Gordian III, Serapis, and Hercules

Another newp from my recent shopping spree.
I have been looking for a cool Hercules coin for awhile now and I have finally found one. I love everything about this coin. It's my first of Gordian III, it depicts Serapis who has some pretty neat history including the cult of Serapis, and lastly it features a magnificent pose of Hercules on the reverse.


GORDIAN III
AE Pentassarion
Moesia Inferior, Dionysopolis 238-244 AD
AVT K M ANTWNIOC ΓOΡΔIANOC AVG, confronted busts of Gordian and Serapis
ΔIONYCOΠOΛEITΩN, Herakles standing left, holding club, lion skin and apples of the Hesperides, Denomination E in field.
12.71 grams, 27mm
Moushmov 132, Varbanov 554-555

All Gordian and or Hercules welcome

 

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Nice Pentassarion @Evan8

My only GIII is an AE As with Hercules rev:


RI Gordian III 238-244 CE AE As 25mm Hercules S-C

 

Another nice one, picking up some great coins on these shopping spree's, pity you don't live over here, I would follow you around...

 

Nice! I love those confronted busts from Moesia Inferior.

 

The cities that used the dual portrait coins used them o denote a denomination so the unmarried Gordian used Serapis until he had a wife to place in that other spot. I don't have a Herakes but this Marcianopolis 5 assaria shows Magna Mater (Cybele) and her lions.

 

Great coins @Evan8 and @dougsmit !

 

@Evan8: Great coin! Been looking for one of those for some time. The only one I could afford (that spoke to me) was a way off center strike so I passed. @dougsmit: Best Cybele ever.

 

2 provincial Gordians:

 

I found this on ebay. $40.55 shipped. I dont think the seller knew what they were selling. They had some pretty cheap stuff, now all of the sudden they pulled all of their listings.

 

Wow I really like that Alexander the Great. I will add that to my want list.

 

[QUOTE="Evan8, post: 2905991, member: 74343"All Gordian and or Hercules welcome[/QUOTE]

OK, I can do that

 

OK, I can do that too

 

I've got the latter as well...

 

Cool! I just acquired a Gordian III and Serapis pentassarion from this city. I plan to crack it out of the slab when it arrives.

Gordian III, AD 238-244.
Roman provincial Æ Pentassarion.
Moesia Inferior, Dionysopolis, AD 238-241.
Obv: AVT K M (below)/ANTWNIOC ΓΟΡΔΙΑΝΟC ΑVΓ, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Gordian III, right, facing draped bust of Serapis, left, wearing modius.
Rev: ΔΙΟΝVCΟΠ-ΟΛΙΤΩΝ, Hygieia standing left, feeding serpent from a patera; E in lower left field.
Refs: Varbanov 559; AMNG I 395 var.; BMC 3.24, 4; Mionnet Suppl 2, 82; Moushmov 133; SNG Budapest 31; Jekov 49; SNRIS Dionysopolis 12.

I really like the snake on this one! It is artistically rendered, with an eye and gaping jaws!

 

Must say I do like those dual portraits...
Here's my 'Clarinet' playing Hercules....

 

This Gordian-Serapis is from Odessa. Nemesis with her wheel on the reverse. 25 mm, 10.63 gr.



And this is the other I have, from Marcianopolis. Asklepios with snake on the reverse, magistrate Tullius Menophilus. 27 mm, 13.99 gr.



Is this double portrait type always a pentassarion from the province of Thrace?

 

No. From some cities in Moesia Inferior and Thrace, they are 4 or 4-1/2 assaria.

 

Tomis used the 4 1/2 denomination either with the half sign < separate or ligate with the delta (4).

 

The Corpus Nummorum Thracorum online notes these issues from Mesembria are of the 4 unit denomination: