A denarius of Aurelian, with Victory on the reverse. The only emperor from the 3rd century who I'd say had the sole right to depict Victory!! I actually stumbled upon this coin on ebay looking for a silvered antoninianus, the seller described the coin as a denarius, which I though was a mistake. However I searched up more upon noticing the laureate rather than the radiate crown, and sure enough it is a denarius, also the last ever denomination of denarius! although not uncommon, I can't complain for $8. Denarius, which was once a respected high quality silver coin, now all but worthless
They were silvered and looked quite pleasing when struck. I used to own this quite nice example which has the VSV mark in exe. which illustrates the silvering Aurelian, denarius Obv:– IMP C AVRELIANVS AVG, Laureate, cuirassed bust right Rev:– VICTORIA AVG, Victory walking left, holding wreath and palm. Minted in Rome, (B _ //VSV). Allocated by Estiot to Emission 10 dating to end A.D. 274. Reference:– Paris-185, Gobl-135f2 (9 spec.), RIC-71, C-250 (Elberling, 6 Fr.).
Historically important coin, @JayAg47! I'm glad you were able to add one to your collection. Aurelian revived the denomination as part of his monetary reform of AD 274, and it was -- like the new antoninianus (sometimes called the "Aurelianus") -- a silvered but heavily debased coin. Denarii for Aurelian were struck in Rome, Mediolanum, Serdica, Siscia, and Cyzicus and come in a variety of reverse types, although the VICTORIA AVG is by far the most common of these. In contrast, those for Severina were struck in Rome only and only with the VENVS FELIX reverse type. There are only five varieties of this type, distinguished only by the markings in the exergue. Here are one of each, struck during the same issue by the same officina in the Rome mint (numbered sequentially in MER/RIC and in the La Venera and CNB catalogs). Aurelian, AD 270-275. Roman billon denarius, 1.66 g, 15.7 mm, 11 h. Rome mint, officina 5, issue 11, early – September AD 275. Obv: IMP AVRELIANVS AVG, radiate and cuirassed bust, right. Rev: VICTORIA AVG, Victory walking left, holding wreath and palm; at feet to left, a bound and seated captive; –/–//∈. Refs: RIC 73 var.; MER/RIC temp 1680; Cohen 255 var.; RCV 11643; CBN 283-84; La Venera 1508-9. Severina, AD 270-275. Roman billon denarius, 2.52 g, 18.8 mm, 6 h. Rome mint, officina 5, issue 11, early – September AD 275. Obv: SEVERINA AVG, diademed and draped bust, right. Rev: VENVS FELIX, Venus standing left, holding unidentified object (perfume box, apple?) and long scepter; –/–//∈. Refs: RIC 6; MER/RIC 1861; Cohen 14; RCV 11710; CBN 285-86; La Venera 1510-11.
I have one as well that I picked up from a Frank Robinson auction a couple auctions back. I can post pictures when I get home.
The Dollar lost about 97% of its value over the last 100 years, but its still worth having Despite the great debasement, it was apparent still feasible to introduce a denomination below the Antoniniani in AD 274. Today we would not consider introducing a 1/2-cent coin.
Cool find. I still need one to go with a denarius of his wife Severina, AE Denarius - Rome mint, 5 th officina, AD 274-275. SEVERINA AVG, draped and diademed bust right. VENVS FELIX, Venus standing left, holding seated figure and sceptre. Є at exergue. 2.46 gr, 19-20 mm RIC V 1 # 6, RCV # 11710, C # 14 Ex Auctiones.ch Q
Nice. I had heard somewhere that Aurelian had issued denarii but had never really thought about it much. I should get one for my collection.
Aurelians attempt to restore Roman coinage is interesting. It didn't go too well, but he is still one of the few emperors of the era that you can collect a series of types from. Nice find for 8$! Antoninanus Denarius As
I think at least artistically Aurelian's reform of the coin system was a step backwards. I like his early naturalistic coins like this one: But I'm not too keen on the common types of his post-reform coins, with their generic portraits:
As for the price, 8 dollars is of course an unbeatable and it was probably great fun to study and research the piece. However, budget permitting, I would personally advise to go a little bit higher for better quality. I paid 27 euros (plus costs) for this coin in a Spanish auction:
This is my favorite Aurelian from my collection. The coin celebrates his role in the defeat of the Goths at the battle of Naissus in AD 269. While this reverse is quite common for Claudius Gothicus, it is extremely rare for Aurelian (the coin cost 110 euro in a German auction):
Ok, as promised, here is my Aurelian denarius. I'm sure you were all waiting with baited breath lol. Aurelian AE Denarius Rome mint 273-274 AD Obverse: IMP AVRELIANVS AVG, laureate cuirassed bust right Reverse: VICTORIA AVG, Victory walking left, holding wreath and palm, captive at foot left Mintmark A ex: Frank Robinson, previously from Triskeles Auctions Dec 2019
I just looked at it again and could've sworn it was darker. I think it was the room lighting I took it in. I busted out my light box and tried again. Here are the raw pictures. I have so much to learn when it comes to coin pictures.
So do I. And when I started photographing coins again last year, my amateur photo skills were rusty. Boredom and quaranteene helped, and also looking at photos here. One adjustment I made, was to use more light and longer shutter time, along with higher F nmvers (I’ve forgotten what that’s called in English). I used to try to get the coin to look exactly like it does live, but when I accepted that the photo would be better even if it meant that the coin would look brighter than in life, I think my pics improved.
