A Barbaric Tribute Penny.

[JayAg47]

I'm always interested in Roman imitations. While bronze versions are plenty, the silver ones are hard to come by. Today, I visited my local coin show and while browsing through a dealer's tray, I came across this piece. At first, I thought it might be an empress, maybe Sabina or Antonia, based on the ponytail style portrait. However, upon closer inspection, I realised it was an imitation of Tiberius's tribute penny. The coin was in the tray among other worn denarii all for the same rate, so the dealer didn't have any attribution. What caught my attention was how the legends and reverse scene were mirrored, yet the emperor's bust still faces right, as on the official coins. It's clear that whoever created the dies for this piece either didn’t know Latin or simply didn’t prioritise getting the legends in the correct order, as long as the silver’s weight was accurate. I know there are imitations of this coin from India, but I'm unsure if this particular piece comes from there or from one of the regions bordering Rome.

'Tribute Penny'- Barbaric imitation
Period unknown
3.28g, 19mm
Obv: Laureate head to right, 'AUGUST' in retrograde.
Rev: Livia as Pax seated LEFT, holding vertical scepter and olive branch, feet on footstool, ornate chair legs.

Edited December 28, 2024 by JayAg47

[Roman Collector]

What a fascinating coin! I love oddities like this.

[Qcumbor]

Interesting coin with that strange portrait. Good eye for spotting it @JayAg47

Q

Edited December 28, 2024 by Qcumbor

[Ryro]

Great find! I've always liked Conan's coins. They're fun and can be pretty funny. 

Here's my barbaroid Caligula:

[panzerman]

Its amazing what you can find!

Great catch!

 

John

[Ancient Coin Hunter]

Wonderful acquisition 

[Sulla80]

Great catch - for comparison, here's a coin (Contemporary Indian Imitation) that CNG sold a couple of weeks ago (577, Lot 513):

https://www.cngcoins.com/Lot.aspx?LOT_ID=148591&BACK_URL=%2fLots.aspx%3fIS_ADVANCED%3d1%26ITEM_IS_SOLD%3d1%26ITEM_INVENTORY_NUMBER%3d%26CONTAINER_NAME%3d577%26ITEM_LOT_NUMBER%3d513%26ITEM_DESC%3d%26SEARCH_IN_CONTAINER_TYPE_ID_1%3d1%26SEARCH_IN_CONTAINER_TYPE_ID_3%3d1%26SEARCH_IN_CONTAINER_TYPE_ID_2%3d1%26SEARCH_IN_CONTAINER_TYPE_ID_4%3d1%26VIEW_TYPE%3d0

[CPK]

Very cool coin!

[Alegandron]

I have one from the Republic...

I am a fan of collecting hard-to-find Quinarii... cool denom.

Imitating Octavian and M. Porcius Cato.
AR Quinarius
(13.89 mm, 1.29 g, 1 h).
Male head (possibly imitating Octavian?) right, blundered legend /
Victory seated right, holding patera.
Cf. Crawford 343 and 462.
Ex: Agora
Seller Comments: Barbarous imitations of Quinarii are extremely rare. Only a small handful are known from hoards of barbarous Republican coins.

[Kali]

Wow, amazing find. Congratulations.