I’ve had this tiny bronze for some time now. I bought it because I’m really interested in late Roman history. After researching more about late Roman bronzes I realise that the chances of an authentic Anthemius bronze are slight so I put mine aside, assuming it is fake. I’ve recently been examining it again and comparing it with known fakes. It seems to be a bit different, being very small and very frail. It’s so thin it’s actually quite fragile. Only a vague impression of a bust on the obverse and no identifiable letters. Anthemius monogram number 2 on the reverse. Does anyone have any opinions on authenticity. Obverse: Pearl-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right. Reverse: Monogram (No. 2), Chi-Rho above; all within wreath. RIC X 2858. About 6mm.
Emporium Hamburg has been peddling fake monogram AE4's of rare emperors for years now; is is best to treat all as suspect until proven otherwise. First step of course is to wash the coin in acetone - genuine coins come out unscathed, but fakes will disintegrate because they are actually featureless AE4s covered in some sort of resin to add the details, then coated in artificial patina.
Thanks for this tip. I’ve seen some of Emporium Hamburg’s Late Roman AE4s and I cant believe some of the prices they’ve gone for without definite authentication given the amount of fakes in circulation. Fortunately I didn’t pay much for mine, I picked it up as an “unidentified Roman coin” from a group of other more common late Romans. I’ve kept it as a curiosity , and on the off chance it might be genuine. I know the chances are against me but it would be good to be more certain.
A few years ago a couple of Anthemius monogram types showed up on CNG auctions. They just looked "too nice" to be real and I wrote to them just to let them know why and to be a bit cautious with them. Nothing changed and they were sold at auction. A couple of months later I was curious what they sold for so I just did a quick check and found they had been removed from their database. Anyways, here's mine ... is it real, I think it is but who knows. I will say that if someone is trying to fake an Anthemius monogram they would do a heck of a lot better than this.
