A STUNNER! Gordian III Dupondius

Gordian III Dupondius RIC 300(c)
9.71 Grams 26mm
Obverse Inscription: IMP GORDIANUS PIUS FEL AVG
Reverse Inscription: LAETITIA AVGN

This article continues with selected coins from my collection, which I have been working on for over 20 years. It has been a labor of love - lots of time and effort. Although I limit it to sestertii, I do have a few minor bronzes. And I have always like dupondii - I like the way the celators are able to show the details of the hair under the crown - Flavian dupondii are particularly beautiful as are the dupondii of others - Hadrian, Trajan, Severus Alexander - heck they are all nice!

The opportunity to buy this coin came along about a decade or so so ago and I jumped on it - the portrait is incredible and the flat strike on the reverse just doesn't take anything way from the beauty of the brown patina.

I am again pressed for time but would love to hear from those who know more about the coins of Gordian III - especially what the "N" is in the inscription. Tomorrow I will put up a very unusual unlisted sestertius of my second favorite emperor - Marcus Aurelius.

 

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Usually AVG N means Augustus noster.

 

Indeed, Laetitia Augusti Nostri, the Joy of Our Emperor.

Not only great condition, but a rare dupondius too: only five specimens recorded by Rodger Bland in the major public collections.

 

That is a gorgeous coin, @Blake Davis!

 

Nice portrait and I love the sharp legends.

 

It came from a seller from whom I have bought coins from for many years and was partly a gift I think.

 

Great pick up.

 

Superb coin @Blake Davis

 

Gorgeous Dupondius, @Blake Davis ! Fantastic.

 

Thank you. I had wanted to add more about the dupondius, since by the time of Gordian III it was a coin that had seemingly lost its purpose - most are about the same size and weight as an As, which also had become a bit useless. ACSEARCH lists about 25 examples of Gordian III dupondii, which is actually less than Septimius Severus, an emperor associated with rare dupondii. But then again Septimius had a reign of close to 20 years, Gordian III much less so. And again rarity in this context is almost an odd concept - a sestertius of Septimius Severus that I deemed "common" in another comment on this site had all of 70 examples in major auctions on ACSEARCH. A better way to put it might be "not difficult to buy an example."

The same could also be said of listed v. unlisted. In a day or so I will put up a sestertius of Hadrian with an "unlisted" reverse - a figure of Pietas facing, which is not mentioned in RIC. I had congratulated myself on having this ""rare" and perhaps unique example. Yet, in the last few weeks three of the same type have been offered for sale in major auctions (perhaps one was on ebay) - Leu has a very nice one. So, rarity is a very fluid concept.

 

Coins like that make coin collecting a lot of fun. Congratulations!

 

Exceptionnal dupondius for that reign

Q

 

Is the information recorded by Rodger Bland available on the internet? I use ACSEARCH to judge rarity (I do not have access to Banti, which also used by some but a bit out of date)

 

Great coin! I had no idea it was so rare, either.

You are totally spot on about the appeal of it, IMO. One could wish for a reverse that wasn't as flat, but the patina and portrait are great.

I can't really tell from the photos, but do you think this coin has been smoothed at all? I wouldn't really consider that a big problem on an ancient bronze, and it certainly didn't hurt the look of it, if it was done.

 

I think Roger Bland (not Rodger as I wrote above) sent me a copy of his list about 20 years ago. It would be hard to locate, if I still have it. However I copied most of the information into my copy of RIC IV.3, which I now regularly consult instead of the original list.

 

Overall, are dupondii of Septimius rare or is it just that most of his dupondii are of a small number of common types? I have three of which two are the same. I never could decide which one to get rid of so kept them both.

 

That OP is indeed lovely.

I lucked into a Septimius Severus dupondius a while back on eBay, before I realized how rare they are. Even the blind squirrel finds a nut sometimes.

Unless I am mistaken, this is the Roma seated type, which Doug has two of, shown above. Is Doug's second example an obverse die match to mine? It would be an honor! That lettering behind the radiant crown looks like a match to me. Maybe the reverse too, but mine is both worn and poorly-photographed (sorry), so I am not sure:



Septimius Severus Æ Dupondius
(c. 195 A.D.)
Rome Mint
L SEPT SEV PERT [AVG IMP V], radiate head right / [ROMAE AETERN]AE C, Roma seated left on shield, holding Victory in right hand, spear in left hand.
RIC 697; BMC/RE 139.
(8.97 grams / 24 mm)

 

That was my question. It seems to me what is rare is a dupondius of Septimius that is not the types shown above. Many asses of the reign seem to be linked to a specific event (e.g. New Year's) but this dupondius seems to have been issued in greater numbers or chance survival has given us more of them.

 

Known to me by 1972: 7 dupondii of this type, from one obv. and two rev. dies.

Doug's two specimens show that one obv. die and both of the reverses. Mike's is from the same obv. die, as he notes, and probably one of the same rev. dies, though I can't tell which one without having a plaster cast for close comparison of the details. The low number of specimens and dies known shows that this is not a common coin!

Number of dupondius and As obv. dies known to me by 1972 for Septimius between 193 and early 198:

IMP: 6 dup., 8 As
IMP II: no dup., 13 As
IMP III: 2 dup., no As
IMP IIII: 4 dup., 29 As
IMP V: 3 dup., no As
IMP VI: not certainly attested in any denomination
IMP VII: 1 dup., 21 As
IMP VIII: 2 dup., 5 As
IMP VIIII: no dup., no As
IMP X: no dup., 5 As.

Total: 18 dup. obv. dies, 71 As obv. dies. Note however that the total is 18 obv. dies in each denomination if we subtract the three New Year's issues of asses, which consumed 13 obv. dies in Dec.-Jan. 194, 29 in Dec.-Jan. 195, and 21 in Dec.-Jan. 196. The only As obv. dies that were apparently not produced for the three New Year's issues: IMP 8 dies, IMP VIII 5 dies, IMP X 5 dies.