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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;dougsmit, post: 2396441, member: 19463&quot;]I&#039;ll start off my new arrival marathon with two Romans struck from the worst alloy used for coins: billon.&nbsp; Each of these were made at a time when the silver was alloyed to a point that they look worse than the ones a few months later when the metal had more copper and certainly a few months earlier when there was more silver. </p><p><br /></p><p>First is a billon antoninianus of Diva Mariniana, wife of Valerian I who died before he became emperor.&nbsp; Like coins of her husband, earlier coins had enough silver to look like silver but the later ones are a porous mess.&nbsp; This one is not badly struck for this notoriously uneven empress.&nbsp; Roughly speaking, I&#039;d guess her coins will sell for ten times the price of a similar coin of her husband but who wants a common Valerian like this?&nbsp; This is my only Mariniana and probably will be for a long time.&nbsp; </p><p>[ATTACH=full]492997[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Second is a billon argenteus of Maximinus II from Trier (RIC 826 - PTR).&nbsp; This coin is not silver washed 1-2% silver like the common coins of this emperor but a very poor 18mm billon. I believe, in theory, the coin should be worth four of the larger folles of the same period.&nbsp; This was pretty much the end of this denomination which had been started under Diocletian in much better silver.&nbsp; The reverse is Sol in a facing quadriga.&nbsp; Nice ones are not cheap. </p><p>[ATTACH=full]492998[/ATTACH] </p><p>Show your coins of either type, please.&nbsp; Failing that, lets see your Imperial Billons. </p><p><br /></p><p>For the record, my (not new) Licinius I RIC 825 argenteus is worse silver which makes it a better looking coin since the copper is not hindered by as much silver.&nbsp; These vary enough that some might be found as low grade AE3 coins in the stock of dealers who do not know the types.&nbsp; I was not that lucky. </p><p>[ATTACH=full]493004[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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