According to the new RIC (2007), portrait sestertii of Divus Vespasian are rare and occur with the following four types: Three with obv. legend DIVVS AVGVSTVS VESPASIANVS (clockwise), head laureate r., and with reverses PAX AVGVST S - C, Pax standing l., RIC 370, R3, unique in Vienna S - C, Mars advancing r., RIC 371, R2, specimens in BM and Oxford S - C, Spes advancing l., RIC 372, R2, specimens in BM, Oxford, and Paris. Finally a surprising fourth type, with PATER PAT added to a counterclockwise obv. legend, DIVVS AVGVSTVS VESPASIAN PATER PAT, and reverse IVDAEA CAPTA S C, Jew standing and mourning Jewess seated to left and right of palm tree, RIC 369, R3, known from a single specimen among Colin Kraay's plaster casts at Oxford, published for the first time in Carradice and Buttrey's new RIC. The attached photo from RIC Plate 108 shows this surprising new coin, plus two of the three other known types. Recently a new variant has emerged: from the same PATER PAT obv. die as RIC 369, combined with the same Pax standing rev. type as RIC 370, but with legend [PAX] AVGVSTI S - C rather than just PAX AVGVST S - C. Offered in Biga Numismatics E9, 24 April 2022, lot 533; see seller's photo below. RIC assigned all of these portrait sestertii of Divus Vespasian to Titus' main aes issue of the mint of Rome, but this is clearly an error. Neither a counterclockwise obv. legend nor the Jew and Jewess rev. type of RIC 369 ever occur on the bronze coins of the main Rome-mint issue of Titus as Augustus, but both do occur on rare sestertii of Titus as COS VII (RIC 57) and COS VIII (RIC 133), that were first pointed out by Colin Kraay as having portraits and counterclockwise obv. legends reminiscent of Titus' Rome-mint gold and silver, and that RIC accepts as being early issues of the mint of Rome for Titus as Augustus. I think myself that these were the earliest "Thracian-mint" bronzes of Titus; see my commentary in Gemini IX, Flavian coins of Harry N. Sneh, 2012, lots 448-9. In any case Divus Vespasian's PATER PAT / IVDAEA CAPTA sestertius must belong to this auxiliary issue rather than to Titus' main aes issue, and the same attribution must also apply to Biga's new PATER PAT coin, which is from the same obv. die. As to the other two portrait sestertii of Divus Vespasian illustrated by RIC, style and fabric suggest that the Mars piece should be assigned to the auxiliary mint, but the Spes piece to the main series of the mint of Rome, to which all of the portrait dupondii and asses of Divus Vespasian that RIC illustrates (Plate 108) also seem to belong.
Maybe it will be some consolation to know that only a very high bid could have surpassed mine! I was prepared to go to 450 euros or so.
Wonderful new rarity Coingrats!!! My latest Vespasian, that I believe to be from early in his reign, also has a Pax reverse, comes from around the Burgundy region of France and, per the seller, was just recently unearthed. A very Marlon Brandoesque portrait of one of the best emperors per the sources: Vespasianus 69 - 79 Dupondius, Lugdunum (Lyon) mint., 72-73 CE, AE 28 mm, 11.04 g Obverse: IMP CAESAR VESPASIAN AVG COS III Radiate head of Vespasian right, with a globe at the point of the neck Reverse: Draped PAX AVG SC Pax standing left, holding caduceus in left hand and patera in right hand and sacrificing above lit altar Ref: C.301, RIC II 740 (any corrections are appreciated)
Another Mars advancing sestertius from the auxiliary mint, from the same obv. die as the coin illustrated above as RIC 371, was in Roma E18, 27 June 2015, lot 844, and cost the lucky purchaser a mere £150 plus juice:
I thought I had won a new type a few weeks ago until it became clear it was a 19th century cast. Thanks David and Curtis, you saved me. Auction had no problem canceling my order.
Further to mint attribution, RIC p. 191 with note 20 reminds me that the Mars advancing sestertius of Divus Vespasian had already been assigned to the "Thracian mint" by Colin Kraay, on the basis of its "unusual obverse portrait style and lettering."
