Pupienus and the year of the Six Emperors

Being rather poor at the moment, I made a humble first purchase for 2016:



Pupienus, AR Antoninianus. IMP CAES M PVPIEN MAXIMVS AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right / PATRES SENATVS, clasped hands.

I was trying to get myself off coins cold turkey, but unfortunately it wasn't to be, I just had to get my fix - and with only the rare emperors left to collect, it had to be Pupienus.

Out of curiosity, does anyone have the first two Gordians? I need those too!

 

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I would love to own any of the coins from the years of the 4/5/6 emperors.

 

Well I also have Balbinus.. One of my favourite coins actually:

Cilicia, Tarsus: Balbinus, 238 AD. AE 36 mm, 24.31 gm. Obv: Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right. Rev: Pupienus(?), radiate, on horseback right, casting javelin at lion leaping right beneath with head left; A in legend, M/K and G/B in fields. SNG Levante Supp. 280 (this coin)

But I lack the first two Gordians #firstworldproblems

 

Nice... I don't have one of him, or the elder Gordians. I always think of Pupienus and Balbinus as the Laurel and Hardy act of the 3rd century. If Laurel and Hardy wanted to kill each other, that is. Here's my Hardy...

 

If i recall correctly, Balbinus and Pupienus didn't get along, and the Praetorian guards were so sick of them squabbling that they decided to kill them.

 

My only coin from 238 is Gordian III as Caesar. It should be more rare than the others but because it shows the same person who later became most common, demand is low.

 

From what I've read, both Emperors were in the middle of an argument, accusing each other of stuff, when they saw a small group of armed Praetorians storming the palace. Instead of gathering their supporters and bodyguards together to easily repell this small group, they bitterly accused each other of trying to kill the other, and took no step to unite and repell the attack. The small group of armed Praetorians burst in and caught them in the middle of the stupid argument, and had both of them beheaded.

 

Yep I've heard Gordian III as Caesar is super-rare (actually I probably heard it from you - when I was starting out collecting, long before I participated in Coin Talk, I read all your online articles and learnt a lot!). I guess 'rare' implies 'valuable' only if there's high demand. So some rarities are surprisingly affordable, and the owner can have the thrill of owning something that is truly hard to find.

 

Rare and expensive are not the same thing or my token collection would be much more valuable

 

And this is my Pupienus. No, I don't have the elder Gordians. This is a sestertius, it weighs 23,1 gr. Reverse shows Concordia with a double horn of plenty, a bit cynical because those two emperors lacked both. RIC IV, 20. You will find a few pictures on Wildwinds.

 

Very nice. I love a nice big sestertius.

The elder Gordians are at the top of my shopping list. If only they weren't so damn expensive! And Pescennius Niger - his coins aren't just expensive, they're also incredibly ugly!

 

While bit harder to find than didius or niger, gordian I and II denarius usually appear in better conditions and quite often uncirculated. I wonder why that is, did they come out of a hoard find? Maybe even many hundreds years ago?

I have just one pupienus but it's one of my better portraits

 

Congrats Greg (and everyone else) for the terrific coins posted!!!

I have only seen photos of the first two Gordians and I'm not aware of anyone I know actually owning any...Hmmm, perhaps AJ or IOM????

My modest contribution of a Balbinus and Pupienus sesterius:

 

Since BN showed them, lets point out that the top coin is Gordian II and the second is Gordian I. The younger was bald in front of the wreath while the elder had hair.

 

Well, it seems only fair to post one of Gordian III, especially since I still wonder who the 'little dude' is on the reverse LOL

 

I've always wondered how rare these rare coins really are. Do we have any way of estimating, for example, how many Gordian I and II coins still exist? A few hundred? A few thousand? It does limit how many complete portrait series collections there can be.

 

I'd guess about 500 together (probably 300:200, more gordian I than II). Just a wild guess.
Again, it's strange that doesn't include many worn down examples of their denarii, mine are like mid grade, most are much better condition.
Their bronze, in comparison, are maybe more rare, and more expansive if in equivalent condition.

 

Denarii did not remain in general circulation long enough after 238 to get heavy wear. How many heavily worn Gordian III denarii have you seen?

 

Wow yes... fantastic portrait!