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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;dougsmit, post: 4258390, member: 19463&quot;]The problem here is that not all mints and all reigns did things the same way.&nbsp; In some cases the officina (workshop) letter is in the field while others place it in exergue.&nbsp; Some issues have other letters in the fields and the purpose for some of them are mysteries to us.&nbsp; To answer your question we need to look up a particular coin and see what they were doing at that time and place.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>You mentioned Gallienus and Maximian so I&#039;ll show a couple of the many variations for just those two realizing that the other rulers between them did things &#039;their way&#039;.</p><p><br /></p><p>Gallienus</p><p>On this one workshop six is marked by VIin right field rather conflicting with the AVG of the encircling legend.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1085565[/ATTACH] </p><p>This one is also shop six but here they used the Greek number S.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1085566[/ATTACH] </p><p>This one has a B (Greek for 2) indicating shop 2.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1085567[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Maximianus</p><p>This is the hardest one.&nbsp; The B for shop 2 is in exergue sandwitched between the XXI indicating the alloy used for the coin and KOY which was a code for the second group of letters in the Greek for Hercules.&nbsp; Don&#039;t ask me to make sense out of this.&nbsp; They did it the way they wanted to.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1085569[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Here is a coin showing workshop 9 from Antioch (they had that many shops in the large mint).&nbsp; Since the Greek number&nbsp; 9 was theta and considered unlikely then as some people today might avoid 13 the mint used a 5+4 (epsilon delta) to add up to nine.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1085579[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Another tricky one is this coin of the Tripolis mint that only used one workshop but put the city initials where a larger operation like Antioch would have put the shop letters.&nbsp; </p><p>[ATTACH=full]1085576[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Let&#039;s remember that this hobby is a lifetime commitment to learning rather than one that is fully understood after reading a one paragraph synopsis.&nbsp; Below is a harder one for those here who want to work.</p><p><br /></p><p>Here is the S for shop two (secunda) or six (using the Greek numeral)?&nbsp; To know which you need to look at other coins and see how the listed the full set of six.&nbsp; Do you find coins with P (Prima) for one or do you find the first shop shown by Greek letter A?&nbsp; This is not my area of specialty and to have that answer I would have to look it up.&nbsp; That may be what you call &#039;umbridge &#039; but the fact is my job here is not to spoon feed answers but to enable those who are here to learn to be able to research the references (online or in books) and figure these out themselves.&nbsp; It is the old saying about not giving fish but teaching a man to fish so he will never be hungry again.&nbsp; This one will be too complicated for a level one beginner but these thing come in time if you want.&nbsp; Like TIF said, some of us <u>do</u> take umbridge at being asked to increase profit on eBay by making sellers sound smart.&nbsp; Those who are working on this subject find us more friendly.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1085571[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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