Not very pretty, but it fulfills it’s purpose: Sestertius, RIC, Vol. I, Tiberius, No. 68, AD 36-37 (35mm, 22.6gm) Cataloged in Wildwinds under Augustus - Sear 1784 Obverse depiction: Augustus, radiate, togate, holding laurel branch in r. hand and long sceptre in l., seated on throne, placed on a car, drawn l. by four elephants, each bearing a mahout on its neck. The side of the car is ornamented with shields (?) Obverse Inscription across top in three lines DIVO AVGVSTO SPQR Reverse depiction: Large, centered S C Reverse Inscription clockwise from top: TI CAESAR DIVI AVG F AVGVST PM TR POT XXXIIX
That's a fine coin @jamesicus and a rare and very interesting type. Congrats on finding it and making the purchase!
Thank you @ancient coin hunter. I have been seeking a coin of this type and with this XXXIIX TR POT date for some time because of its historical association and rarity. I kinda like my coins to show wear and use - maybe not quite as much as this one, but it will do!
Wow, that is a tough coin to find! Congrats, James!! I'm sure Tiberius was anticipating his own deification at this point. He would be disappointed though...
Excellent coin, @jamesicus ! The elephants and the cart are fascinating visually and from an historical perspective. We measure our automobiles by horsepower but 4 elephants would have had awesome pulling power! The size—35mm—is huge compared to 95% of the coins in my collection. Thanks for posting, Sir!
Thank you Ray - good point relating to the pulling power of four elephants. Somewhat of an overkill! But it was an ostentatious statement - elephants were the animals associated with the Emperor and his family, and of course Augustus was number one!
Lovely coin! I actually came into possession of one of the same type via ebay, which was sold by CNG two separate times in the past few years It is indeed impressively large and hefty, even for a sestertius!
Thank you for posting that photo of a very impressive example, @Finn235 - and congratulations on a great find!
