A small visit at the numismatic fair made coin no 215 magically appear in my album. We know that mr Marcus Aurelius Claudius Quintillus was the brother of Claudius Gothicus and had a very short reign, not clear how long (some sources mention 17 days, other 177). Anyway, by all means, a short reign. Although in good relationships with the Senate, he lacked support from the army and had no alternative when Aurelian claimed that Claudius intended that he is the next emperor, not Quintillus. And that was about it. All that remains ... his coins. I am happy with this Antoninianus. Checked in RIC and I think that the full obverse legend should be IMP C M AVR CL QVINTILLVS AVG, reverse PROVIDENT AVG, Providentia with baton and sceptre, mintmark "ς" - RIC 29. Now the funny thing is that I already have a very similar Quintillus but in a completely different style. Question for the experts - same coin (RIC 29) but completely different styles? On coin 2 the reverse legend is not complete but I don't think it can be PROVID AVG (not PROVIDENT) as PROVID AVG for Quintillus has Providentia with a cornucopiae. On both coins Providentia clearly has sceptre and baton. And of course, post your Quintillus coins.
..ol' Quintillus ....gotta have him to have them all... and you got 2 Quintillus 270AD 17mm .. 2.2gms
Also RIC 29, right? PROVIDENT AVG, sceptre and baton and mintmark ς (I seem to find this coin every time I search for Quintillus) But the style of my 2nd coin (bought before I started collecting ancients) puzzles me today. Unofficial perhaps?!
Quintillus (270 A.D) Æ(S) Antoninianus O: IMP CM AVR CL QVINTILLVS AVG, radiate, draped bust right. R: FORTVNA REDVX, Fortuna standing left with rudder and cornucopiae. Z in exergue. Rome Mint, 270 A.D. 2.65g 18mm Appleshaw hoard 305; RIC 19 var (cornucopiae)
@Ryro , yours appears to be with Aeternitas. Does anybody know if my 2 coins are the same RIC? I sure know ancient coins are rarely identical, however mine look very different (portrait, letters...). The only Quintillus I can find with that mintmark is RIC29. Am I missing something?
Cool pickups! I'd bet that if the second had a complete obverse legend, that's where the difference lies. I've had a soft spot for Quintillus (maybe it's the story of the Otho-esque suicide to prevent a civil war) so I have an example or two... And my absolute favorite, and one of my top 10 Roman coins
I got these three Quintilli for dirt cheap. They're incredible. Nasty flan, but attractive! A bit worse for the wear but nice full legends with malachite deposits. Definitely the best of the bunch, with very sharp portrait, blue fringe toning, and a gorgeous rendering of the reverse figure.
Thanks all! @Finn235 - the problem is that coin 2 definitely has Providentia with baton and sceptre. The only Quintillus with these characteristics is RIC 29. Tried to eliminate the possibilities yesterday. Cannot be cornucopia. Cannot be another deity or another emperor. So either a coin not in RIC (perhaps a PROVID AVG with baton and sceptre?!) or a very different style. However I like both coins - the one I got yesterday is well centered and the older one is more attractive.
