I tend to shy away from fourrées as a general rule because of their unofficial status. However, there is one infamous fourrée type that is a must have for any serious collector of Flavian coins. I finally acquired one, and at a bargain basement price too! Vespasian Fourrée Fourrée Denarius, 2.75g Unknown mint, After 71 AD Obv: IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG TR P; Head of Vespasian, laureate, r. Rev: IVDAEA DEVICTA; Palm tree; to l., Judaea stg. l., hands bound in front RIC 1120 (R). BMC 388. RSC 243. BNC 423. Hendin 1488. Acquired from NumisCorner, June 2021. Fourrées are ancient counterfeits composed of a copper core coated with a thin silver plating. The IVDAEA DEVICTA Flavian denarius type from Lugdunum is commonly found as a fourrée, so much so that the auctioneer Ira Goldberg states 'Of the 12-15 specimens of this IVDAEA DEVICTA type that this cataloguer has examined, all have been fourrées!' Personally, I have observed that nearly 60% of these denarii seen in trade are fourrées. Why this is so remains a mystery. Could the plated examples be the work of unscrupulous Lugdunese mint workers skimming profits? Or, did a talented forger in Gaul have a fondness for this one reverse type? The fact that there are no known die links between plated and solid specimens lends credence to the latter theory. The evidence that this type was well know as a fourrée in ancient times can be seen from the test marks behind the neck and below the chin of the portrait on this solid example in my collection. Either plated or solid the type is fairly scarce, so much so the as yet unpublished Flavian A&C changed the frequency rating from 'common' to 'rare'. It also must be noted that many of the specimens in major museum collections are fourrées. http://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.2_1(2).ves.1120 My plated specimen is an obverse die match with the Berlin coin. Please post your fourrées!
Great coin David. I do not have the fourree version, but I do have the solid version. Both versions are highly sought after.
Wonderful coin and write up That Vespasian looks like Fred Flintstone Now I want one Here's one I've never seen an other fouree of that might be my favorite RR, fouree or not: L. Hostilius Saserna. Fourré Denarius (18-19 mm, 2.86 g), Rome, 48 BC. Obv. Bearded male head to right, his hair straggling out behind him; cloak around neck and Gallic shield behind. Rev. L HOSTILIVS / SASERN, Nude Gallic warrior, holding shield with his left hand and hurling spear with his right, standing left in a galloping biga being driven to right by a seated charioteer holding a whip. Cf. Craw. 448/2; Syd. 952. Fourré. Very fine. Purchased from Auctiones gmbh March 2021 "The head on this famous and desirable coin has long been identified as that of Vercingetorix. This can not be proven but the head does have remarkably individualistic and naturalistic features, and it must surely represent an actual Gaulish captive seen by the die engraver."
With no solid evidence either way it's an intriguing numismatic whodunnit with no clear answers. IMHO, the Lugdunum mint is not off the hook. Semi-official is a good enough term for now.
If I arrived home 10 minutes earlier it would've been mine Congrats David. Great example. I'm glad one of us got it. Here's one of my favorite fouree's that was in my collection. Unfortunately it was lost (or stolen) at a coin show. Bust of Fulvia as Victory right Lion right between A and XL (year 40) LVGV in ex DVNI above Lugdunum, autumn 43 BC 1.37g Sear 1518 RSC 4 Antony's name is not mentioned on the coin but the date-numeral A XL (year 40) refers to his age at the time of the issue. A similar type was struck the following year which includes Antony's name and titles and records his age as 41. Silver Quinarius fouree 1.36gm ex CNG 9/98 #1358
In case there is anyone new here unclear on the subject of plated coins, I offer this link to my pages on the subject. http://www.forumancientcoins.com/dougsmith/fourree.html Those seriously interested the subject need to read Campbell, William, Greek and Roman Plated Coins, Numismatic Notes and Monographs No. 57, American Numismatic Society, 1933. It is available free online but my printed copy has been read and reread over the years. It is hard to pick a favorite fourree. My page on my 100 favorite coins only shows 6 fourrees but I suspect that is more than most people would list. 99.99% of plated coins have a copper core so this Byzantine was of interest since it is gold over silver. There are copper over iron coins but I do not have one. A strong candidate for my favorite silver over copper is only half a New Style tetradrachm but it was fun to photograph. Since this thread was on Flavian fourrees, I'll show my four but none of them are infamous. Vespasian Titus Domitian x2
