Posted 02/14/2014 8:25 pm
Freshly cleaned denarii, especially of the Severan dynasty often show this phenomenon.
It must be remembered that ancient coins generally were not struck within a collar. That, combined with the fact that the blanks were often pre heated to soften them to extend die life, allowed the metal to flow from the centre of the blank more easily.
Flow lines are the result. Quite often, flow line spurs are found on the outside edges of the lettering. It can look a bit like the radial lustre found on modern coins, and in fact is caused in the same way.
It must be remembered that ancient coins generally were not struck within a collar. That, combined with the fact that the blanks were often pre heated to soften them to extend die life, allowed the metal to flow from the centre of the blank more easily.
Flow lines are the result. Quite often, flow line spurs are found on the outside edges of the lettering. It can look a bit like the radial lustre found on modern coins, and in fact is caused in the same way.
Edited by sel_69l
02/14/2014 11:35 pm
02/14/2014 11:35 pm
