Last night I was outbid on this Plotina Sestertius: I "left the building" when it crossed the 1000 USD-barrier which may seem a lot due to the crusty surfaces and smoothing, but on the other hand Trajan´s wife is extremely rare to find and I liked the full legends, handsome portrait, and toning compatible to my Sestertius collection. Please console me and let me know that it was a sane decision to save the money for something else with better surfaces and more historical importance (my Julius Caesar needs a huge improvement...). Also, it would have opened the road to hell for me. I am happy to have more or less completed the one-Sestertius-per-Emperor challenge, but owning this item would have meant that I would feel the completist´s urge to get Marciana and Matidia next, and then embark on a one-Sestertius-per-Empress portrait gallery mission which would result in bankruptcy without even coming close (anyone here has a Sestertius of Agrippina II, Plautilla, Tranquillina or Annia Faustina?). Please show your Plotinas or share stories of when you did or did not pull the trigger on an unhealthy purchase. PS. Did someone here outbid me?
I initially was very enthusiastic about collecting all the 2ndC CE Empresses alongside the Emperors until I saw the price of Trajan's ladies. It's amazing how few there are compared to the mass issued under Antoninus Pius and Marcus. Commiserations.
Historically, Plotina was a nobody. Julius Caesar was one of the most important people in Western history, ranking up there with Alexander the Great, Augustus, Constantine I, and whoever invented sliced bread. Let Plotina go, and upgrade your Julius Caesar. That is, unless it turns out that Plotina invented sliced bread.
I understand the feeling of frustration I had it yesterday when a Titus Sestertius was sold just before I wanted to buy it. On acsearch I saw that Plotina Sestertii are indeed very rare. I wouldn't grieve for too long. when I see your collection you can be especially happy with what you have! And hopefully you will get another chance soon.
Sorry but I don't agree with you. Just like other empresses, she mainly played a role in the background simply because women in ancient Rome had no political role to play. Yet I think that Plotina's role in history is often underestimated. She must have played an important role in the shadowy follow-up from Trajan to Hadrian. The decree stating that Hadrian was the successor was signed by her. She had never done this before. What seems to indicate that Plotina made her own choice. All the more so because despite the high positions that Hadrian received, Trajan never appointed him caesar. Plotina has therefore probably taken matters into its own hands. Her choice for Hadrian laid the foundation for the adoptive emperors of the rest of the century. So I think you can call her one of the most powerful empresses.
Without Plotina, there might not have been a Hadrian. HOWEVER, there's no rule that says you have to have her in sestertius form -- or even in an imperial issue. She appears on plenty of provincial coins. I certainly am in no position financially to have outbid you on this one; but I have a couple of Plotina coins, each acquired for << $100. Plotina, wife of Trajan, Augusta c. AD 105-122. Roman provincial Æ 20.0 mm, 5.43 g. Caria, Tabae, AD 105-122. Obv: ΠΛΩΤЄΙΝ CЄΒΑCΤΗ, diademed and draped bust, right, hair in plait behind. Rev: ΤΑΒΗΝΩΝ, stag standing right. Refs: RPC III 2292; BMC Caria p. 170, no. 79; SNG von Aulock 2720; Robert 143. Trajan and Plotina, AD 98-117. Roman Æ triassarion, 19.72 g, 28.7 mm, 1 h. Cilicia, Anazarbos, year 132 = AD 113-114. Obv: AYTO KAI NЄP TPAIANOC CЄ ΓЄP ΔA, laureate head of Trajan, right. Rev: KAICAPЄ ANAZAPBΩ ΠΛΩTЄINAN CЄ, diademed and draped bust of Plotina, right; in field, ЄT - BΛP (year 132). Refs: SNG Levante 1384; RPC 3369; Ziegler 115-121.
Sestertii of Plotina are not that scarce. This one does have a decent amount of detail but it has been played, with with an unsightly result. I really would rather have a lower grade specimen but better surfaces. If it is any consolation, I lost out on this on the same auction as you - a very scarce as of Galba of the QVADRAGENS-REMISSAE type. Now, that is a scarce coin, and this is by far one of the best examples I have seen in over 25 years. I put in a sub-atomic bid prior to the live auction just to put me in the ball-game. Then we went to the beach to watch the sunset and planned to be back 15 minutes before the auction. Well, yesterday was Memorial Day Sunday and the road back from the beach was clogged. The result was I missed the live event by 10 minutes and my coin by one mere bid.....I was ready to go higher.
I'm hovering over the buy button on a very nice drachm of Antinous - which would be great to add to my collection of Roman Egypt which is something I've been focusing on recently. Quite pricey but I imagine it might fetch an even higher price at auction. It would mean something to me since I have been to the site of the city built in his honor by Hadrian. Now it is called El Sheikh Ibada. Very little remains of the ancient city even though in the 3rd century it was upgraded to the capital of the Thebaid and even had six-storey buildings according to one account. Most of the marble buildings were dismantled to build sugar cane kilns, which if you visit you see everywhere in the area. The crop grown in the region right now is exclusively sugar cane for export. In the old days it was of course corn (wheat). The locals consider the place to be haunted by evil jinn so it's a bid hard to get to. I rented a donkey for my trip. Yes, it's kind of fun riding a donkey.
A few months ago I sat out on a reasonably decent Plotina denarius from CNG because Leu had one that was a little nicer for a much lower starting bid. The CNG went for ~750 and I wasn't even close to winning the Leu. I did console myself with a lowly provincial for a much more palatable price: Perhaps the historians didn't capture much of Plotina in their histories, but she played a critical role in history nevertheless; Trajan doesn't seem to have even liked Hadrian all that much, so without Plotina pulling the strings, it seems likely that Hadrian would have lost his bid for the purple. While I do like coins of the big players like Julius Caesar and Augustus, I equally enjoy those of the ephemeral and the hopefuls - the "nobodies" if you will.
PLOTINA, wife of Trajan. Augusta, 105-122 AD. AR Denarius. 2.7 gm. Struck under Trajan, 112 AD. Obv: Her Diademed and draped bust right. Rev: Vesta std. left on throne, holding palladium and scepter. RIC II 730 (Trajan); BMCRE 526(Trajan); RSC 3.
Actually, Sestertii of Plotina are THAT scarce: there seem to be less than 100 published in total (32 listed by Banti), which makes them rarer than than those of Gordian I or II. But I agree, I´d rather have a worn down specimen (preferably yellowish) with clean surfaces, as long as it has an identifiable portrait.
