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Rare bust type? Septimius Severus IMP IIII sestertius RIC 670d var
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<p>[QUOTE="curtislclay, post: 3996696, member: 89514"]I found 59 spec. of this sestertius with all bust types, from 17 rev. dies; plus 7 spec. from 2 rev. dies without Virtus leading the horse, as on the common denarii.</p><p><br /></p><p>Your dies: obv. 313, rev. 459, a new combination to my 1972 catalogue. I knew 3 spec. from this obv. die, coupled with 3 other dies of the same Arrival rev. type.</p><p><br /></p><p>Cohen gave retail prices for the types listed, not rarity ratings, so his 25 francs for the arrival type with Virtus, three times his base price of 8 francs for a sestertius of Septimius, was justified. It is not a rare type, but an elaborate one (two figures plus a horse!) commemorating a specific historical event, so considerably more interesting than say the two other sestertius types of the same issue, FORTVNAE REDVCI seated and TR P IIII Victory advancing, each priced at just 8 francs by Cohen.</p><p><br /></p><p>It was misleading of the authors of the of the original editions of RIC vol. II-IV, however, to treat Cohen's prices as straight rarity ratings without the necessary adjustment for desirability and saleability, and so to arrive at R2 for this comparatively common sestertius type, just because Cohen gave it a high price! On the other hand many very rare coins get low rarity ratings in these early RIC volumes, because they were ordinary-looking and of little interest to the average collector, so were priced at only a franc or two or were called "common" by Cohen!</p><p><br /></p><p>Yes, Severan bronzes, especially sestertii, are very rare for the middle period of his reign, from 198 to 209. Maybe 100 types are known for all five members of the imperial family, but only in a total of around 250 specimens, so averaging only a couple of specimens known per type, usually only from one rev. die. Maybe you are aware that I have written quite a lot about such matters in the Forum Ancient Coins discussion group and in the German Numismatikforum.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="curtislclay, post: 3996696, member: 89514"]I found 59 spec. of this sestertius with all bust types, from 17 rev. dies; plus 7 spec. from 2 rev. dies without Virtus leading the horse, as on the common denarii. Your dies: obv. 313, rev. 459, a new combination to my 1972 catalogue. I knew 3 spec. from this obv. die, coupled with 3 other dies of the same Arrival rev. type. Cohen gave retail prices for the types listed, not rarity ratings, so his 25 francs for the arrival type with Virtus, three times his base price of 8 francs for a sestertius of Septimius, was justified. It is not a rare type, but an elaborate one (two figures plus a horse!) commemorating a specific historical event, so considerably more interesting than say the two other sestertius types of the same issue, FORTVNAE REDVCI seated and TR P IIII Victory advancing, each priced at just 8 francs by Cohen. It was misleading of the authors of the of the original editions of RIC vol. II-IV, however, to treat Cohen's prices as straight rarity ratings without the necessary adjustment for desirability and saleability, and so to arrive at R2 for this comparatively common sestertius type, just because Cohen gave it a high price! On the other hand many very rare coins get low rarity ratings in these early RIC volumes, because they were ordinary-looking and of little interest to the average collector, so were priced at only a franc or two or were called "common" by Cohen! Yes, Severan bronzes, especially sestertii, are very rare for the middle period of his reign, from 198 to 209. Maybe 100 types are known for all five members of the imperial family, but only in a total of around 250 specimens, so averaging only a couple of specimens known per type, usually only from one rev. die. Maybe you are aware that I have written quite a lot about such matters in the Forum Ancient Coins discussion group and in the German Numismatikforum.[/QUOTE]
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Rare bust type? Septimius Severus IMP IIII sestertius RIC 670d var
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