There are two AES that I need to complete my collection of 12 Caesars sestertii: Tiberius and Titus. While sestertii of Tiberius are very rare, Titus' sestertii are common in many types over a wide range. Despite being common, it has been difficult to find a Titus sestertii appropriate for my collection in the last three years or so. Recently, however, I found an auction coin that looked interesting and was wondering if I should consider it. I consulted with my dealer about this coin and his conclusion was the same as mine, but rather than just post the coin and my conclusion, I thought it would be interesting and enjoyable to share the experience with this group and read others' evaluations and opinions of the coin. Let me start with the criteria by which I judge a coin when considering it for my collection: (1) obverse portrait must be at least good style or better; (2) condition must be at least good VF, but preferably EF, unless the coin is an extremely rare type; (3) coin cannot be tooled or re-engraved in any way, and smoothing of fields should be minimal; (4) if possible, the reverse type should be interesting and less common (although this fourth criteria is not critical). With that in mind, please feel free to share your opinions and comments on the following coin: I will post my evaluation after a sufficient time for others to post their comments, and then I will post my dealer's evaluation/conclusion.
I think this coin meets (and maybe exceeds) your requirements. The only "problem" I see is a slight weakness in the reverse legend. The detail is very nice otherwise. I certainly would welcome it into my collection.
Doesn't it look as if details (on highest points of obv. at least) have been slightly "reinforced" ? Wreath and hair, around the ear mainly... For comparison, same obv. die (I think ?)...
Even to my relatively untrained eye, the sharpness of the legends on both the obverse and reverse looked a little bit enhanced. For example, at around 9 o'clock on the obverse, the top part of "DIVIVE" looks as if it's been etched a little to make it stand out more clearly. Also, the sharpness in the laurel wreath on Titus' head looks too good for the amount of wear. So after a bit of study, I had partially convinced myself that there was more than just smoothing going on here. I further compared it to my Domitian sestertius -- classified as a "good EF" -- and noted that the Domitian's legends didn't appear as sharp: My conclusion had to be that the Titus is tooled/re-engraved, and my dealer confirmed my analysis, describing the coin as "...extensive cleaning AND tooling on the surface..." So I won't be bidding on this coin.
