Featured THE CELATOR(S) SKILL - SESTERTII OF TRAJAN DECIUS

thanks @Bing is it not a bit heavy for this? and are the cracks normal? Because i heard some fakes made by pressing and cause cracks on flan.

 

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Two of the ones I showed earlier weigh in at 4.3 and 4.39g each. Cracks were also normal in the original processing of official coins as they appear in this coin:

TRAJAN DECIUS
AR Antoninianus
OBVERSE: IMP C M Q TRAIANUS DECIVS AVG, Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
REVERSE: DACIA, Dacia standing left, holding draco standard or vertical staff surmounted by ass's head
Struck at Rome, 249 AD
4.39g, 22mm
RIC 12b
Ex CNG eAuction 328, Lot 761
Ex. Seaby with handwritten envelope and tag

 

Weight of individual coins seems not a concern under Decius. They vary a lot. It might be interesting to see a study testing alloy to see if the heavy ones might have more base metal so all were closer to the same actual silver weight. Has this been published? There has been a terrible tendency for metal studies to be published as an average of all dates and mints within a reign while it is obvious to a collector of Septimius Severus that there were sub-groups regularly better and others lesser. When dealing with rare coins or those with a market value, it is hard to find coins for destructive testing and surface tests are not really accurate enough to be of value. I have insufficient interest in the question to compromise coins for the testing. I suspect the future will see development of what is an MRI for coins allowing interior 'diagnosis' without drilling holes. I can wait.

 

Decius is not my specialty, which is late Roman and Byzantine, but I will add 2: a sestertius and a double, that I acquired from a good friend who has collected
Decius since 1966.

 

Fabulous write up and OP coins. Some others have posted aren't bad either

I do like the style on this one : in hand, and with a magnifier, the portrait of Dacia on the reverse is really stunning IMO




Following is my sestertius of his and a few of the Divi series. Celators by the time of Decius, weren't used to engrave those old emperors portraits, but still, some of them are very representative and consistent with what one would expect even from a lifetime issue











Q

 

Better late than never. This one was struck in Mesopotamia. Reverse shows standing Tyche who is pouring liquid on altar. Palm tree and branches everywhere. BMC 24.
AE 25 - Nearly 15 g.