Billon Tetradrachm of Emperor Macrinus

Nice!

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Mike, what a wonderful coin to have in your collection ! Not only are father & son together but the coin is blessed with a lovely patina . Your coin fits the description of Group 3: AE 19 (as) - Rev. Bust of Diadumenian as described by McAlee in his iconic book. I do not see the bust of Diadumenian on your coin as draped, only cuirassed, whereas the father is draped & cuirassed. The heavy wear on your coin makes this difficult to discern. If my observation is correct your coin would list as #739 in McAlee's book. The coin he illustrates is in much better condition than your coin & weighs 4.0 gm, & is listed as Rare. Hopefully other CT members will chime in & offer an opinion on your coin .

 

Al, thank you so much for taking the time to straighten out my attribution - I really appreciate it. I don't have McAlee's book and therefore rely on scrounging around Internet auctions, etc. And a lot of times I am guessing...

I will update my flip insert accordingly! Again, many thanks.

 

Nice acquisition @Al Kowsky


Macrinus, Tetradrachm - Antioch mint, Ca AD 217-218
AYG K M OP SE MAKRINOS SEB, Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Macrinus right
DHMARX EXYPATO, Eagle facing, holding wreath in beak, standing on thigh. D E in upper field
12.76 gr
Ref : Sear #2948, Prieur # 246_055



Macrinus, Bronze - Nicopolis mint
AVT KM .... H MAKRINOC, Laureate and cuirassed bust of Macrinus right
V M AGRIPPA NIKOPOLITWNPROC IC TR, Tyche standing left, holding cornucopia and rudder
14.26 gr
Ref : ANMG #1710

Q

 

Q, You've got a couple of Macrinus jewels ! The Antioch Tet would be nearly impossible to duplicate & appears to be struck in exceptional metal for a War Issue. The portrait on the Nicopolis bronze is breathtaking , & could stand up to the finest examples from the Rome Mint . The detail on the back shoulder view enhances the composition & gives Macrinus a royal appearance. The reverse composition is beautifully done also. This coin is a one in a million find. Anyone who thinks all provincial coinage is inferior to the product from the Rome Mint needs to take a close look at these two coins .

 

@Al Kowsky , just got this ine in the mail

 

IMHO, the Provincials of Macrinus include a far greater than average number of exceptional portraits from several mints considering how short a period he was emperor. There are short bears, long beards, ordinary plain faces and those showing emotion. I can not explain it but I can enjoy.

 

Svarog, You made a nice score at the Stacks auction & the price of $336 looks like a bargain too ! The coins from the Carrhae Mint are interesting & puzzling. It appears they only struck Tets for Caracalla & Macrinus, & they were in two distinct styles. One style depicts the emperor with a laurel wreath, & those coins have a bull head mint mark, the other style depicts the emperor with a radiate crown, & those coins have a crescent moon mint mark. Both styles were struck for both emperors. Another puzzling feature on your coin type are the 2 pellets under the bust & the 3 pellets on the reverse in exergue . I've never seen a plausible explanation for these pellets. The coin pictured below is a Tet of Caracalla from Carrhae showing the other style minted there.

 

I also have (what I believe to be ) a provincial of Macrinus:

 

Mac was thicc!

 

I recently got another Macrinus - an "SC" AE from Antioch. Now I have two! This features what I believe is the longer beard.

I had some trouble attributing it because I was unable to get an exact match on the obverse legend. Or did I? A bit confused, which is often the case with me and Roman Provincials



Macrinus Æ 18
(217-218 A.D.)
Syria, Seleucis & Pieria
Antiochia ad Orontem
AVT K M O CE MAKΡINOCC, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right / SC in wreath fastened with star, Δ above, Є below.
McAlee 723c. BMC386 (var.)
(7.52 grams / 18 mm)

Attribution Note:
The short obverse legend shows up on several examples online, but these were the lighter-weight examples (around 5 grams). I was unable to get an exact match with a full, clear attribution for a large one. Maybe they are the same? (Jan. 2020).

 

M.M., Your coin by visual comparison sure looks like McAlee 723c, however, the coin he illustrates weighs only 3.6 gm . He does illustrate an Aes coin (722a) 22 mm with a weight of 6.47 gm, listed as Ex. Rare. All the 723 coins a-d are listed as V. Rare. He does add an interesting footnote to 722a: "This unique coin appears to be a transitional type, similar in size & weight to the asses of Caracalla. Apparently there was a small initial issue of bronze coins on the weight standard of Caracalla (weighing c. 7 g) prior to the introduction of coinage to the reduced standard (c. 4 g)." I don't know if McAlee's speculation with this footnote holds water since all these coins are so rare . Was the weight standard on these small bronze coins tightly held, with so few examples to draw from it's hard to conclude.

 

a.c. hunter, I wish there was more detail on your images to draw a conclusion with . Maybe some of the CT provincial coin experts can pin it down.

 

Perhaps. I was thinking the reverse featured Apollo, but it may be priapus.

 

Once again Al, you've made my day! Thank you so much for digging up all this information on my Macrinus. Rare. Huh! I feel like my tiny Antioch collection just got 372% more interesting.

I will incorporate this information into a new and improved attribution for this.

Thanks again!