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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Julius Germanicus, post: 2722107, member: 80783&quot;]I finally got to upgrade my shabby Macrinus AE As to a proper Sestertius.</p><p><br /></p><p>Macrinus was the first Emperor not of Senatorial rank, but a lawyer, legal advisor to Plautianus, and eventually pretorian prefect. Being a lawyer myself, I feel quite sympathetic for him.</p><p><br /></p><p>I am not going to bore you with the story of his rise and fall and just leave it with one sentence (courtesy of RIC) which sums it up: &quot;Although the reign of Macrinus contributed little to the glory of Imperial Rome, in contrast with the venomous tyranny of Caracalla and the degrading buffoonery of Elagabalus, it must rank as an interlude of sane, if not brilliant statesmanship.&quot;</p><p><br /></p><p>I have tried to do a little write up concentrating on the history of the history of the dies that were used to make my coin, nevertheless heavily relying on Curtis Clays brilliant analysis in Numismatische Zeitschrift, 93 (1979, p.21-40) and that of Dieter Salzmann in Jahrbuch des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts, 98 (1983, p.351-381)</p><p><br /></p><p>After Macrinus was proclaimed emperor in Mesopotamia on April 11, 217, following the assassination of Caracalla three days earlier, the news of his accession must have reached Rome in the first half of May, 217.</p><p>After public vows were performed for Macrinus and his son Diadumenianus, who had been proclaimed Caesar by the Senate, the Roman mint immediately began the production of a first emission in all three metals.</p><p><br /></p><p>In the first four months of his reign, Macrinus was shown with younger features and a short, cropped beard (Type 1 according to Salzmann).</p><p><br /></p><p>While the obverse legend IMP C M OPEL SEV MACRINVS was not altered during all of his reign, the different emissions are distinguished by the evolvement of the reverse types and legends, which during the first emission conclude with P M TR P on the dated issues (showing the types of Felicitas, Fides, Jupiter, Salus and Securitas).</p><p><br /></p><p>While he production of the regular silver denominations (Denarii and Antoniniani) was carried on in the same scale of his predecessor, the production of in gold and bronze was very limited.</p><p><br /></p><p>In fact, it was so limited that only one single obverse die was used for the production of Sestertii at this stage (Die 1 in the appendix of Curtis Clay´s work, illustrated on plate 4, Nr.1). Curtis Clay found no less than nine reverse types combined with this die during it´s service life, but none of the first emission showing Felicitas.</p><p><br /></p><p>Around late July 217, the first emission was succeeded by a second emission in all three metals, in which the legend of the dated issues was changed to PONTIF MAX TR PPP.</p><p><br /></p><p>The production of Sestertii was still limited to the same single obverse die (Clay Nr.1). The Felicitas Sestertius of this type is listed as RIC 121 (Tinchant Collection).</p><p><br /></p><p>Around 1 September 217, the short cropped beard is succeeded by a medium beard on the gold, silver and bronze coinage (Salzmann type 2).</p><p><br /></p><p>To accomplish this feat on the bronze coinage, a second Sestertius obverse die was produced, likewise showing a cuirassed bust left seen from the front, but featuring a medium beard (Die 2 according to Curtis Clay). This ist the very die used for my coin (the Vienna specimen illustrated on Plate 5, Nr.24 in Clay´s article).</p><p><br /></p><p>For the Felicitas type, it was combined with two reverse dies showing the goddess and the legend PONTIF MAX TR PPP (RIC 119, Cohen 80, BRMCRE 113, Sear 7391)</p><p><br /></p><p>Next, around 1 October 217, on the basis of his new Consular ornaments, COS was added to Macrinus´ numismatic titulature, which now read PONTIF MAX TR P COS PP. Therefore,</p><p><br /></p><p>Both obverse dies were now combined (amongst other types) with new new Felicitas reverse dies with the legend PONTIF MAX TR P COS PP.</p><p><br /></p><p>Only one coin featuring a combination oft the short bearded Sestertius obverse die (Sear 1) with this Felicitas reverse has ever been heard of (RIC 140, Luneau Catalogue 1923, 1957. This is no surprise because the portrait on that die was soon re-engraved to feature a medium-sized beard resembling the one on the second (my) die. This second state of the original obverse die is documented in Clay´s plate 4, Nr.5.</p><p><br /></p><p>The combination oft the medium-bearded Sestertius obverse die (Clay Nr.2) with the same Felicitas reverse is known as RIC 139, Cohen 66, Sear 7386.</p><p><br /></p><p>This combination was used to strike my coin. There is a double die matching Sestertius on the market (Roma 04.05.2007 = Roma 02.10.2011= Künker 08.10.2012 = Roma 30.04.2016, <a href="https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=1099613" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=1099613" rel="nofollow">https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=1099613</a> , but I have no suspicion of either being a cast. Even though the other example is rated EF in the Roma 2011 catalogue, I find it inferior to mine, which was graded choice VF with Strike 5/5 and Surface 5/5 by NGC (I did free it from the plastic box at once <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /> ).</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>IMP CAES M OPEL SEV MACRINVS AVG</p><p>Laureate and cuirassed bust right, featuring a medium beard, from the front</p><p>PONTIF MAX TR P COS PP S C</p><p>Felicitas standing facing, head left, long caduceus in right hand, cornucopia in left hand, drapery over left arm</p><p>Sestertius, Rome, 1.Oct.-31.Dec.217</p><p>20,5 gr, 31 mm</p><p>RIC IV 139, Cohen 66, Sear 7386, Clay Nr.2</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]616892[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]616893[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>The Sestertius output was then (October 217 onwards) increased by creating eight more obverse dies, all featuring longer beards (Salzmann type 3), some showing Macrinus cuirassed bust from the front (Clay Nr. 4, 7 and 11), while others differed in showing his bust not only cuirassed, but also draped (Clay Nr. 3, 5, 6, 9, 10). The medium-bearded die Nr.2 was not recut.</p><p><br /></p><p>When Macrinus took up his first real consulship on 1 January 218, yet another change in the numismatic titulature occured, as the Roman mint, without awaiting his instructions, changed the reverse legend to COS II, which resulted in PONTIF MAX TR P II COS II on the corresponding Sestertius types, the Felicitas type being known as RIC 155, Cohen 95.</p><p><br /></p><p>This was reverted to PONTIF MAX TR P II COS PP around 1 Feb 218, the Felicitas type of this is listed as RIC 149, Cohen 84.</p><p><br /></p><p>There is also an undated Felicitas type Sestertius with the legend FELICITAS TEMPORUM, minted during Macrinus’ second Emission, RIC 172, Cohen 16, BMCRE p. 524, Sear 7376.</p><p><br /></p><p>Macrinus’ second Emission ended in early March 218 and with it not only the use of my coin´s classy obverse die and with it the medium length beard alltogether, but also the use oft Felicitas on Macrinus coinage.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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