I bought this Antoninian of Otacillia Severa: MARCIA OTACIL SEVERA AVG // PIETAS AVG I bought it because I think it shows a particularly nice and expressive portrait of Philip Arabs' wife. I didn't pay much attention to the reverse initially. However, the reverse seems to be of a scarcer type. I could not find another exemplar in acsearch or wildwinds with Pietas holding a staff and a box in her left hand and a litte child standing in front of her. Does anybody have a reference for this coin?
You hit the jackpot!! That is very rare. It is not listed in RIC, Cohen or Sear. It is no. 536 in Temeryazev and Makarenko's The Coinage of Roman Empresses. They attribute it to the Antioch Mint. See CNG Auction 97, lot 709. It sold for $3750!
It's supposed to be RIC 122b - Otacilia Severa AR Antoninianus. 244 AD. MARCIA OTACIL SEVERA AVG, diademed, draped bust right / PIETAS AVG, Pietas, veiled, standing left, hand raised and holding box of perfume; a child on left. RSC 37. but if you look at the image there is no child on the coin. (wildwinds) Edit: @Roman Collector has beat me to it and with the right answer to boot!
The CNG coin has an obverse of OTACILIA, while the coin of Tejas is OTACIL. It is RIC IV 122b. Though RIC does not describe the sceptre, the plate coin for the type with altar left shows it. Maybe list it as RIC IV 122b var.
Nope. I was wrong in the details of the reverse. The one I posted has a different reverse type. Although there is a scepter on your coin, PIETAS holds an incense box in her left hand and has an empty right hand. As @Victor_Clark has noted, it is most similar to RIC 122b.
...that's why we call him "Roman Collector".....(but he's 1st to admit he made a mistake occasionally )
Wow, that is a bid of luck. I found it on Ebay. I have several Otacillia Ants and bought this one only for the particularly nice obverse (which is not double struck). Many thanks for the replies and the references.
Note that CNG's rare Antioch coin also adds an N at the end of the rev. legend. At Rome, without that N, it's a scarce early type, only nine specimens in the Dorchester hoard. The variant with scepter above the incense box is new to me, however.
I also have no doubts that the coin is genuine. Here is another recent purchase on Ebay. I like the portrait of Philippus, which I think looks a bit unusual. I think this is RIC 42: IMP M IVL PHILIPPVS AVG // PAX AETERNA
I also bought this Philippus II Antoninian. I think the variant with AVG instead of AVGG maybe a bit scarcer. Not sure about the RIC number: IMP M IVL PHILIPPVS AVG // AEQVITAS AVG
I would have doubts if it was a new seller or someone from Germany/Bulgaria*. That, combined with the fact that your coin appears to be unique would set off alarm bells for me. But if you are convinced of the seller's integrity, then it appears that you got very interesting variant. Congratulations on a nice find. *I don't mean to disparage German dealers. I am referring to a few eBay sellers who claim to be in Germany but sell fake coins that originate in Bulgaria.
Does anybody know the reference for this coin? Is it RIC 42 or 41? Is PAX AETERN (without final A) RIC 41 and PAX A E TERNA RIC 42? Many thanks
Since AETERNA not AETERN, RIC 42 not 41. You have the earlier and scarcer variant: 9 specimens in the Eauze hoard, compared to 35 specimens with AETERN.
Great, thanks a lot, so RIC 42 it is. Meanwhile I found a single exemplar on acsearch, which fetched an unexplicably high price, but perhaps there is something else special about that coin - maybe the extra large figure of PAX?: https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=814428
I identified this Ant as RIC 240. I wonder why they have used the reverse legend AVG instead of AVGG. Philipp II has never been a sole ruler. Was that perhaps a mint error?