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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Julius Germanicus, post: 3217093, member: 80783&quot;]Marcus Aurelius Numerianus was born around 253, probably in or around Siscia, as the younger son of the army officer and future pretorian prefect Carus.</p><p>When his father took the purple in September 282 after the assassination of Probus, he immediately bestowed the rank of Caesar on his elder son, Carinus.</p><p>Numerianus was hailed Caesar at Ticinum in early December 282. He then joined his father on a highly successful campaign against the Sarmathians and Quadi in Pannonia before heading to the eastern capital of Antiochia, where Numerianus was hailed Imperator in mid February, 283. Carinus was left behind to guard the western provinces and would never see his brother again.</p><p>In early April Numerianus joined Carus´ great Persian campaign to take revenge for the capture of Emperor Valerian in 260. Carus probably invaded Mesopotamia using the road via Beroea and Resaina to Nisibis and from there parallel to the Tigris river passing Carrhae and then took Coche (formerly Seleucia) and finally the Sasanidian capital Ctesiphon in June.</p><p>In early July however, Carus suddenly died, either struck by lightning, a stroke, or the victim of a plague that Numerian may also have contracted.</p><p><br /></p><p>The news of Carus´ death must have reached Rome by express courier service from Mesopotamia in about 14 days, it must have taken another three to four days to reach Carinus at Milan, where he was celebrating his wedding with Magnia Urbica.</p><p>After completing the wedding celebration and honoring Numerian as new Augustus and Co-Emperor, Carinus left Milan in early August and travelled to Rome in company of his wife and the imperial guard. He must have reached the capital by mid or late August of 283, which marked the first visit to the capital by a member of the imperial family.</p><p><br /></p><p>Meanwhile the roman mint prepared an emission (it´s 3rd during the rule of Carus and his sons) of Aurei and Antoniniani to celebrate the victories in Germany and Persia, while the elevation of Numerianus was celebrated with an issue of AE Medallions bearing his laureate portrait on the obverse combined with the three Monetae, the traditional reverse type for large Medallions at the time.</p><p>These would be the first Medallions created in the name of Numerianus (none were minted for him as Caesar) and the only ones struck for him at the Rome mint.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]836688[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>IMP C AVR NVMERIANVS AVG - Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Numerian right, seen from behind</p><p>MONETA AVGG – the three Monetae standing left, each holding scales above pile of coins in right hand and cornucopia in left</p><p>AE-Medallion, Rome mint, 1.-10. August 283 (3rd emission)</p><p>32 mm / 20,87 gr / 12h</p><p>Cohen (2nd ed. 1880) Numerian, Nr. 32 (this coin); Gnecchi II (1912), Numerian Nr. 9&nbsp; (this coin); Pink (&quot;Die Medaillonprägung unter Carus und seinen Söhnen&quot;, 1958) Nr.18 (this coin discussed).</p><p>From the collections of Claude Camille Rollin (1813-1883), Eduard Friedrich Weber (1830-1907), Clarence S. Bement (1843-1923), and Paul Tinchant (1893-1981);</p><p>Auctions Jacob Hirsch 10.05.1909 (Consul Weber) Nr.2424; Naville VIII 25.06.1924</p><p>(C.S. Bement) Nr. 1428; Schulman 243, 08.10.1966 (Richard J. Graham) Nr. 2507</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]836689[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>The most familiar reverse type of Roman medallions shows the Tres Monetae. It makes its first appearance on a brass medallion of Lucius Verus, after which it became a staple throughout most of the 3rd Century. This medallion type occasionally was used for circulating coins, notably on Sestertii of Commodus and Septimius Severus. Initially bearing inscriptions such as AEQVITAS PVBLICA(E) or AEQVITAS AVGVSTI, but by the reign of Trajan Decius it had assumed its most familiar form, MONETA AVG(G).</p><p>All three figures hold a cornucopia and set of scales, and stand beside a heap of coins. Invariably the two outer figures hold scales hung at the end of rods or cords of more or less equal length, whereas the central figure suspends her scale from a much longer rod or cord. Since the figures represent the three principal coining metals – gold, silver and copper – we may presume the central figure represents gold, and that her distinctive appearance represents the more careful standard to which gold was weighed.</p><p><br /></p><p>While some of Carinus´ medallions of this issue showed a martial military left facing bust&nbsp; holding a lance (plus sometimes a shield), all of Numerians´s specimens feature the more traditional right facing bust with Paludamentum.</p><p><br /></p><p>The later were minted in two varieties, the first featuring the obverse legend IMP C NVMERIANVS PF AVG with the bust of the young emperor seen from the front (Cohen Nr.28 = Gnecchi Nr.5 = Pink 24), with either all three Monetae on the reverse facing left (Pink 24 a,&nbsp; 4 specimens), or the central Moneta facing frontal (Pink Nr.24b, 1 specimen).</p><p><br /></p><p>The second featured the legend IMP C M AVR NVMERIANVS AVG and a bust seen from behind, featuring a neckband (Gnecchi Nr.7 and 8 = Pink Nr. 19). There are six other specimens of this type (Pink Nr.19) known today:</p><p><br /></p><p>1. Rome (Gnecchi collection), 16,7 g, 33 mm (Illustrated in Gnecchi)</p><p>2. Vienna, 21,0 g, 33 mm (illustrated in Pink, Medaillenprägung)</p><p>3. Paris, 21,92 g, 32 mm (line drawing in Cohen)</p><p>4. Paris (very worn), 15,18 g, 32 mm</p><p>5. Boston, 16,43 g, 31,5 mm</p><p>6. ex Bizot collection (Auction Schulmann 1923, Nr. 2497) 23,10 g, 33 mm</p><p><br /></p><p>My Medallion resembles this type, but features the unique legend &quot;IMP C AVR NVMERIANVS AVG&quot;, seemingly not found on a single other published coin of this ruler.</p><p><br /></p><p>This is due to the fact that, as is visible by the crack on both sides, the part of the coin that bears the beginning of the obverse inscription has broken off at an unknown date (maybe as early as late Antiquity as someone might have attempted to nail it onto the wall of a catacomb or pierce it to turn it into a piece of jewelry, who knows?) and was</p><p>replaced at a later date by someone who was skilled, but either forgot a letter, did not have the necessary references, or simply did not have enough space left for the &quot;M&quot;.</p><p><br /></p><p>I do assume that the other 82 % of my Medallion (including the portrait) are antique and genuine. Here are pictures of Nr. 1, 2, 3 and 6 of the original type (Pink Nr.19):</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]836720[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>A am no good in recognizing die matches. Do you see any in between these coins and mine?</p><p><br /></p><p>Please show your Medallions, Monetae, and Numerians![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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