Rare Titus Denarius - Coin Community Forum

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Author	Replies: 6 / Views: 1,323
orfew Pillar of the Community Canada 1269 Posts	Posted 02/26/2016 12:29 pm Hi All, I find that over the last few months I am becoming more interested in the coins of Imperatorial Rome. There are some great characters represented. I picked up a portrait of Marc Antony a few weeks ago and it has got me thinking about other figures from around the same time. Since completing the 12 Caesars set I have also been on the lookout for upgrades, though I have not been in a hurry with this at all. I was having a look through the recent offerings at Vcoins and I stumbled upon this coin. It is a coin of Titus with a prow on the reverse. Well, I did not think about it for long. I snapped it up as it is an interesting coin. Titus. AR Denarius 19 mm (3.3 g), as Caesar, AD 69-79. Rome, under Vespasian, AD 77/8. Obv: T CAESAR IMP VESPASIANVS, laureate head of Titus right. Rev: COS VI, prow of galley right, sides ornameted with intricate cross-hatch and maeander patterns; above, star with sixteen rays. RIC 950; BN 202; BMC 226; RSC 68. Ex: Incitatus Coins Report this Post to the Staff

echizento Moderator United States 23731 Posts	Posted 02/26/2016 1:56 pm Interesting reverse. I wonder if the star refers to a comet? Report this Post to the Staff
FVRIVS RVFVS Pillar of the Community United States 3443 Posts	Posted 02/27/2016 1:14 pm A very nifty little denarius ! Just think how magnificent it would have looked in bronze ! (30mm) The reverse type is very interesting with the very "Republican" looking prow. I wonder if it is an allusion to the VICTORIA NAVALIS type by Vespasian ? The star perhaps is also a reference to his (Titus) deification of the "old man" ! Edited by FVRIVS RVFVS 02/27/2016 1:15 pm Report this Post to the Staff
orfew Pillar of the Community Canada 1269 Posts	Posted 02/27/2016 1:27 pm Thanks for the comments. I have no idea what the meaning of the star might be. As for the ship's prow, Vespasian used the same reverse on a denarius. It is much more common than this one. The reverse also harkens back to a denarius of Ahenobarbus minted for Marc Antony about 40 BC. So you are right about it looking republican. It was the interesting reverse that convinced me to buy this coin. Edited by orfew 02/27/2016 1:29 pm Report this Post to the Staff
lrbguy Pillar of the Community United States 949 Posts	Posted 02/27/2016 1:53 pm Quote: The reverse also harkens back to a denarius of Ahenobarbus minted for Marc Antony about 40 BC. So you are right about it looking republican. No offense, but irrespective of the connection to silver of Ahenobarbus, this reverse looks Republican because of the prominence of the ships prow in this style on early Republican bronze going all the way back to the mid to late third century BC. Report this Post to the Staff
orfew Pillar of the Community Canada 1269 Posts	Posted 02/27/2016 2:13 pm No offence taken. I was aware of that, but I focussed on the silver coins because that is what I collect and what I am interested in. I only have 4-5 bronze coins, all the rest are silver. Edited by orfew 02/27/2016 2:16 pm Report this Post to the Staff
FVRIVS RVFVS Pillar of the Community United States 3443 Posts	Posted 02/27/2016 2:35 pm You know I am feeling dumber than usual this afternoon ! I confess I just awoke an hour ago. Of course it is a denarius of Tito as Caesar so any deification is years away. I wonder what it is about ? Wasn't there a comet (as previously mentioned) late in Nero's reign that was given great weight as a sign of things to come ? I seem to remember that from somewhere Still need more coffee to jump start the brain Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 6 / Views: 1,323

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