Recent interest in Antioch bronzes...

I also like the Roman coins from Antioch - a lot of these are larger coins but there were also some smaller ones issued like this Ae chalkous of Hadrian.



Hadrian, AD 117 - 138 AD
Antioch, Syria
Ae chalkous, 1.60g 10mm
draped, laureate bust of Hadrian right, no legend
beaded border around wreath, S C inside wreath, Γ below
McAlee 543

PS for those of you interested in McAlee's book it is available on CNG's site for $100 US plus shipping - a great book with lots of interesting commentary

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

I've picked up a lot of new Antioch AEs over the past few months (my recent collecting focus) that I'd like to share:


Claudius, Ruled 41-54 AD
AE25, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: IM•[TI•CLA•CAE]-AV•GER, laureate head right.
Reverse: Large S-C within inner solid boarder, laurel wreath surround, fastened with star at top.
Reference: RPC 4279 var (star), McAlee 250a var (star)
Size: 25mm, 13.9g



Claudius, Ruled 41-54 AD
AE25, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: [IM•TI•CLA•CAE-AV•GER], laureate head right; countermark of Athena/Minerva standing right, holding spear and shield, in rectangular punch (Howgego 245). May be an imperial countermark due to Domitian's association with Athena/Minerva, likely applied between 83-96 AD in Antioch.
Reverse: Large S-C within inner solid boarder, laurel wreath surround, fastened with pellet at top.
Reference: RPC 4279, McAlee 250a
Size: 25mm, 14.1g

[seller's image]​

Nero, Ruled 54-68 AD
AE20, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: IM NER CLAV CAESAR, laureate head right.
Reverse: Large S-C within inner solid boarder, laurel wreath of eight leaves surround, fastened with pellet at top.
References: McAlee 289, RPC I 4297
Size: 20mm, 6.47g



Trajan, Ruled 98-117 AD
AE27 (orchalcum), Struck 102-114 AD, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: ΑΥΤΟΚΡ ΚΑΙС ΝΕΡ ΤΡΑΙΑΝΟС СΕΒ ΓΕΡΜ ΔΑΚ, laureate head right.
Reverse: S•C, BI below, all within laurel wreath of eight leaves, fastened with pellet at top.
References: McAlee 487m, Wruck 192, RPC III 3595
Size: 27mm, 19.5g



Trajan, Ruled 98-117 AD
AE27, Struck 114-116 AD, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: ΑΥΤΟΚΡ ΚΑΙС ΝΕΡ ΤΡΑΙΑΝΟС ΑΡΙСΤ СΕΒ ΓΕΡΜ ΔΑΚ, laureate head right with drapery on left shoulder.
Reverse: S•C, (probable) A below, all within laurel wreath of eight leaves, fastened with pellet at top.
References: McAlee 490a, RPC III 3617
Size: 27mm, 13.9g



Antoninus Pius, Ruled 138-161 AD
AE25, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: [AVTO] KAI TIT AIΛ AΔPIA [ANTѠNЄINOC CЄBA ЄVCЄBHC], Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right
Reverse: Large S • C, Δ below, all within laurel wreath of eight leaves, fastened with pellet at top.
References: McAlee 556, BMC 314
Size: 25mm, 11.7g

[modified seller's image]​

Antoninus Pius, Ruled 138-161 AD
AE21, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: AYTO KAI AIΛ ANTΩNEINOC CЄB, Laureate head left, star before.
Reverse: Large S•C, Γ above, below, eagle standing facing, head left, all within laurel wreath of eight leaves, fastened with pellet at top.
References: McAlee 561c, BMC 322 var, Butcher, 317
Size: 21mm, 6.38g

[modified seller's image]​

Marcus Aurelius (as Caesar), Ruled 161-180 AD
AE23, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: ΑΥΡΗΛΙΟС ΚΑΙС СƐΒΑ ƐΥСƐΒ ΥΙΟС ΥΠΑΤ, laureate head right of Marcus Aurelius (short beard).
Reverse: S•C, Θ below, all within laurel wreath of eight leaves, fastened with pellet at top.
References: McAlee (Marcus Aurelius) 9, BMC 340-1, RPC IV 7043 (temporary)
Size: 23mm, 10.32g



Macrinus, Ruled 217-218 AD
AE19, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: AVT KAI M O CE MAKPINOC CE, Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
Reverse: Large S•C, Δ above and Є below, all within laurel wreath of twelve leaves, fastened with star at top.
References: McAlee 728
Size: 19mm, 4.0g



Macrinus, Ruled 217-218 AD
AE18, Syria, Antioch Mint
Obverse: AV K M O C MAKPINOC C, Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
Reverse: Large S C, Є above and Δ below, all within laurel wreath of eight leaves, fastened with star at top.
References: McAlee 728 var (obverse legend and bust, position of Δ and E), BMC 387 var
Size: 18mm, 3.3g

----

Some that I have high on my list are Nerva and Lucius Versus. Maybe someone can help me with a general question... I've seen a handful of LV Antioch AEs listed as Commodus and I have seen on Wildwinds that Commodus doesn't have and SC AEs listed. Does Commodus have Antioch SC AEs? Anyone have any Commodus ones to share? or Nerva or LV for that matter? (or any others )

 

Fantastic additions, @Justin Lee !

 

Hi, I have Commodus Antioch SC. It seems some rare and I'm not sure which rpc number fits best. Greetings, Robert

 

It does look like a relatively scarce type.

RPC has a couple possible types, depending on whether it's a laureate draped & cuirassed bust or just laureate head.

There are only a couple rough examples illustrated of the former (laureate bust):
https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/4/7177

Yours is centered such that I can't tell if there's any drapery, so it could be the laureate head?
https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/4/7180

I would catalog it as "RPC IV.3 7177 or 7180" until I found more examples illustrated or someone persuaded me of one over the other

 

Thank you very much, Curtis - it is indeed difficult to determine which exact RPC number corresponds, especially since the obverse is stamped off-center. I bet that it is more like rpc 7177 judging by the visible part of the legend on the obverse ΑΥΤΟΚΡΑ Λ. I just got another Commodus coin. The representation of the emperor is visibly different, here the paludamentum is visible. I found two more coins on the Internet (below in the photo) and the auction descriptions also indicated a problem with attribution. It seems that the RPC online section devoted to this type of Commodus coins is not entirely clear and the lack of photos also indicates this. Perhaps someone with a catalog of the Richard Mcalee collection could differentiate these types more precisely.

Greetings, Robert

 

Ah, traveling for a few days or I'd check McAlee for you. I'll try to remember when home in a few days...

 

Thank You very much! I have found another two on acsearch...

 

Hmm, i think mine second coin is Hadrianus RPC III 3722; McAlee 538c, not Commodus.

 

Possibly, it's very hard to know with Provincials when you can't read the legends. But to me it looks like the legend matches Commodus'.

I assume you mean because of the appearance of a bearded portrait (for Antioch it should be a "youthful" portrait of Commodus, not yet bearded), but it's possible that the "beard" is an illusion that's just surface roughness.

When the legend and portrait seem to disagree, you have to follow the legend (or figure out why it doesn't actually disagree).