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<p>[QUOTE="cmezner, post: 3550967, member: 87809"]Browsing through CNG's current auction I came across of coins that are described as Potin tetradrachms - well, this was again something did not know anything about. Googled it and found this interesting description</p><p>"Roman Egypt is a numismatically complex subject whose structure was inherited from Ptolemaic Egypt. Under the Ptolemies, Egypt had a coinage system deliberately structured so as not to be freely convertible to Greek or Roman monetary standards. Egypt had its own monetary system and its government profited from all currency conversions.</p><p><br /></p><p>Without going into the fascinating complexities of Ptolemaic and Roman Egyptian bronze issues, it can be observed that Ptolemaic silver tetradrachm issues were eventually continued under the Roman Empire as debased silver or billon (less than 25% silver) tetradrachms. Their nominal silver content equated to that of a Roman denarius, which defined the exchange rate.</p><p><br /></p><p>When the tribulations of the late third century impacted this coinage, billon was replaced by potin, an alloy dominated by copper and lead with a nominal but small silver content.</p><p><br /></p><p>Potin tetradrachm issues from Alexandria, beginning with the reign of Claudius II (268-270) and extending until the end of Provincial issues in 305, were prolific and despite the fact that they lasted only 37 years, form a very fascinating subset of numismatic history." at </p><p><a href="http://classicalcoins.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-billon-and-potin-tetradrachms-of.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://classicalcoins.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-billon-and-potin-tetradrachms-of.html" rel="nofollow">http://classicalcoins.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-billon-and-potin-tetradrachms-of.html</a></p><p><br /></p><p>and looking at <a href="http://www.classicalcoins.com/page124.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.classicalcoins.com/page124.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.classicalcoins.com/page124.html</a> I realized that one of my Probus tetradrachms could well be a Potin tetradrachm.</p><p><br /></p><p>Any thoughts?</p><p><br /></p><p>This is the Probus:</p><p><br /></p><p>18 x 19 mm, 7.77 g, </p><p>Egypt, Alexandria, 280 - 281 AD</p><p>Ref.: Dattari 5554, SNG Copenhagen Alexandria-Cyrenaica (1974) Nr. 940, Milne 4628 - 4632, Emmett 3982; </p><p>Ob.: <i>A K M AYP ΠΡOBOΣ ΣEB</i> laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Probus to r.</p><p>Rev.: Eagle standing left, head right, holding wreath in beak; <i>L-ζ</i> (date year 6 = 280/281) across field</p><p style="text-align: center">[ATTACH=full]943647[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]943649[/ATTACH]</p><p>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="cmezner, post: 3550967, member: 87809"]Browsing through CNG's current auction I came across of coins that are described as Potin tetradrachms - well, this was again something did not know anything about. Googled it and found this interesting description "Roman Egypt is a numismatically complex subject whose structure was inherited from Ptolemaic Egypt. Under the Ptolemies, Egypt had a coinage system deliberately structured so as not to be freely convertible to Greek or Roman monetary standards. Egypt had its own monetary system and its government profited from all currency conversions. Without going into the fascinating complexities of Ptolemaic and Roman Egyptian bronze issues, it can be observed that Ptolemaic silver tetradrachm issues were eventually continued under the Roman Empire as debased silver or billon (less than 25% silver) tetradrachms. Their nominal silver content equated to that of a Roman denarius, which defined the exchange rate. When the tribulations of the late third century impacted this coinage, billon was replaced by potin, an alloy dominated by copper and lead with a nominal but small silver content. Potin tetradrachm issues from Alexandria, beginning with the reign of Claudius II (268-270) and extending until the end of Provincial issues in 305, were prolific and despite the fact that they lasted only 37 years, form a very fascinating subset of numismatic history." at [url]http://classicalcoins.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-billon-and-potin-tetradrachms-of.html[/url] and looking at [url]http://www.classicalcoins.com/page124.html[/url] I realized that one of my Probus tetradrachms could well be a Potin tetradrachm. Any thoughts? This is the Probus: 18 x 19 mm, 7.77 g, Egypt, Alexandria, 280 - 281 AD Ref.: Dattari 5554, SNG Copenhagen Alexandria-Cyrenaica (1974) Nr. 940, Milne 4628 - 4632, Emmett 3982; Ob.: [I]A K M AYP ΠΡOBOΣ ΣEB[/I] laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Probus to r. Rev.: Eagle standing left, head right, holding wreath in beak; [I]L-ζ[/I] (date year 6 = 280/281) across field [CENTER][ATTACH=full]943647[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]943649[/ATTACH][/CENTER][/QUOTE]
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