I recently worked out a deal with @AnYangMan to purchase a few bronzes he picked up in a group lot. The main one I wanted was the Cr. 41/6e semis, shown first below, a very rare type that I wanted as an upgrade to my lesser example of the type. The Cr. 162/4 "MAT" semis was a ride-along that was offered so cheaply that I saw no reason to decline it since I was already paying for shipping. This semis, cataloged by Crawford as 41/6e comes from one of the earliest series of struck semisses as the larger denominations were transitioning from cast to struck bronzes. Crawford only cited a single example of the type in RRC but a few more have come to light since then and in Roberto Russo broke up this issue into two series, one earlier and at a slightly higher weight standard and one later and at a lower weight standard and Andrew McCabe in his paper on anonymous bronzes refers to these two series as A1 and A2, respectively. My previous example of the type has dies linking it to the "A1" group but it is of a very low weight, much lower than either group should theoretically be, and is somewhat of an enigma in that regard, whereas this new example has dies and is of a weight standard that places it squarely in group "A2". I had originally considered this new coin as simply an upgrade and planned to sell my older example but I've since decided to hold onto both for now, at least until I can better make sense of my previous example: Roman Republic Æ Semis(31.05g, 33mm, 11h). Anonymous post-semilibral series, 215-212 BC. Rome mint. Laureate head of Saturn right, S behind/Prow of galley right, S above, ROMA below. McCabe Anonymous A2.Sm.1; Crawford 41/6e. Ex @AnYangMan, 5/6/2019, ex Karel de Geus auction 46, 29-30 October 2018, lot 2201(part), ex Rob Rueb Collection(d. 1987) This second coin is a semis with monogram "MAT", generally attributed to a moneyer of the gens Matiena. The semis only ever comes with the "MAT" above the prow but some of the smaller fractions come with "MAT" either above or to the right of the prow, in styles generally referred to as "thick" and "slender" letters. This distinction is not normally made about the semis but I kind of wonder if it shouldn't be. My semis, while worn, has a clear monogram above the prow that that is small and neatly engraved. Compare with this example from the British Museum which has a relatively much larger monogram and a different overall reverse style. Interestingly, the silver of this series also comes in multiple styles with multiple monogram placements. Perhaps it is simply an artifact of multiple engravers working on this issue at the mint, I don't really have photos of enough coins to fully form an opinion yet, but this series certainly deserves further study. Roman Republic Æ Semis(14.33g, 21mm, 2h), Anonymous("MAT" series), 179-170 BC. Laureate head of Saturn right; behind, S/Prow right; above, MAT monogram; before, S; below, ROMA. Crawford 162/4 Ex @AnYangMan, 5/6/2019, ex Karel de Geus auction 46, 29-30 October 2018, lot 2201(part), ex Rob Rueb Collection(d. 1987) As always, feel free to share anything relevant
Hey, I recognise those two ! Glad we could strike a deal. As I said, I think you will appreciate them for their rarity far more than I would have ever done, so I am glad they found a nice little spot in your collection. I quite liked them, but they seem to better at home next to other somewhat obscure republican bronzes . Love the new pictures by the way! As for something to show, how about one of my favourite coins with the same provenance? A cast AES grave, Sextans from 225 -217 BC. Not quite top of the range qualitywise, but mine nonetheless!
@red_spork I really love your commitment to Roman Republic coinage. Most of us are all over the place with Greek, Roman Imperial and provincial, Celtic, etc., etc. So it's great to see someone with so much passion for one specific time period. And a fantastic time period with lots of numismatic diversity at that. I never get tired if seeing your latest RR acquisition. On the contrary, every time you post your newest purchase I find myself learning something new and bemoaning the fact that I only have 29 Republican coins in my collection. I need to pay a little more love to this area of my collection.
It's definitely an interesting area and I'm constantly finding coins that remind me why I enjoy collecting within it so much but it's somewhat of a curse too. Occasionally I do see Greek or Roman Imperial coins I really like but I know if I buy them they'll inevitably end up being resold within a year or probably less to buy more Roman Republic coins. Thankfully I'm far from getting bored with RR so I don't think it'll ever be a problem.
