Tejas

I totally agree with the statement above. There is not only the interest of the buyers (collectors), but also the interest of the sellers. An auction caters to the interest of both groups. Compared to all alternatives, it is the most efficient and the "fairest" way to "allocate" coins from sellers to buyers.

I won three coins at the Künker Auction. None of the three was on my original list. The coins on my list all went astronomical. I bought this Julia Domna because of the reverse. I long wanted a coin with this particular depiction of Venus. According to Künker the coin is EF, so I have high hopes that the coin will be very pleasing.

Very nice. Coins of Volusian as Caesar are much rarer than his coins as Augustus. I recognize your coin. It was sold by CNG not too long ago.

Many thanks for the info and the link, that is very interesting and useful.

Both varieties, with and without star seems to have been produced at Rome. Maybe the star marked out a certain officina? But then again, on coins of his father with PAX reverse there is never a star, as far as I can see.

That is of course true, but my impression is that Coin Talk and now Numis Forum are the two main ones and it would be much better if all the action was focused on one forum rather than split in two. Anyway, back to coins: Here is my best Volusianus. Obverse and reverse were struck from fresh dies and show no signs of wear and tear. I like the expressive portrait. I think this coin is hard to improve on. Obv.: IMP CAE C VIB VOLVSIANO AVC Rev.: PM TR PIII COS II Mint: Rome Year: AD 253 Weight: 3.76g (7h), 21mm RIC IV 140; RSC 92

Yes, the form VOLVSIANO is dativ case, i.e. "to Volusian". The form also appears on coins of Valerian I, and probably some other emperors of that period. I have 7 Antoniniani of Volusianus, on two of them the legend reads "VOLVSIANVS", so maybe the dativ form was more common on his coins than the usual nominativ case.

What I don't understand is on what grounds these coins get attributed to Rome, Milan or the unknown branch mint. Is it just style?

If it is your Rome examle, why is it attributed to Mediolanum?

Here is another interesting Volusian Antoninian, with a somewhat unusual portrait. If it wasn't for the legend I guess it would be difficult to guess which emperor it was based on the portrait. The coin is quite heavy at nearly 4.5g. Obv.: IMP C C VIB VOLUSIANVS AVG Rev.: VIRTVS AVGG Mint: Rome Measurement: 4.43g RIC IV 206.

Yes, Well, we have impending recession PLUS very high inflation. The governments massively overstimulated their economies (especially in the US), causing a world wide surge in inflation. If inflation were to reach a point where people lose trust in money a surge in asset prices (including things like coins) would be expected. I'm not saying that we are at such a point though. I guess the price explosion at the Künker Auction is driven by the massive excess savings that governments in the US and Europe created and which is now driving up prices everywhere.

Fantastic coins shown here! I would like add an example from this ominous "unknown branch mint" Caius Vibius Volusianus Augustus ( June 251- June 253) Obv.: IMP C C VIB VOLVSIANVS AVG Rev.: FELICITAS PVBL Mint: Uncertain branch mint or Viminacium Measurements: 4.26g, 22mm, 12h Extremely fine with great portrait and a reverse from fresh dies.

I would like to show an Antoninian of Volusian, which I received today and which is quite remarkable in terms of both, condition and portrait style. Volusian was raised to the rank of Augustus by his father Trebonianus Gallus in around August 251, i.e. after the death of Hostilianus the son of Trajan Decius. Volusianus was killed alongside his father in August 253, while preparing to fight the usurper Aemillianus. According to Wikipedia, the short reign of Volusianus and Trebonianus Gallus was marked by the outbreak of plague (which is said to have killed Hostiliianus), an invasion by the Sasanian Empire and raids by Germanic tribes (especially the Goths). Antoniniani of Trebonianus Gallus and Volusianus are of course readily available, often also in very good condition. Still the coin below is in remarkable condition and the picture below doesn't do the coin justice. I would call it mint condition with original luster. So while I knew the condition was good, I was still surprised when I first saw the coin. The other thing that stands out is the portrait. While the portraits of Volusian show a great variety, I think this one stands out. It is particularly life-like and expressive and I have never seen this particular portrait of Volusian before. The seller attributed the coin to Rome, which is likely. However, sometimes coins of Volusian get attributed to an "unknown branch mint". Does anybody know what that is about? Show us your coins of Volusian or his father, or any other Emperor related to his short reign. PS: I still find the fact that there are now two numismatic discussion fora very unsatisfactory.

I guess if you can never have enough SECVRITAS you want SECVRIT PERP (everlasting security). Obv.: IMP C PROBVS AVG Rev.: SECVRIT PERP Field: I Exergue: VIXXT Weight: 4.01g This is a common Antoninian of Probus from the mint of Ticinum. I like the consular bust and especially how the robe is draped accross the emperor's left arm.

In a sense Lanz is doing us a favour by showing us all kinds of fakes. This solidus is really terrifying. I would not have been able to call it out and I do own a number of solidi of that period. The best thing that could happen now that someone makes a record of this coin.

Is there actually evidence that these late Roman silver coins were clipped by Saxons? I even read that people think that they were cut to match the silver Sceatta of the early 8th century. Personally, I think these coins were not in circulation in the 7th or 8th centuries. Instead, I think they were clipped by the Romano-British people in the early 5th century, after the legions and the administration had withdrawn from Britain in AD 410. The events around that year probably cut off the supply of fresh silver coins to Britain and people lowered the silver standard by physically reducing the weight of the existing coins.

Here is my best and only coin of that particular type. I like this coin, because of the distinctive barbarian shown on the reverse. Most coins seem to show a Parthian with distinctive hairstyle and decorated trousers. The barbarian on my coin seems to be modelled on a different ethnic group.

I think one possibility is that it is a fragment of a Groschen of the Teutonic Order of Knights under Grandmaster Albrecht of Brandenburg. On the reverse I read: SALV (SALVA NOS DOMINA 15XX) On the obverse I read "+A ... A (ALBERT9 D G MGR GNRALIS) The obverse legend is a problem, it should end on S not A and if I'm not mistaken, the divider should not be s cross, but the shield of Albrecht's Hohenzollern family.

This is one of my favourites. Note the eight-legged horse on the reverse. It is possible, that depictions like this gave rise to the legend of Wodan/Odin's eight-legged horse Sleipnir.

Here are other ones from my collecton: These silver imitations are normally not holed and they typically show a great deal of wear, suggesting that the circulated as money, hundreds of miles beyond the Roman borders.

This video may be of interest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y_YJWFviKE&list=WL&index=294

Here is a coin I bought recently. The coin was found in Ukraine, Kirovogradskaya oblast, Kropivnitskii (Украина, Кировоградская область, Кропивницкий) It belongs to a group of barbarian imitations of Roman denarii, which circulated hundreds of kilometres beyond the Roman borders in modern Ukraine. These coins were produced within the Chernyakhov culture, which was dominated by the Goths, an eastern Germanic people. This coin probably imitates a denarius of Marcus Aurelius, however, the coin may have been made decades or even a century after his rule.

Finally, Victorinus' heroic bust also falls into the PAX series.Obv: IMP C VICTORINVS PF AVGRev.: PAX AVG / V-StarMint: Trier (?)Year: 270 (?)I guess that the heroic bust also celebrates the victory at Autun. Maybe Trier issued the heroric bust series and Cologne the series with the palm twig to mark the victory? What does the V and the star stand for?

This is a late issue of the PAX series, which dates after the fall of Augustodunum in 270, as indicated by the little palm twig behind Pax.Obv.: IMP C VICTORINVS P F AVGRev.: PAX AVG / V-starMint: Trier or CologneYear: 270Measurements: 4.15g, 20mmRIC 118The quality of this heavy coin is very attractive.

This one may be the next in line, dating perhaps to 270.Obv.: IMP C PIAV VICTORINVS P F AVGRev.: PAX AVG / V-StarMint: Trier (?)Year: 269/270Measurements: 3.2g, 18mmThe flan is somewhat small, but the portrait is very nice with an exceptionally high relief. I think this is the most common type of the PAX series.