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 Replies: 11 / Views: 1,379 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1549 Posts |
In modern coins it takes quite the specialist to tell the difference between many coins without looking at their mintmarks. With ancients, every die was different. Below are three Constantius II AE2 coins (all RIC 72 from Alexandria) that show differences in style. I assume all were cut by different hands but all show some similarities in style that make them have an Alexandrian look. I consider the one from workshop A (top) the finest and most formal work followed by B (middle) which is a little ordinary and, perhaps, lifelike and gamma (bottom) that has some portrait traits that remind me a bit of modern political cartoonists. These differences are what makes ancients interesting to me. I wonder if I had a dozen coins of each workshop if I would see these characteristics hold true or if the dies were randomly assorted so the cutter of my A might have made as many dies for each of the others. RIC says there is a shop delta but I don't have a coin. I wonder how it would compare. Most of us begin collecting by avoiding buying duplicates but, after 49+ years, I am seeking out certain duplicates to educate myself on how they might be different as well as alike. For those of you just starting in ancients, I'll warn that this sort of thing might happen to you unless you run away now perhaps seeing how many 'different' Lincoln cents you can accumulate all the while convincing yourself that they are significantly different because of a few punched in numbers and letters. Who else collects things that are meaningfully different to you but boringly similar to sane people?  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3184 Posts |
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Valued Member
Netherlands
409 Posts |
in fact I do the same. As a Carus and family collector I try to collect all the antoniniani from all the 7 mints and their officinae. For example Carus Antioch known as RIC 124, there where nine officinae. At this moment I have five, the pic shows four of them. I think I still have to go a long way....  |
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Moderator
 United States
23731 Posts |
I've not done this with any of mine yet, but now that I see them side by side and how different they can be. I'm going to see how many I have.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4253 Posts |
Interesting. BTW, I like the second coin best.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10045 Posts |
 It looks like it could have been minted recently. Another interest post from Doug!  |
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Valued Member
United States
209 Posts |
Whew, glad I am not the only one. Was beginning to think I was flying down the rabbit hole at terminal velocity. I am trying to do the same thing with Constantine I's posthumous series. Never noticed how many officinas there are though...staggering lol.
Can I ask what features on those are Alexandrian? I like different things about each of them. The collar on the first one looks especially cool.
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Valued Member
United States
209 Posts |
On the fel temps, is that a shield or chariot wheel in the lower right?
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Rest in Peace
United States
45 Posts |
I like the FH allot as well. Here is one also from Alexndria, with a legend error.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
4973 Posts |
this was really confusing form me when I was try to attribute some my cleaned up coins. i'd look at pictures on wildwinds of an "alexandria ric 72" (or whatever) thinking that was my coin but then would notice the some mild difference like the angle of the spear in dougs' top and middle coin, then think....wait, that can't be right. this must be some other coin...i just assumed all of the same attribution would look exactly the same except for wear and strike differences. I didn't figure that out until recently.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
1549 Posts |
There is a shield on the ground dropped by the horseman. Did anyone notice the decor on the rump of the horse. The third coin has extra tassels. This decor is sometimes enough to assign a coin to a mint based on the style.
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
946 Posts |
Quote:
Did anyone notice the decor on the rump of the horse Yes, on all of these examples, the horse is fitted out in the manner of the Persian war-horse. The outfit of the horseman is Parthian/Persian as well. Compare details of the horse and horseman with the below link to an image of a silver dish of the Sassanid Persian era. http://www.artblog.net/static/posts...nd_Court.jpg |
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Replies: 11 / Views: 1,379 |
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Posted 09/15/2012 03:45 am
