British usurper - Allectus

[Tejas]

Little is known about his rule. He was apparently a treasure under Carausius. He had Carausius assassinated in 293 and ruled until 296, when he was defeated and killed by a Roman army sent by Constantius Chlorus. The battle is said to have taken place at Silchester. His remaining troops, apparently mostly Frankish warriors, were killed in London. 

I have two coins of Allectus, which I think  mark the beginning and the end of his short rule. The first Antoninian is quite heavy, weighing nearly 6 g. The second Antoninian, (sometimes wrongly called Quinarius) has a smaller flan and weighs just under 3 g. Apparently, according to the author P. Casey, in his book on British usurpers, argued that Allectus was faced with a severe financial and monetary crisis at the end of his reign, which caused him to reduce the weight of the Antoninian. 

Show us your coins of British usurpers

 

Obv.: IMP C ALLECTVS P F AVG

Rev.: PROVIDENTIA AVG -- S-P

Mint:  Colchester, C in exergue

Measurements: 5.93 g., 22mm, 7h

RIC V.2 108; Webb 164

 

 

 

Obv.: IMP C ALLECTVS PF AVG

Rev.:  VIRTVS AVG  -- QC

Mint: Colchester

Date: AD 295/296

Measurements: 2.99 g.

RIC 130

 

[Kali]

Allectus (293 - 296 A.D.)

Billon Antoninianus
O: IMP C ALLECTVS P F AVG, radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right.
R: PROVIDENTIA AVG, Providentia standing left, globe in right hand, cornucopia in left hand, S in left field, P in right field, ML in exergue.
Londinium (London, England) mint
21mm
2.52g
RIC V-2 36

[ominus1]

fine specimens...

[Ocatarinetabellatchitchix]

This is my only Allectus, my only Quinarius and my only specimen from Camolodunum…and I’d exchange it anytime with yours Dirk !

[John Conduitt]

Silchester isn't far from where I live. I wonder if he's buried in my garden 🤣

Carausius Antoninianus, 286

Londinium. Silver, 19mm, 2.32g. Radiate bust right; CARAVSIVS AVG. Pax standing left holding branch and sceptre; PAX AVG (cf RIC 878-91).

Allectus Quinarius (wrongly!), 293-296

Londinium. Bronze, 19mm, 2.28g. Bust of Allectus, radiate, cuirassed, right; IMP C ALLECTVS P F AVG. Galley with mast, rowing left; VIRTVS AVG; QL in exergue (RIC V.1, 55). Found in Kent in the 1980s.

The occupants of Silchester were from the Atrebates tribe. They were quite good at kissing up to the Romans.

Epatticus Unit, 35-43

Atrebates Kingdom. Silver, 13mm, 1.19g. Victory seated right, TAS-CIO-V around. Boar right, tree behind, EPAT below (ABC 1349; S 357). Obverse copied from a denarius of M Volteius. Reverse copied from a denarius of M Porcius Cato or M Porcius Cato Uticensis.

[Roman Collector]

1 hour ago, Tejas said:

Little is known about his rule. He was apparently a treasure under Carausius. He had Carausius assassinated in 293 and ruled until 296, when he was defeated and killed by a Roman army sent by Constantius Chlorus. The battle is said to have taken place at Silchester. His remaining troops, apparently mostly Frankish warriors, were killed in London. 

I have two coins of Allectus, which I think  mark the beginning and the end of his short rule. The first Antoninian is quite heavy, weighing nearly 6 g. The second Antoninian, (sometimes wrongly called Quinarius) has a smaller flan and weighs just under 3 g. Apparently, according to the author P. Casey, in his book on British usurpers, argued that Allectus was faced with a severe financial and monetary crisis at the end of his reign, which caused him to reduce the weight of the Antoninian. 

Show us your coins of British usurpers

 

Obv.: IMP C ALLECTVS P F AVG

Rev.: PROVIDENTIA AVG -- S-P

Mint:  Colchester, C in exergue

Measurements: 5.93 g., 22mm, 7h

RIC V.2 108; Webb 164

 

 

 

Obv.: IMP C ALLECTVS PF AVG

Rev.:  VIRTVS AVG  -- QC

Mint: Colchester

Date: AD 295/296

Measurements: 2.99 g.

RIC 130

 

Very nice! I have always liked that galley reverse type! I have no coins of Allectus. You know how it is.

I do have a Carausius, though! You can't really consider Carausius a handsome devil.

Carausius, AD 286-293.
Roman billon antoninianus, 2.91 g, 21.2 mm, 3 h.
Aberrant issue, uncertain British mint.
Obv: IMP CARAVSIVS P F AVG, radiate (draped and cuirassed?) bust, right.
Rev: PAX AVG, Pax standing left, holding olive branch and cornucopiae.
Refs: c.f. Blackmoor Hoard 20440-1; RIC --; RCV --.

 

 

 

Edited March 4, 2023 by Roman Collector

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

My first ever mail order coin was a coin of Carausius, bought from Allen Berman.

Nice coins!  I have only one coin of Allectus, not photographed.  None of the local buys are.

 

[Jims,Coins]

Bronze Coin (AE Antoninianus) minted during the reign of CARAUSIUS between 287 - 293 A.D. Obv. IMP.C.CARAVSIVS.P.F.AVG.: rad., dr. & cuir. bust r. Rev. PAX.AVG.: Pax stg. l., holding olive-branch & vertical sceptre, in field SP. RCS #3579. RICV #475 pg.504. DVM #24.

The Bath Coin and Stamp Shop (Bath, England) 3-24-96 - Bronze Coin (AE Antoninianus) minted at Clausentum during the reign of ALLECTUS between 293 - 296 A.D. Obv. IMP.C.ALLECTVS.P.F.AVG.: Radiate, draped & cuirassed bust right. Rev. PAX.AVG.S.P.: Pax stg. l., holding olive-branch & vertical sceptre, in field SP. RCS #3593. RICV #86 pg.566. DVM #6.

[Qcumbor]

Beautiful specimens @Tejas.

I have just one very shiny, yet crappy, coin of Allectus, and a rather nice one of Carausius

Allectus, Antoninianus - Camulodunum mint
IMP C ALLECTVS PF I AVG, Radiate and draped bust of Allectus right
LAETIT AVG, Laetitia standing left. SP in field, C at exergue
3,84 gr
Ref : RC #3591 v, Cohen #13

 

Carausius, Antoninianus - Colchester mint ?
IMP CARAVSIVS P F AVG, radiate bust right
MONITA (sic) AVG, Moneta standing left, holding scales and cornucopia
3,64 gr
Ref : RCV # 13629v, Cohen # 178 var, RIC, cf #867

 

Q

[Tejas]

2 hours ago, Ocatarinetabellatchitchix said:

This is my only Allectus, my only Quinarius and my only specimen from Camolodunum…and I’d exchange it anytime with yours Dirk !

I think the name Quinarius is wrong. It is better called a reduced Antoninian. Allectus apparently reduced the weight standard during a financial crisis at the end of his reign. ... And I think I stick with mine 🙂

[Tejas]

1 hour ago, John Conduitt said:

Silchester isn't far from where I live. I wonder if he's buried in my garden 🤣

Apparently, Allectus removed all signs of this status before the battle so that his body would not be identifiable by the enemy if he was killed. So I guess if you find a body in your garden you will have a hard time identifying it with that of Allectus.

[Tejas]

I think the ship on the reverse of the reduced Antoninian is an deliberate and significant choice and a novelty for that denomination. I think it revers to the important of the fleet as defender of the British isles against his Roman rivals and Saxon pirates. 

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

This thread caused me to switch my coin order from Heraclius to a Carausius with nice (for type) surfaces.  And I also got an emperor-filler, Magnentius!

Was the Q mark a code for the debased status?  Or was it another way of saying 20 to 1?

I've been washing my hands much more frequently since the serious sinus infection, so I don't have many opportunities to safely go through my coins.  My Allectus was a birthday or Christmas present, from the local coin shop.

 

[Tejas]

Below is my one and only coin of Carausius. I bought this coin at a small collectors' fair in London for GBP 45. (Since then the Pound has lost some 50% of its value, but still)

 

Carausius (286/7 - 293)

Obv.: IMP CARAVSIVS PF AVG

Rev.: PAX AVG

Mint: uncertain

Weight: 4.09 g.

RIC 886

Good very fine condition, with smooth surfaces and a chocolate brown patina, but somewhat off-center.

 

 

Coins with the PAX AVG reverse usually show the mintmark SC or C or Colchester or ML for London, which were the two main mints in England. There are also many coins without mintmarks. Many of these coins are imitations of more or less good style.

However, C. E King, "The Unmarked Coins of Carausius", BNJ, London 1985, pp. 1-9 (with four plates) and A. Burnett and J. Casey "A Carausian Hoard from Croydon, Surrey, and a note on Carausius's Continental possessions", BNJ. London 1985, pp. 10-20 (with four plates) have isolated several official examples of the PAX AVG type without being able to attribute them to a particular workshop. One possibility is that these coins were produced in Gaulish mints under Carausius' control, such as Rouen.

What I find amazing is that Carausius also minted rare Denari, which don't seem to differ from Antoniniani in terms of weight or metal. I wonder if that had any practical purpose, or if this was a measure to project civilization and sophistication to an increasingly barbaric world.

 

Edited March 5, 2023 by Tejas