it be Type 2 (RIC 155 )?

And could it be that the Crocodile´s "teeth on top of the snout" variety is also pointing towards an early edition?

Is it possible to attribute coins to certain issues due to them being made out of copper or brass?

 

If of any help for you folks I give you again a link to a website specialized in those. In french, yes, but very useful

http://www.asdenimes.com/

Q