"Rare" Gordian III denarius: Emperor on horseback

Regarding rarity: I was impressed by a statement in Keith Emmett's book on Alexandrian coins. He rates rarity on a scale from R1 to R5 but states that R1 through R3 coins would be obtainable by anyone willing to search. This Gordian is common enough that any of us can have one but scarce enough that we will find several other types first and meet some competition from others who prefer the horse to someone sitting there on other coins.

Who knows/has Gordian III coins that are more scarce than this one? Are they interesting enough to outrank the horse? Compared to many of his 3rd century peers, Gordian ruled for a long time and has many Roman mint types that we see regularly. His most interesting coins all seem to be Provincials.

 

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Adventus types typically show the emperor visiting on horseback, such as on this Probus.


Probus 276-282
Roman silvered AE Antoninianus; 4.52 g, 21.8 mm
Rome, AD 278-280
Obv: IMP PROBVS AVG, radiate,helmeted, cuirassed bust left and holding spear and shield
Rev: ADVENTVS AVG, Probus on horseback left, right hand raised, holding scepter in left, captive seated on ground, left; S below.
Refs: RIC 157; Cohen 39; RCV 11953.

 

The most interesting reverse I've seen on a Gordian III ant is an obverse brockage .

Oh, okay, it's actually this one:



Not Rome mint, however, but Antioch. A true rarity, at $1600 before fees:
http://cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=201780

 

People think that because Gordian III coins are mostly common, that a) all his coins are cheap, and b) there is not a lot of variety to collect, and c) his coins are poor quality.

These assumptions are wrong. There are in fact some real rarities. The river God provincial I showed up in another thread is a rather rare coin. He also has some other rare provincials and Imperial...some which command obscene money when they come up for sale. And as far as sheer numbers of reverse types on imperial coins, and interesting varieties of provincial coins, you'd also be hard pressed to find more diversity in coinage from any other emperor. And the quality of his coinage is fantastic, especially when you consider the period they were minted.

 

Ignoramusses!

Agree.

Don't really agree, but I still like this round-headed kid's coins .

 

Well, I don't care if you disagree about that last one...he is my emperor so my emotions are telling me his coinage is only the best and coolest, and most diverse, in Roman history. Actual facts and data be darned...this is an emotional fight for me.

 

That's actually exactly how I feel when people tell me Debbie Gibson's music sucks. To hell with them!

 

Oh dear. Now I must reassess my entire opinion of you

Edited: premature opinion, reflexively given. I listed to a sampling of her stuff and it was actually quite nice

 

There's just no accounting for taste, eh .

 

I like Gordian III and have perhaps more than my fair share of them, particularly his provincial marriage issues. But I'm not a Gordian specialist, by any means. If I had to categorize myself as a "specialist," I'd say it was in women of the Antonine and Severan dynasties.

But Gordian III is really fun to collect. He's got lots of Antoniniani, lots of denarii (the last emperor about which this can be said), plenty of sestertii, and provincials galore! Most of them are well-preserved, affordable, and interesting. There are some rarities, too, and you could collect Gordian III for the rest of your life and come nowhere near close to a complete collection.

 

My bad. Sometimes I transcribe rarity ratings from references. That volume of RIC was published in 1949 and the scale used would have been accurate at the time, but as we know many hoards have come up since. Anyway, as to what Oz says about Gordians, I only have four in my collection, all base metal but this one of similar type:


Gordian III, 238 – 244 AD
Æ35, Pisidia, Antioch Mint, 14.83 grams
Obverse: IMP CAES M ANT GORDIANOVS AVG, Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Gordian right.
Reverse: VIRT AVG COL ANTIOCH, Gordian on horseback right trampling enemy and holding aloft spear, S R in exergue.

References:
SNG vonAulock 8572 // Krzyanoska 14/69

Cost:
$675

Provenance:
Tom Cederlind, April 26th 2014 (previously List 161)

Notes:
Very rare.

 

@Ken Dorney's coin above is AE35. 35 mm makes an impressive coin. The rarity and unusual reverse legend add to that.

Here is a common reverse from that mint, Antioch in Pisidia. At first glance it is similar to Ken's, but the reverse legend does not have "VIRT AVG", rather "CAES". Also, the emperor is spearing a lion instead of a human foe.

34 mm. 12:00. 26.27 grams. The size of a sestertius.
Lindgren and Kovacs, 1230. BMC 85.

 

Its always refreshing to see a rare Gordian.

Roman Empire
Gordian III (r.238-244)
Antioch, Syria (AD 243/44)
AR Double Denarius 23 mm x 4.13 grams
Obverse: Radiant, Cuirassed Bust of Gordian III right. Latin legend- IMP GORDIANVSPIVS FEL AVG.
Reverse: Sol standing left, right hand raised in salute and left hand holding out globe. Latin Legend - ORIENS AVG
Ref: RIC 213, Cohen 167
Note: Rare type of Eastern mint.

 

Nice!