A little while ago @Parthicus Maximus sent me a PM to alert me to a rare Domitian that popped up on MA-Shops. When I saw it I did not hesitate I bought it immediately. It is rare for 2 reasons. First it has a rare obverse legend stating that Domitian is the son of the deified Vespasian. Second it has a rare left facing portrait of Domitian. Though left facing portraits show up on bronzes with some regularity, a left facing portrait on a denarius for Domitian is a rare sight indeed. There are a few of these on Forum. As far as I know they are all from the same dies. I am thrilled to have landed this one. I want to publicly thanks @Parthicus Maximus for reaching out to me to alert me to the listing of this coin. It is deeds like this that make this place a wonderful community. Domitian AR Denarius (81 CE) (Group 4) Obv: Laureate head left; IMP CAES DIVI VESP F DOMITIAN AVG PM Rev: Tripod with fillets, Dolphin above; TR P COS VII DES VIII PP RIC 75 (R2) Purchased from Monetarium on MA-Shops December 6th 2019
I'm glad that I could help you. It is good to see how happy you are with this coin. In my opinion, the Titus-like portrait is, apart from the rarity of this coin, a plus.
Fantastic addition! Same dies as mine too. Domitian AR Denarius, 3.32g Rome Mint, 81 AD Obv: IMP CAES DIVI VESP F DOMITIAN AVG P M; Head of Domitian, laureate, bearded, l. Rev: TR P COS VII DES VIII P P; Tripod with fillets; above, dolphin RIC 75 (R2). BMC 22 note. RSC 568d corr. BNC 20. Acquired privately from Berk, 6 June 2013. Ex Berk 177, 15 November 2011, lot 275 (unsold). Ex Harry N. Sneh Collection Ian Carradice speculates that this die, because it is so close in style to the left facing portraits of Titus, indeed may have originally been a Titus obverse recut for Domitian. All the left facing portraits from the issue are from this same die. Interestingly, the coin is from the Fourth issue of 81 and presumably was not struck straight away within the first days of the new reign but more likely later in the year.