A beginner collection of the Nerva-Antonines

Great beginnings @thejewk !

Some of mine. I do not focus on the Empire. The Republic is more fun for me.

NERVA

RI Nerva AE Dupondius 96-98 CE LIBERTAS PVBLICA -pileus
Ex: @TIF


TRAJAN:

RI AE As Trajan CE 98-117 26mm 11.0g Rome Laureate Draped - SENATVS POPVLVSQVE ROMANVS Victory R wreath palm S-C RIC 675


HADRIAN:

RI Hadrian, AD 117-138 Æ Limes Denarius 18mm 3.5mm after AD 125 Genius stndg sacrificing altar cornucopia RIC II 173


ANTONINUS PIUS:

RI Antoninus Pius 138-161 BCE BILLON Tet Alexandria Egypt Dikaiosyne Scale


LUCIUS VERUS:

RI Lucius Verus 161-169 CE AE As 24mm Mars w Trophy


MARCUS AURELIUS:

RI Aurelius Marcus 161-180 AE Sestertius S-C


COMMODUS

RI Commodus 177-192 CE AR Denarius 17.7mm 2.42g Apollo Plectrum Lyre RIC 218 RSC 25 BMCRE 292 Rare Type

 

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@thejewk...Very nice set!..Really like the Lucius Verus As....Great way to start collecting!
I've recetly just completed my 5 good emperor set in silver the thorn in my side being the Nerva ! So I know the feeling...!

Picked up most of these for less than $30 except for the Trajan and .............
of course the Nerva...!
Some lovely coins being shown on this thread....@Sallent...LV...wow!..@alegredon...Trajan As...Beauty!..@Terence Cheesman..Amazing Nerva!...And finally Finn...Super coins!..When you upgrade your Plotina let me know......Paul

 

Congratulations on starting off collecting these coins @thejewk - in my opinion you have made a good choice and are already assembling a well documented and arranged selection.

And of course the coinage of Trajan is particularly noteworthy because of the inscriptional letterforms employed by period engravers in the often very long legends on his coins.

Following is an exemplar rendered by me of the CAPITALIS MONUMENTALIS letterforms employed by stone cutters for edifices, monuments, tombstones, etc. A particularly fine extant example is found on Trajan's column in Rome and the essential constructs of these letterforms are the models for all Majuscule (Capital) alphabets used in the western world. Stone cutters in particular still employ their distinctive proportions and terminating serifs. It should be noted that only twenty letters were normally used in the ancient Roman alphabet : A B C D E F G H I L M N O P Q R S T V X. Our modern J and U were not used, their equivalents being I and Vrespectively. Thus, our modern JULIUS was written IVLIVS. The letter K was seldom used and then only before A. The letters Y and Z were only used when reproducing Greek words. W was not part of the ancient Roman alphabet at all. It was Medieval scribes who eventually formalized the construction models for the letters J K U W Y Z. Capitalis Monumentalis lettering is at the apex of the "Hierarchy of Scripts" for Calligraphers and is often used by them for headers or versals in pen and ink renditions.





There are numerous excellent photographs of actual CAPITALIS MONUMENTALIS lettering (including that on Trajan's column) mostly accompanied by location information, translations and analyses, at Bill Thayer's Latin Inscriptions section of his LacusCurtius web site


RIC Vol. II, TRAJAN, SESTERTIUS, Rome, No. 534, 98-117AD, (35mm, 22.6gm)
Obverse depiction: Trajan, head facing right, wearing aegis
Inscription: IMP CAES NERVAE TRIANO AVG GER DAC PM TRP COS V PP
Reverse depiction: Trajan galloping on horseback spearing a fallen Dacian soldier
Inscription: SPQR OPTIMO PRINCIPI - in exergue S C

 

My rough collection of this era...

 

Great coins. I think people are sick of seeing what I focus on so I'll just post these lol.










Just kidding, here's a few of my falling horsemen ftr's

 

Not exactly one of the five but he did not become the sixth. Commodus Ar Denarius Rome RIC 253 Obv Head of Commodus in lion skin headress right( I always wonder why Scott didn't go for this look in the final fight scene in "Gladiator") Rv. Club flanked by bow and bowcase. 191-192 A.D. 3.50 grms 17.5 mm

 

@TC ..Thats one on my want list...A really nice example!

 

Whoooooooah!! Are you saying you got those Pupienus and Balbinus ants for less than $100 each from Savoca? What have I been missing?

@thejewk I applaud what you have acheived AND your ambition to get sets in the same metals. When you manage to put together a set in all silver or all bronze/orichalcum please do display it here as you did for this.

I am partial to the silver, and only collect the denarii for this period, but nice looking bronzes are truly awesome.
As for additional family, here are a couple of the ladies to seek out:

Matidia - Trajan's niece daughter of Marciana (his sister) and mother of Sabina


Sabina - wife of Hadrian


Lucilla - daughter of Marcus Aurelius and Faustina II, and wife of Lucius Verus


Crispina - unfortunate wife of Commodus


I still have my eye out for denarii of Trajan's sister and his wife.

 

@lrbguy Lovely coins there, and I definitely will be adding the ladies to the collection as soon as I can. I don't see myself getting hold of Trajan's relations any time soon though! They go for some serious money. I'll content myself with Sabina and onwards.

 

Sorry, could have worded that more carefully. Those two were from CNG - Probably over paid to be completely honest... I think it was like $1500 for the pair after fees etc?

The rest were indeed $100 or less each under vague descriptors like "AR Denarius of Commodus" instead of "Rare AR Denarius of Commodus after he went bonkers and started killing wounded veterans in the Colosseum for fun"

 

I would like to add a set of Provincials here but I don't own a Nerva Provincial. I'll post the set and ask anyone who has a Nerva to help me finish the set.

Trajan Antioch didrachm Baalat-Hera


Hadrian Alexandria obol Harpocrates


Aelius Alexanria hemidrachm Homonoia


Antoninus Pius Alexandria obol modius


Marcus Aurelius Caesar Hadrianopolis Apollo drawing bow


Lucius Verus Caesarea didrachm Mt Argaeus


Commodus Alexandria tetradrachm riding down enemy

 

Here you go...

Nerva, Ruled 96-98 AD
AE30, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: IMP CAESAR NERVA AVG III COS, Laureate head of Nerva right.
Reverse: Large SC within laurel wreath of eight leaves, Θ or ς below.
References: RPC III 3487, McAlee 421(i)
Size: 30mm, 13.26g

 

I know Justin already posted one for you, but it seems fitting for me to still show this old x6 winner too.


NERVA
AR Didrachm. 6.69g, 22.1mm. Metcalf, Caesarea 45. Sydenham, Caesarea 153. CAPPADOCIA, Caesaraea-Eusebia, AD 96-98. O: AYTOKPAT NЄPOYAC KAICAP CЄBACTOC, laureate head right. R: YΠATOY TЄTAPTOY, Club set on ground.
Ex stevex6 Collection

 

Sweet empress coins, all of 'em!

Here's Marciana to round out the set: