So as you must have seen I bought that rare left facing bust secular games denarius a few weeks ago. These new additions are nowhere near as rare but they are interesting so I bought them. The first one has some nice honest wear. The second one is overall in better condition, but there is a small chip out of the edge. (I will not make a guess as to when this happened until I get the coin in hand). I love the second portrait If you want a great portrait of Domitian look for coins struck between 84 and 88 CE. I have some incredible portraits from these years. The engravers were top notch. Please post your secular games coins. (They do not have to be of Domitian) Domitian AR Denarius Struck 88 CE (Third Issue) (18.71mm 3.14 grams) Obv: IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VIII, laureate head right Rev: COS XIIII - LVD SAEC FEC, Herald walking left, wearing feathered cap, holding wand and shield (18.71mm 3.14 grams) RIC II 596 Rome Ex FLAN Numismatics with tag. Ex Madroosi collection Purchased from Marc Breitsprecher Feb 17, 2020 Domitian AR Denarius Struck 88 CE (Third Issue) (20 mm, 2.96 g) Obv: IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VIII, laureate head right Rev: COS XIIII - LVD SAEC FEC, Herald walking left, COS XIII across field Column inscribed LVD SAEC FEC, all within Laurel wreath. RIC 604 EX: CGB France Purchased February 17, 2020
That is a nice pair. Here are mine (both CNG, the former ex-Cederlind): Waiting on the right RIC II 601 with herald and cippus to pick up. No rush. Seems a complete (?) set of secular denarii over the ages gets pricey with certain rarities. To share something different, picked up this Ant Pius RIC III 94 a while back. Probably predates his games (along with celeb of 900 year anniversary) by several years, but perhaps reverse chosen in anticipation:
Nice examples Andrew! I also like these types and had both in my watchlist. It is nice to see that they have ended up in good hands. If you continue like this you can collect all the Ludi Saeculares silver from Domitian. You only need the denarius with column and herald (Ric 601) and the quinarius with herald (Ric 599).
Beautiful coins an interesting reverse type! I suspect the same hand engraved the portraits. I'll have to be on the lookout for other examples of these.
Your herald denarius is also depicted on wildwinds. It is example 2. http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/sear5/s2723.html
Great pick-ups Andrew! I thought your RIC 596 obverse looked familiar. Domitian AR Denarius, 3.27g Rome mint, 88 AD Obv: IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VIII; Head of Domitian, laureate, bearded, r. Rev: COS XIIII LVD SAEC FEC inscribed on column; to r., incense burner, further r., Herald stg. l., with wand and shield RIC 601 (C). BMC 135. RSC 73. BNC 124. Acquired from Beast Coins, January 2010. It's very unusual to have an obverse die match with two different reverse types within Domitian's denarius issues.
One of my favorite coins: Domitian (Augustus) Coin: Bronze AS IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VIII CENS PER P P - Laureate head right COS XIIII LVD SAEC FEC - Domitian standing left, sacrificing from patera over garlanded altar, two attendants standing right, playing lyre and pan-pipes before him, hexastyle temple in background, with wreath in pediment. Exergue: SC Mint: Rome (88 AD) Wt./Size/Axis: 9.67g / 27mm / 6h References: RIC II 623 Sear'88 #910 Cohen 85 Provenances: London Ancient Coins (LAC) Acquisition/Sale: London Ancient Coins (LAC) Internet LAC Price List 2 #445 $0.00 07/19 Notes: Jul 20, 19 - The Gary R. Wilson Collection Secular Games of 88 AD issue.
Nice I have been looking at that second one CGB coin for quite a while and was thinking of buying it, great catch!
Here is the second one. It arrived yesterday. I love the portrait on this one as well. It has a nice dark tone.