Hi all! Thought it would be fun to share pictures of out coins that have been overstruck over other coins! I recently bought this rather nice antoninianus of Carausius for the great portrait (paid about £30 for it). Little did I know (the pictures weren't brilliant) that it was overstruck on an antoninianus of Victorinus, with a decent amount of Victorinus' bust and obverse legend clearly visible on Carausius' reverse! Do you have any overstruck coins that you want to share?
That's a very interesting coin. I haven't seen an overstruck Romano-British coin. Presumably Victorinus was fair game by that point, being an emperor of a failed Gallic breakaway state when Carausius wanted to endear himself to Diocletian (and not look like an emperor of a breakaway state). I have this Hemiassarion from Sardes, Lydia, overstruck at the time of Vespasian. Sardes Hemiassarion, 69-79AD Lydia. Bronze (AE19), 12.5mm, 2.48g. Obverse: EΠI TI KΛAY ΦIΛEINOY CTΡA (Ti. Cl. Phileinos magistrate), draped bust of Mên wearing Phrygian cap. Reverse: CAΡ/ΔIA/NΩN (Sardisian) within laurel wreath (RPC II 1307). It's overstruck on a coin of the same city, possibly of Nero. On the obverse, "CAPΔ" is discernible just below the bust (for CAΡΔIANΩN, Sardisian, as seen on the reverse of the new coin). On the reverse, there's "KAIC" upside down at the top. Nero struck a hemiassarion in Sardes around 65AD with the obverse legend NEPΩN KAICAP (Nero Caesar), with Hercules on the reverse. I think it was quite common for Roman emperors to obliterate their predecessors like this, at least when they were no longer revered!
This is my favorite overstrike. Overstrikes aren't at all uncommon with Byzantine coins but I love the fact that this one has both emperors clearly identified on each side of the coin. Nicephorus II Phocas AE Follis Constantinople Note: Overstruck on Constantine VII Follis Obverse: NICIFR bASIL ROM, crowned bust facing with short beard, wearing loros, holding labarum and cross on globe (reverse of Constantine VII CONST-EN QEO bA-SILEVS underneath bust) Reverse: NICHF-EN QEW bA-SILEVS RW-MAIWN, legend in four lines (bust of Constantine VII upside down on top of legend)
Constantine X (1059 - 1067 A.D.) Æ FOLLIS O: +EMMA_NOVHA Christ standing facing on footstool, raising hand in benediction and holding Gospels. IC XC across field R: EVDKARO +KWNTAK On left, Eudocia standing facing, wearing modified loros with kite-shaped lower panel and crown with cross and pendilia; on right, Constantine standing facing, wearing modified loros and crown with cross and pendilia, both holding labarum with cross-piece on shaft between them, standing on base and three steps, and each places one hand on heart Constantinople 6.1g 26mm DOC 8; SB 1853 Overstruck
Overstrikes are fascinating and often historically significant. Kyrenaika overstruck coins quite often as there are no local sources of precious metals. One of my favorites: Kyrene AR tetradrachm 500-480 BC 16.84 gm 24 mm cf. BMC 2 O: silphium plant flanked by 2 silphium fruits R: quadripartite incuse square overstruck on Athenian tetradrachm (top of owl's head just above incuse square and top of back at left side incuse square)
Faustina Sr, AD 138-141 Roman AR denarius; 3.83 g, 18.2 mm Obv: DIVA FAVSTINA, draped bust, right Rev: AETERNITAS, Fortuna standing left, holding globe and rudder Refs: RIC 348; BMCRE 360; Cohen 6; RCV 4577. Note: Overstruck on previous issue, perhaps a CONCORDIA seated issue of Sabina.
Heraclius (610-641) produced much over-struck coinage, probably due to necessity, but also as a means to erase the record and memory of his predecessor, Phocas. Here's a typical example. The reverse still shows remnants of the legend of the previous follis of Phocas: ....PERPAV.... The officina is clear (A), but the year is muddled (RY 4?), and the "C" for the mint is fairly readable. There's also an odd crescent where the cross should be, above the M, but that's probably due to the over-strike. 11.7 grams
If I rotate the reverse 90 degrees counterclockwise, you can see a throne and what is likely a cornucopiae beneath it. Coming down from Fortuna's face is a roughly spiral-shaped vertical object I think is a goddess's shin: I postulate it was a CONCORDIA AVG issue of Sabina:
Neither is attributed yet. Came out of a group lot and I put them aside. Portrait reminds me of Focus 12.3gm and 33.94mm And 11.31gm and 29.44mm If someone is in the mood for a mystery , feel free.
Zeugitania, Carthage, AE Unit Struck ~350 BC just before the 3rd Carthaginian invasion of Sicily 345-340 BC Overstruck on coin from 400-350 BC West Sicilian mint Obverse: Youthful male head (Trittolemo?) to left between two grain ears. Reverse: Horse galloping right. References: SNG COP 120, MAA 19 (overstruck on MAA 18) Size: 18 mm, 3.46g Notes: Interesting overstrike; the head of Tanit is visible on the reverse, and the horse standing before palm tree on the obverse. (Top two images are of coin, MAA 19, compared to a coin it was overstruck on at bottom, MAA 18.) The male image lacks signs of a deity and may be one of the leaders of the Punic forces. Zeugitania, Carthage, 350-320 BC AE Unit, Possibly from other mints (Sicily?) Obverse: Palm tree, with two clusters of dates. Reverse: Head of horse left (variation). References: MAA 20 var (horse head left), SNG COP 102 var (same), Müller 317-318 var (same) Size: 17mm, 3.10g Notes: Overstruck on type MAA 15 (400-350 BC). John I, Ruled 969-976 AD AE Class A1 Anonymous Follis Constantinople Mint Obverse: + EMMANOVHL, facing bust of Christ, wearing nimbus cruciger, two pellets in each cross limb, pallium and colobium, holding ornamented Gospels with both hands, to left IC, to right XC. Reverse: + IhSuS / XRISTuS / bASILEu / bASILE (Jesus Christ King of Kings) in 4 liines. References: Sear 1793 Size: 25-26mm, 6.02g Notes: Frequently over-struck on folles of Nicephorus II or Constantine VII. Ex: Anthony DiDonato Collection
Many, it is a specialty of mine but the one good for this thread is my Carausius over Victorinus. On mine the obverses are on the same side and Pax is over Salus.
Coins from the Bar Kokhba Revolt were re-struck. Excerpt from my CoinTalk article, "The Bar Kokhba Revolt (132-136 AD)": "...the rebels began to produce their own currency by overstriking Roman bronze and silver coins. This repurposing of coinage resulted in the conversions of the tetradrachm to the sela (shekel); the denarius and provincial drachm to the zuz; and the sestertius, the dupondus, and the as to the prutah. The surfaces of bronze coins were filed down to obliterate previous images before being overstruck, but silver coins were hammered down instead in order to preserve the precious metal content. The latter method was less effective in completely erasing impressions on the host coin, and thus remnants of the undertype can sometimes be detected on Bar Kokhba selas and zuzim." https://www.cointalk.com/threads/the-bar-kokhba-revolt-132-136-ad.362091/ Here's my example: Judaea, Bar Kokhba Revolt. Silver Zuz (3.25 g), 132-135 AD. Undated, attributed to year 3 (134/5 AD). 'Simon' (Paleo-Hebrew), bunch of grapes with leaf and tendril. / 'For the freedom of Jerusalem' (Paleo-Hebrew), upright palm branch. Hendin 1430; Hendin Great Biblical Coins, Fifth Edition, plate 40, (this coin illus.); Mildenberg 150 (O11/R103), 7 cited, this being #5. Portions of the undertype legend visible on obverse from the obverse of a Drachm, probably of Trajan and probably of Caesaria. The letters AYTOK can be discerned, these being part of the title AYTOKRATΩR - autocrat, dictator, tyrant, despot. Ex David Hendin Collection.
Here are three possible examples: Austria 1802 7 kreutzer All of these were struck over debased 1795 12 kreutzer coins Byzantine anonymous follis class E 1059-1067 Constantine X Not sure if overstruck or just double struck. But something is going on with the text on the reverse 1/8 real Durango 1824 I believe most of these are contemporary counterfeits struck over 1821-3 Nueva Viscaya 1/8 real coppers. I can't tell how to be sure just by looking. This was just after the Mexican War of Independence from Spain and there was a lot of monetary chaos with coin shortages in the provinces.
This is a Constantine II centenionalis from Trier with visible undertype on the reverse. Is it a restruck brockage? On the reverse, here presented upside down, you can see nose and mouth of the undertype at the STR part of NOSTRORVM and the neck of Constanine Jr. between V and M of CAESARVM.
Not a spectacular example, but it's the only one I have. Also, so far, my only Byzantine. The die shift is included for free:
I think that's actually a die clash, not an overstrike. Here's a die-clash of Julia Maesa for comparison: Julia Maesa, AD 218-225.. Roman AR denarius, 19.70 mm, 2.70 g, 12h. Rome, AD 218-220. Obv: IVLIA MAESA AVG, bare-headed and draped bust right. Rev: IVNO, Juno standing left, holding patera and scepter. Refs: RIC 254; BMCRE 67; Cohen 16; RCV 7750; Thirion 401. Notes: The reverse features a die-clash, resulting in a ghost-like, incuse reverse image of the obverse portrait.
..one of the more interesting coins in my collection is this Mamluk Arabic overstrike on this Armenian tarvorin of one of the Levons..(paid by Levon IV,1320-1342) tribute payment..i bought it thinking it was something totally different, but educated by the good peeps here on what it is..and i'm elated to have it!
Well, I have some of these dramatic Byzantine overstrikes. Byzantium, Heraclius and son overstruck on a follis of Phokas. Nikomedia. Obv. Two figures, one larger and one smaller. Text in circle: DMFOCA. Rev. Large M over XXXX or the other way round. NIKO. 30 x 33 mm, 11.05 gr. Byzantium, Constans II. Follis. Overstrike, maybe on a coin of Heraclonas? Obv. Portrait of Constans with long beard. Rev. unclear. Sicily, Syracuse 650-652. Sear 1107.