| Heritage World Coin Auctions > NYINC Signature Sale 3113 | Auction date: 8 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 31058 Price realized: 10,000 USD (Approx. 9,116 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancients Severus Alexander (AD 222-235). AV aureus (20mm, 6.66 gm, 6h). NGC MS 5/5 - 4/5. Rome, AD 222. IMP C M AVR SEV-ALEXAND AVG, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust of youthful Severus Alexander right, seen from front / P M TR P C-OS P P, Jupiter standing facing, head left, nude but for chlamys hanging behind, thunderbolt in right hand, scepter in left. Calicó 3080. RIC IV.II 4. Cohen 203. Biaggi 1318. Delicately minted from pristine dies on a vibrantly lustrous, gleaming flan. From The Bob Klein History of Money Collection. Ex Morris Collection (Heritage Auctions, Auction 3071, 7 January 2019), lot 32186; LHS Numismatik 97, (10 May 2006), lot 55. The reign of Severus Alexander presents the last relatively tranquil interlude before the mid-third century storm swept away the Pax Romana. He was born Marcus Julius Gessius Bassianus Alexianus in AD 208 into a clan of Syrian nobility from the caravan city of Emesa. His maternal grand-aunt, Julia Domna, was married to the Emperor Septimius Severus, making him part of an Imperial family that was largely dominated by a clique of strong-minded and clever women, all named Julia. His grandmother Julia Maesa engineered the Severan dynasty's return to power in AD 218 by fomenting the military coup that placed Alexander's cousin Varius Avitus, known to history as Elagabalus, on the throne. Once ensconced in Rome, however, Elagabalus' behavior grew ever more erratic and outrageous. Fearing for the dynasty's future, Maesa in AD 222 engineered the murder of Elagabalus and his replacement by her other, more docile grandson, Alexander. Handsome and affable, the youth was really never more than a figurehead ruler, first for Maesa and then, after her death in AD 225/6, for his mother Julia Mamaea. As long as the Empire remained at peace, the arrangement worked relatively well; the government functioned smoothly and prosperity reigned. Starting in AD 230, Roman Empire came under attack on two fronts-- from Persia in the East and by the German tribes along the Rhine frontier, a foretaste of the decades to come. Alexander managed to check the Persian offensive, but the loss of a large Roman army exposed the regime's military ineptitude. When his mother tried to buy peace from the Germans rather than fight, his outraged soldiers rebelled and murdered them both, launching 40 years of Great Anarchy that nearly destroyed the Empire. Later generations would view Alexander's reign as the last episode of a Golden Age and gave him all the attributes of an Ideal Prince. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/roman-imperial/ancients-severus-alexander-ad-222-235-av-aureus-20mm-666-gm-6h-ngc-ms-5-5-4-5/a/3113-31058.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3113-01082024 HID02906262019 © 2023 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved Estimate: 10000-12000 USD |  |
Match 1:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > CSNS Signature Sale 3115 | Auction date: 8 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 32296 Price realized: 4,000 USD (Approx. 3,721 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancients Severus Alexander (AD 222-235). AV aureus (20mm, 6.72 gm, 6h). NGC Choice AU 5/5 - 3/5, brushed, marks. Rome, AD 223. IMP C M AVR SEV ALEXAND AVG, laureate, draped bust of youthful Severus Alexander right, seen from behind / P M TR P II-COS P P, Jupiter standing facing, head left, nude but for chlamys hanging behind, thunderbolt in right hand, scepter in left. RIC IV.II 18. Calicó 3088. Lustrous goldenrod toning. Ex Classical Numismatic Group, Auction 121 (6 October 2022), lot 904. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/roman-imperial/ancients-severus-alexander-ad-222-235-av-aureus-20mm-672-gm-6h-ngc-choice-au-5-5-3-5-brushed-marks/a/3115-32296.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3115-05082024 HID02906262019 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved |  |
Match 2:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > NYINC Signature Sale 3114 | Auction date: 16 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 33263 Price realized: 2,200 USD (Approx. 2,021 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancients Severus Alexander (AD 222-235). AV aureus (21mm, 6.30 gm, 6h). NGC Choice VF 5/5 - 4/5. Rome, AD 222. IMP C M AVR SEV ALEXAND AVG, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Severus Alexander right, seen from front / LIBERALITAS AVGVSTI, Liberalitas standing facing, tessera with four slots raised in right hand, cornucopia cradled in left. Calicó 3065a. RIC IV.II 149. Clear, bold surfaces with chestnut recess toning that amplifies the devices. From the Dynasty Collection, #IV. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/roman-imperial/ancients-severus-alexander-ad-222-235-av-aureus-21mm-630-gm-6h-ngc-choice-vf-5-5-4-5/a/3114-33263.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3114-01162024 HID02906262019 © 2023 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved |  |
Match 3:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > CSNS Signature Sale 3115 | Auction date: 8 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 31095 Price realized: 15,000 USD (Approx. 13,955 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancients Severus Alexander (AD 222-235). AV aureus (20mm, 6.05 gm, 8h). NGC Choice MS 5/5 - 5/5, Fine Style. Rome, AD 230. IMP SEV ALE-XAND AVG, laureate bust of Severus Alexander right, seen from behind, drapery on left shoulder / P M TR P VIIII-CO-S-III P P, emperor as Romulus, radiate, wearing tunic and sagum (military cloak), walking right, transverse spear in right hand, trophy in left over shoulder. Calicó 3121 (same dies). RIC IV.II 103. Bright and reflective, with a satiny sheen on the reverse. The first eight years of Severus Alexander's reign were mercifully free of serious external threats. In AD 230, however, the new Sasanian king of Persia, Ardashir I, staged a major invasion of Rome's eastern provinces, besieging the important border city of Nisibis and raiding as far as Cappadocia. Peaceful by nature and with no military training, Alexander was ill-equipped to deal with the situation. His mother Julia Mamaea, the real ruler of the state, made peace offers to the Sasanians, which were haughtily rebuffed. Alexander was thus compelled to mount an expedition to the east. The martial tone of this beautiful aureus is likely part of the propaganda build-up to war. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/roman-imperial/ancients-severus-alexander-ad-222-235-av-aureus-20mm-605-gm-8h-ngc-choice-ms-5-5-5-5-fine-style/a/3115-31095.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3115-05082024 HID02906262019 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved Estimate: 10000-14000 USD |  |
Match 4:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > CSNS Signature Sale 3115 | Auction date: 8 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 31098 Price realized: 5,250 USD (Approx. 4,884 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancients Trajan Decius (AD 249-251). AV aureus (20mm, 4.94 gm, 1h). NGC Choice AU 5/5 - 3/5. Rome. IMP C M Q TRAIANVS DECIVS AVG, laureate, cuirassed bust of Trajan Decius right, seen from behind / PANNONIAE, two Pannoniae standing facing, veiled heads turned outward, each with standard in outer hand, right figure with right hand raised. Calicó 3295. RIC IV.III 21a var. (laureate, draped, and cuirassed). Attractive portrait. Bright flashing surfaces. Born on the Danubian frontier, Gaius Messius Quintus Trajanus Decius came to the throne with a ready-made agenda for the restoration of Rome's fading glory. He tried several innovations on the financial front, including the introduction of a new coin denomination, the double-sestertius. Despite these measures, the gold coinage of Decius shows a sharp acceleration in the debasement witnessed over the previous two decades, which had seen the aureus drop from about 6.5 grams under Severus Alexander (AD 222-235) to about 4.5 grams under Philip I (AD 244-249). Aurei struck near the beginning of his reign average about the same as Philip's, but this plummets by more than a gram over the course of the next 18 months. Perhaps seeking to confiscate their estates and replenish the treasury, he cracked down harshly on those he believed were undermining the ancient traditions of Rome. Christianity was particularly singled out, and thousands of Christians were forced to either make sacrifice to Rome's gods or face torture, execution and seizure of assets. Renewed barbarian invasions late in AD 250 took his attention away from domestic affairs. Seeking a decisive battle, Decius pursued the fleeing Goths into the marshes of Abrittus and straight into an ambush. Decius and about half of his army perished in the debacle, the first time a Roman emperor had fallen to a foreign enemy. The Christians claimed it was God's revenge on an arch-persecutor. In any case, the catastrophe at Abrittus accelerated the Roman Empire's slide into anarchy. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/roman-imperial/ancients-trajan-decius-ad-249-251-av-aureus-20mm-494-gm-1h-ngc-choice-au-5-5-3-5/a/3115-31098.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3115-05082024 HID02906262019 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved Estimate: 7500-8500 USD |  |
Match 5:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > CSNS Signature Sale 3115 | Auction date: 8 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 32302 Price realized: 3,800 USD (Approx. 3,535 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancients Gordian III (AD 238-244). AV aureus (19mm, 4.72 gm, 6h). NGC MS 5/5 - 3/5, brushed. Rome, ca. AD 241-243. IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Gordian III right, seen from behind / AETER-NITATI AVG, Sol standing facing, radiate head left, nude but for chlamys across left shoulder, right hand raised in adlocutio, globe in outstretched left hand. Calicó 3186. RIC IV.III 97. Well-centered and firmly struck on a sunny, bright flan. Ex Künker, Auction 351 (25 September 2021), lot 456. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/roman-imperial/ancients-gordian-iii-ad-238-244-av-aureus-19mm-472-gm-6h-ngc-ms-5-5-3-5-brushed/a/3115-32302.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3115-05082024 HID02906262019 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved |  |
