My 4th 4 - New Vologases IV Pickup

I like this coin type as you know, I have several of them in my collection.

Paul, these two new ones measure 26mm and 27mm, respectively.

Thanks for the comment!

"Any thoughts about why this month was so prolific for the Parthian mints?"

Coins minted at the same time probably left the mint together and entered savings hoards together. Most accumulations of coins ("hoards") were utilized by their owners or their heirs in ancient times. The mint issues that entered those short-lived accumulations were well-mixed into the population of coins in antiquity. The accumulations that remained unrecovered until recently (what we now call "hoards") may have accumulated their coins over time and have a mixed sample of coins, but often hoards have one issue vastly overrepresented.

For example, there was a hoard of Gallienus coins found with 5000 coins from one pair of dies. It is not that that issue was larger than usual, just that they left the mint together were hoarded together, and were eventually found together.

I imagine that some time in the past there was found an ancient hoard with many tetradrachms of Vologases IV tetradrachms struck October 172 AD. By chance, the mint output from September and November didn't make it into a hoard discovered in modern times.

How interesting, Dave. Please feel welcome to post the coin here. I'd love to see it.

I don't believe I've seen any studies comparing the frequency of emissions - one month versus another. But it is an interesting coincidence.

Our sampling is certainly too small to conclude anything definitive. However if there are indeed more Octobers (ΔIOV) among the Sellwood 84's than other months, I wonder if that might have something to do with the fact that in the Seleukid calendar - which the dates on Parthian tets are based on - each new year starts in October. (Seleukid Era years run from October through the following September) Could it be that there was a tradition of striking an abundance of new tets at the start of each new year - and then easing off in subsequent months?

Yep, that's definitely October on yours, Dave.

Can you perhaps provide a better pic of the year, above the diadem that Tyche is handing the king? At question is whether it's a koppa or pi after the E. The pic is really fuzzy, but I'd be inclined to call it a pi (Π) from what I currently see. If that's right, that it's a Π, then it's a Sellwood 84.48, October 173.

Koppa's on these issues were rendered as tiny triangles sitting atop short verticals. I don't have the impression that's what middle letter looks like - although, again, it's really hard to see.

Edit:
To clarify the point, Dave, here is an 84.48 (top) and what is described as an 84.96-103 (below - personally I believe this one is an unpublished variety from Sept. 184, with VΠEP visible for the month) If your coin has the year seen in the top coin, it is an S.48 - therefore 173 AD. If it has the year seen on the bottom coin, in conjunction with the clear October month on yours, it is an S.96 - therefore 183 AD.

I do. I would call it an S.84.48, minted October 173.

Perhaps time for a new camera?

Very nice @bob.