I've been chasing after a Balbinus for a long time, and I was finally able to win one from a heritage auction at an acceptable price. The guy only reigned for three months so his coins are hard to come by. Please post your coin(s) of Balbinus, and emperors that have eluded you for a while.
That is a very nice Balbinus you got there, @roman99 - that portrait is wonderful. I don't have a Balbinus (or Pupienus) of any sort, but I did just get this Gordian III sestertius that was issued under B & P for a few short months in 238 A.D. It was mis-listed on eBay as Philip II, and thus affordable - Gordian III Æ Sestertius Late April-July 29, 238 A.D. Rome Mint M ANT GORDIANVS CAES, bare-headed, draped bust right / [PIET]AS AVG[G] S C in exergue, jug between lituus, secespita and patera left, simpulum and aspergillum right. RIC 3; Cohen 183; BMC 64-66. (21.33 grams / 29 mm) Notes: "In response to popular pressure shortly after their own elevation to imperial status, the emperors Balbinus and Pupienus adopted Gordian as Caesar. This scarce coin was part of a limited and formal coinage produced for Gordian." Wildwinds
Balbinus. AD 238. Æ Sestertius, 33mm, 22.9g, 12h; Rome mint. 1st emission. Obv.: IMP CAES D CAEL BALBINVS AVG; Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right. Rev.: CONCORDIA AVGG; Concordia seated left, holding patera and double cornucopia; S C in exergue. Reference: RIC IVb 22, p. 171.
That's awesome, Gordian III as Caesar issues are very scarce and so much more costly than most of his coins.
Beautiful Balbinus! His coins are almost universally nice, so I feel like it's justified to spend a little more to get one that will really "wow" you every time you see it. I saw that one! Didn't see it until about a week after it ended, but I'm glad that it went to a good home where it will be appreciated for what it actually is! I bought a Pupienus and Balbinus together at a CNG auction a couple years ago- buying both at once hurt the wallet quite a but, but it was very important to me to have a good matching set
My one Balbinus -- a denarius -- together with a Pupienus denarius with the same reverse design. Balbinus AR Denarius, April-June 238 AD, Rome mint. Obv. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, IMP C D CAEL BALBINVS AVG / Rev. Bearded Genius of the Senate, togate, standing front, head left, holding olive branch in extended right hand, and short transverse scepter in left hand, PM TRP COS II PP. RIC IV-2 5, RSC III 20, Sear RCV III 8489 (ill.). 20 mm., 2.65 g. (Purchased from Kirk Davis April 2020; ex: Kirk Davis, Cat # 74, Fall 2019, Lot 83).* Pupienus, AR Denarius, April-June 238 AD, Rome Mint. Obv. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, IMP C M CLOD PVPIENVS AVG / Rev. Bearded Genius of the Senate, togate, standing front, head left, holding olive branch in extended right hand, and short transverse scepter in left hand, PM TRP COS II PP. RIC IV-2 5, RSC III 29 (ill.), Sear RCV III 8528 (ill.). 20 mm., 3.42 g. (Purchased from Herakles Numismatics, Dec. 2020.)* *[Applicable to both the Balbinus and the Pupienus denarii.] The standing figure on the reverse of each coin was traditionally believed to be the respective Emperor himself, holding a parazonium (a short triangular sword typically found on coins depicting Virtus) in his left hand. That view is still reflected in OCRE (based on RIC) and at the British Museum website (based on BMCRE), as well as in the descriptions of all 14 coins of this type I found that have been sold since 2003, listed on acsearch. However, as Curtis L. Clay explained at https://www.cointalk.com/threads/balbinus-denarius.358987/#post-4410967, in discussing a Balbinus example, the reverse “shows not the emperor on the reverse, but the Genius of the Senate, so his attribute has to be a short scepter, not a sword! A pity that the [British Museum] website perpetuates this old error (Genius misdescribed as emperor). The correction was made by [Andreas] Alföldi in his Insignien und Tracht [der römischen Kaiser (Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, 1935)] . . ., followed by many others since then, including a recent article by R. Ziegler. On coins of Antoninus Pius, for example, the same togate figure is labeled GENIO SENATVS. His beard and bushy hairstyle on [the Balbinus] coin are exactly as required for the Genius, and exclude Balbinus. No surprise that the Genius of the Senate reappears on the coins of Balbinus and Pupienus, since they were senators themselves and were chosen to be emperors by the Senate.” Note that Sear equivocates, describing the reverse figure on both coins as either the Emperor or “the Genius of the Senate.” See Sear RCV III 8489 & 8528 (published in 2005).
Very nice, @roman99 Balbinus, AD 238 AR Denarius, 20mm, 3.7g, 12h; Rome, AD 238. Obv.: IMP C D CAEL BALBINVS AVG; Laureate, draped, cuirassed bust right. Rev.: VICTORIA AVGG; Victory standing front with wreath and palm. Reference: RIC 8
Both Balbinus and Pupienus were holes in my emperor collection for a long time. Then I received a denarius of Pupienus in a group lot of silver denarii. The Pupienus was identified in the auction listing notes, yet by selling off the other denarii in the lot, I was able to reduce the cost of the Pupienus to around $100, which made it affordable for me. After having a subsequent Balbinus hole for 6 months or so I finally bit the bullet and bought this sestertius of his. Balbinus Augustus, A.D. 238 Bronze Sestertius Rome mint, A.D. 238 Obv: IMP CAES D CAEL BALBINVS AVG Rev: CONCORDIA AVGG - Concordia seated, facing left, holding patera and cornucopia. SC in exergue. RIC 22 28mm, 19.8g. And the denarius: Pupienus Augustus, A.D. 238 Silver Denarius Rome mint, A.D. 238 Obv: IMP C M CLOD PVPIENVS AVG Rev: P M TR P COS II P P - Felicitas, standing, facing left, holding caduceus and scepter. RIC 6 19mm, 3.3g.
