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COMMON COINS WITH SCARCER LEGENDS


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When a coin lover specializes in a specific area of collecting, he is always searching for new specimens with details that nobody would notice; special bust types, unusual iconographic elements or scarcer legends. That’s the reason why I bought my latest baby, a poor Victorinus example imprisoned in a plastic tomb. Since many members gave me tricks to free it, the coin can finally breathe easily. But why did I acquire such a common AEQVITAS AVG type ? The answer can be find if you look at the obverse legend; 90% of the time you’ll see the regular IMP C PI VICTORINUS AVG, but on this one you can read IMP C VICTORINVS PF AVG. According to Mairat, it is a « mule » combining obverse of issue 2 with reverse of issue 1. It is a scarcer legend since about only 10% of all AEQVITAS were struck with it, and the proportion was the same in the Cunetio hoard.

Cologne 19mm  3.67g

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Here’s another example: it seems at first look like a very common SALVS AVG type from Cologne. But if you examine carefully the obverse legend, you’ll read IMP CP VICTORINVS PF AVG… It is probably an engraver’s error mixing IMP C PI VICTORINVS AVG of issue 1 with IMP C VICTORINVS PF AVG of issue 2. Only three of these coins have been discovered yet, one in the Cunetio hoard, the second in the Child’s Ercall hoard and finally mine, bought from a dealer who had not noticed the detail in the legend…

Cologne 20mm  2.56g

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Please show me your COMMON COINS WITH SCARCER LEGENDS !

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Impossible to say how many exist, but these could easily be 1 on 5000.

ri157.jpg.83b14e69b51c47d156d5f023ab156a9c.jpg

Commemorative Series
Mint Rome
337 to 340 AD
Obvs: VRBS ROMA BEATA, Roma helmeted, draped, and cuirassed left.
Revs: She-wolf standing left, head right, suckling the twins. Above wreath between two stars, R * Q.
AE 14x15mm, 1.22g
Ref: RIC VIII.29

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This one is quite rare with the obverse inscription in the dative case. The usual form of the legend is in the nominative case. There are four known specimens of this one, all from the same obverse die.  @Marsyas Mike has one of them, too!

1340040281_FaustinaJrDIANALVCIFERASCsestertiusdativecaseinscription.jpg.be403b8f3a728daf6b4654347ccfc56c.jpg

Faustina II, AD 147-175.
Roman orichalcum sestertius, 20.63 g, 28.4 mm, 5 h.
Rome, AD 174-175.
Obv: FAVSTINAE AVGVSTAE, bare-headed and draped bust, right; late coiffure.
Rev: DIANA LVCIFERA S C, Diana standing right, holding lighted torch in both hands.
Refs: Dinsdale 007295 (this coin), otherwise unattested with dative obverse inscription; cf. RIC 1630, BMCRE 899-900, Cohen 88, RCV 5272, MIR 8-6/10c.

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