All I got was CHUMP CHANGE!!!

I won at an auction last week, and finally received my Roman Republic
Aes Grave Sextans.

I was talking with @ancientcoinguru the other day, explaining how I was happy to win this auction... Then it hit me: the Sextans were the "pocket change" during the time of the early Roman Republic! This Aes Grave Sextans ONLY weighs 55g... A Sextans is 2 Unciae or a SIXTH of an As... When an As weighs a Roman Libral Pound or 341-270g depending on the issuance, then my Sextans at 55g is only CHUMP CHANGE to those huge-Asses!

Wow, and we all thought those AE Ptolemaic coins were hefty!


Roman Republic
Æ Aes Grave Sextans
Anonymous Issue
Circa 270 BCE
37mm, 55.28 g, 12h. ....12.3mm THICK!
Libral standard. Uncertain mint.
Obv: Head of Dioscurus right; two pellets (mark of value) behind
Rev: Head of Dioscurus left; two pellets (mark of value) behind.
Crawford 18/5; ICC 37; HN Italy 283.
Comments: attractive dark green patina.
Ex: CNG; Auktionshaus Meister & Sonntag 2 (20 September 2004), lot 1031.



Comparative picture of an Aes Grave As in a hand (Takes 6 of my Sextans to an As)


(I understand in Latin: Aes Grave is pronounced 'Ice Graway').

Please feel free to post any Roman Republic cool cast coins, or any OTHER cool cast coins! (Yeah, even some monster Ptolemies would be fun!)

 

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This coin comes a couple thousand years before the invention of the concept that required making coins of so little value that they could buy nothing worth having. In 1857 the US decided that the time of need for the half cent had passed but 159 years later we cling to the need for a one cent coin. I suspect the sextans was worth more in 270 BC than we realize. Are there any records of prices from this period?

 

Excellent point Doug. I cannot find my article at the moment, but I believe it took an As to purchase an Ox at this time. The article further went on to compare grain prices, etc. My OP was to illustrate the size of the coinage, and that larger denominations were huge in-hand. This was a comparative to our modern concept of coinage.

 

Here is my AE aes grave sextans, almost identical in size (52.32gm - 35 mm) but not quite as nice as @Alegandron's example. Mine has a brown black patina.

 

I still love that Sextan, ACG!

 

Nice cast coin! It is one of the earlier types which is extra neat. Mine has a big piece missing where it was broken after casting.

The early Romans were primarily subsistence farmers. They did not have significant wealth in the form of gold or silver and made transactions by barter. Early fines were recorded in cows and sheep. In the fifth century, fines were converted to bronze asses.
1 Cow = 100 Asses
1 Sheep = 10 Asses
1 As = 1 Roman pound of bronze, or
1 As = 330 grams = 11.6 ounces

 

Wouldn't want a pocket full of those. Neat coin. Actually would put it on a want list, just near the bottom.

 

I thought I would mention that the weight range of this issue is 79-43.75 gems, so both @Alegandron and my examples are on the light side!

@rrdenarius, I'd love to see your broken aes grave sextans, please post! I think your photo might give a better impression of exactly how thick these coins were.

 

What a great coin! The idea of chump change is funny, but maybe not too far off the mark. I know it's much heavier, but it's close to the diameter of a modern half-dollar, which is basically chump change today.

 

I do have another sextans from this time period, which I bought last month at the FUN show. This one is a bit heavier than the examples already shown, but falls within the 77.46-42 gm weight range for this issue.


280-278 BC
AE aes grave sextans 68.3 gm - 38 mm
Obv: Scallop shell with 2 pellets below
Rev: Cadeceus, 2 pellets in field
Ref: ICC 30, T&V 5, Cr. 14/5, HN Italy 272, SR551

 

Nice Al. Love the look and I can only imagine the feel. Congrats.

 

Wonderful coin Al !! Congrats all who posted !!

Jeez, my 'want list' never gets any shorter no matter how many 'new' coins i acquire LOL

 

Wow. Seeing them in hand really adds some perspective.

 

Ok now I am going to need a BIIIGGG RR bronze coin. Thanks guys.

 

Ya, I'm in the same boat.

 

Yea I am just about over a coin type and then someone posts something like this. Thanks @Alegandron .

 

That is so true. The more you know, the more is interesting. You will never come to the end of it. That is good. You can collect for 40 to 50 or more years and not get bored, although you may change emphases.

 

LOL!!! YOU do that to ME!!! And I end up BUYING them!
C'mon, how many people say 'DONE...ship it!'

 

I tend to do it alot. Usually I am more of a " Yea! Yea! Yea! ship it, ship it, ship it!

 

BRO!