Hi all! I know the current Savoca auction isn't over yet, but I just wanted to share a pair of coins I won. They're both antoniniani of Claudius II, SOL AVG reverse. While the reverses of the coins are different, the obverses are identical. I've made a confusing diagram Both of the first "A"s of CLAVDIVS are higher than the rest of the legend, with the "L"s of CLAVDIVS slightly lower. Both of the "L"s also trace a line to Claudius' eyebrow. The I and V of CLAVDIVS are quite far apart compared to the rest of the legend, and the A of AVG has a little "flick" on the left side of it. The style of the busts are also identical. I've tried to make a gif to demonstrate the similarity, although it didn't turn out particularly well (the coins are in slightly different positions) Show me any coins you got in this Savoca auction!
Your infographic and GIF came out nicely. I myself have looked for a die match to add to my collection but it just hasn't happened yet. Thanks for sharing.
I agree they are obverse die matches, with the second coin being struck earlier in the die’s life (the first coin showing a bit more die wear). They are obviously not reverse matches (whip shows this easily).
Nice coin! Lefties aren't the easiest to find, and SOL AVG isn't the easiest to find either. Great coins.
If you just want a die match of any sort, it will be easier to find in a series that used fewer dies than Claudius or any late Roman. The other thing to seek is a die that is easily recognizable because of some unique feature. My personal best is shown by these six denarii of Septimius Severus but I have been shown a set with twice as many with all different reverses from my page on die links. Of course, die duplicates (both sides the same) are easier to find than one sided die links in some cases since thousands of coins were made at one time and chance might save a 'mint bag' potful of coins that remained together and never circulated. Some rare coins used very few dies. I was once told that every Septimius Severus legionary of LEG XXII PRI used the same obverse and one of two reverses but recently there has been another die for each side appearing on the market which I have not yet obtained and which I have not seen matched with the ones I have. This photo shows my five using both 'old' reverses (two of one and three of the other) with the one obverse. Like anything else, it is easier to find something if you know where to look. Finding a Claudius II pair strikes me as an accomplishment but I did not even look to see if I happened to have that die (the scholar is dead, long live the old fool). I wonder how many people here checked theirs for a match.
