Sestertii are big, but some provincials are bigger. When Leu auctioned this coin last month they described it as 40 mm and I got interested because of its size. Most sestertii of the period are c. 30-31 mm. Because pictures can't indicate size without some standard of comparison, I put in a denarius of mine to scale (My coins are in the bank, so I did it by scaling the images): The big one is 40-38 mm and 27.36 grams from Aegeae in Cilicia. AVT KAI M AV KOMMOΔOC AN Bust of Commodus right, laureate, draped, and cuirassed. Countermark of Victory on globe at 3:00 (Howgego 258) KOMOΔIANWN AΔPIAWN AIΓEAIWN ΔΛC Diademed and draped bust of Asklepios right, same c/m on head. Struck CY 234 = 187/8. RPC IV.3 online 9745, one piece, but Leu thought there were four. The smaller one is a denarius, 18 mm. Struck 183/4. RIC 74. Very large provincials are sometimes called "medallions." I don't they are like imperial "medallions" which are not normal circulating currency, but I think the very large provincials were usually just large denominations for cities that did not mint silver coins. Lanz auction catalog 92 (June 1999) was a very unusual sale catalog--it included over 90 provincials c. 36 mm or larger. Show us a very large Roman provincial coin!
Large coins are always eye-catching and that one is no exception. 40 mm, wow!! I have none that large and few over 33 mm. Alexandrian drachms are ~30-36 mm, which isn't particularly remarkable size-wise when it comes to provincials. I'll spare you the drachm parade and instead show a few other large-ish provincials . CILICIA, Tarsos. Valerian I 253-260 CE AE 32 mm, 19.06 gm Obv: AVKΛΙΠOVΛΙOVAΛЄPIANOCCЄ; Π - Π; radiate, draped, and cuirassed (?) bust right. Rev: TAPCOVMH TP OΠOΛЄΩC; A/M/K - Γ/Γ in fields; KOINOBOVΛION ЄΛЄVΘЄ__ in exergue; Athena seated left on throne, holding cornucopia and dropping a voting pebble into amphora to left; shield below. Ref: SNG Levante 1193; SNG BN 1821-2 (I do not have these reference books; references taken from similar ex CNG coin) ex Doug Smith SYRIA, Laodicea ad Mare. Septimius Severus & Julia Domna CE 193-211 Æ, 31 mm 18.8 gm Obv: jugate draped busts right of Septimius Severus, radiate and cuirassed and Julia Domna, set on crescent; countermarks: 1) C(AΓ) within rectangular incuse; 2) COL within rectangular incuse Rev: Marsyas standing left, right hand raised, holding wineskin over his left shoulder Ref: SNG Righetti 2114; Howgego 581 and 586 Ex E.E. Clain-Stefanelli collection LYDIA, Philadelphia. Caracalla. Æ 31, 16.7 gm, CE 198-217. Ioulianos, strategos. AVT K M AVP ANTΩNЄINOC; laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right / ЄΠI CTPA IOVΛIANOV A ΠOΛ ΦIΛΑΔЄΛΦЄΩN; horse prancing left surmounted by serpent coiled left. BMC 85. Very rare. Eh, I just can't refrain from posting at least a couple of Egyptian drachms . EGYPT, Alexandria. Hadrian year 15, 130/131 AD Æ Drachm, 35 mm, 24.8 gm Obv: AVT KAI TPAI ADPIA CEB; laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind Rev: Hadrian standing left, togate, holding sceptre, greeted by Alexandria, clad in elephant's skin headdress, chiton, and peplos, holding two grain ears in her left hand, and kissing Hadrian's extended right hand; L-IE (date) below. Ref: Emmett 964.15, R1 Hadrian drachm / Nilus seated left, holding reed, crocodile below right. Emmett 1016, RY16. Hmm, I didn't record the diameter on my website but I recall this being the largest diameter drachm I have. I think it is ~36-37 mm but I'll have to check the next time I go to the bank.
These are my largest Roman Provincials, but neither are close to 40 mm: Julia Domna, AD 193-217 Roman provincial Æ 29.3 mm, 13.67 g, 6 h. Ionia, Ephesus, AD 193-217. Obv: CЄBACTH IOY ΔOMNA, bare-headed and draped bust, right. Rev: ЄΦЄϹΙΩΝ TPIC NЄΩKOPΩN, carpentum drawn right by two mules. Refs: SNG Copenhagen 417; BMC 267 var. (obv legend). Trajan Decius. AD 249-251. Roman provincial Æ 32.5 mm, 18.74 g, 6 h. Cilicia, Tarsus, AD 249-251. Obv: ΑV ΚΑΙ Γ ΜЄϹ ΚVΙΝ ΔЄΚΙΟϹ ΤΡΑΙΑΝΟϹ, Π Π, radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right. Rev: ΤΑΡϹΟV ΜΗΤΡΟΠΟΛЄΩϹ Γ Β, Α Μ Κ. Artemis standing right, drawing arrow from quiver and holding bow and arrow; at feet on either side, deer standing left and dog running right with raised paws, head left. Refs: RPC 1346; SNG Levante 1156 ; SNG France 1754; SNG von Aulock 6065; SNG Cop 33; Ziegler 808.16.33; Lindgren III, 926.
A wonderful coin! Not only is it very rare, it is very remarkable! I wonder if the artistic convention was to show two distinct things (one horse and one serpent) crowded next to each other, or if that really was a horse with a serpent riding it, as BMC says and it looks like. Price and Trell, in Coins and Their Cities, (a very interesting book and well-illustrated book about provincial architectural types) mention the convention "to place above what actually stood behind" [p. 24]. The other coins from Philadelphia illustrated in BMC don't show horses and don't show snakes, so the type is hard to understand. Can anyone explain it?
