| Noble Numismatics Pty Ltd > Auction 134 | Auction date: 21 November 2023 |
| Lot number: 3872 Price realized: 240 AUD (Approx. 158 USD / 144 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancient Roman AE, including, Constantine I, (A.D. 307-337), follis, issued 328-329, Nicomedia mint, (2.90 g), rev. camp gate (cf. S.3878, RIC 153); Licinius I, (A.D. 308-324), Antioch mint, follis, rev. Jupiter holding Victory, (RIC 27 and 29); Constantius II, (A.D. 337-361), follis (3.33 g); Theodosius (A.D. 37-395), follis , Antioch mint, rev. emperor standing right with foot on captive (cf.RIC IX Antioch 63d). Very good - very fine. (4) Estimate: 100 AUD |
Match 1:
| Noble Numismatics Pty Ltd > Auction 135 | Auction date: 9 April 2024 |
| Lot number: 4508 Price realized: 90 AUD (Approx. 60 USD / 55 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Constantine I, (A.D. 307-337), AE follis, issued 322-3, Trier Mint, (2.69 g), obv. laureate bust to right of Constantine wearing consular robes and holding eagle tipped sceptre, around CONSTAN TINVS AVG, rev. altar inscribed VO/TIS/XX surmounted by globe with three stars above, around BEATA TRA[N] QVILLITAS, .PTR. in exergue, (S.16177, RIC 368, C.20); Urbs Roma type, Commemorative series, Constantine I, issued A.D.332-333), AE follis (reduced centenionalis] Trier Mint, (2.81 g), obv. helmeted bust draped of Roma to left, around VRBS ROMA, rev. she wolf suckling twins [Romulus and Remus], two stars above, TRP in exergue, (S.16487, RIC 542, C.17). Toned, nearly extremely fine - extremely fine, first coin very scarce. (2) Estimate: 150 AUD |  |
Match 2:
| Noble Numismatics Pty Ltd > Auction 135 | Auction date: 9 April 2024 |
| Lot number: 4498 Price realized: 140 AUD (Approx. 93 USD / 85 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Constantius I Chlorus, (A.D. 305-306), AE radiate, Cyzicus Mint, issued A.D. 295-299, (3.40 g), obv. laureate head of Constantius to right, around FL VAL CONSTANTIVS NOB CAES, rev. around CONCORDIA MILITVM, Constantius standing right receiving globe from Jupiter standing opposite and holding a sceptre, KB in exergue, (S.14102, RIC 19a); Constantine I, (307-337 A.D.), AE follis, (327-328), Constantinople Mint, (3.38 g), obv. around CONSTANTI-NVS MAX AVG, head right wearing ladder-shaped pearl and rosette diadem, rev. LIBERT-A-S PVBLICA, Victory standing facing, head left, on galley, holding wreath in each hand. E in left field, (S.16235, RIC 25E); Delmatius, (A.D. 335-337), AE follis, issued 335-337 as Caesar, Antioch Mint, issued 335-6, (2.78 g), obv. laureate bust to right, cuirassed of Delmatius, around FL DELMATIVS NOB C, rev. two soldiers each with spear and a standard, O on banner, around GLOR IA EXERC ITVS, in exergue SMANI, (S.16901, RIC 112). Toning, nearly very fine - nearly extremely fine, the last coin rare. (3) First and third coins ex Lanz, 2018. Estimate: 150 AUD |  |
Match 3:
| Sovereign Rarities Ltd > Auction 12 | Auction date: 21 February 2024 |
| Lot number: 19 Price realized: Unsold | |
| Lot description: Miscellaneous Roman Imperial bronzes (15): Seleucis and Pieria, Elagabalus (AD 218-222), AE, Antioch mint, c. 220, 3.92g; Constantine the Great (AD 306-337), AE Follis, Heraclea mint, c. 324, 2.86g; AE Nummus, Antioch mint, c. 330-335, 2.62g; Licinius I (AD 308-324), AE Follis, Nicomedia mint, c. 321-324, 3.16g; AE Follis, Alexandria mint, c. 321-324, 2.84g; AE Follis, Nicomedia mint, c. 321-324, 2.18g; AE Follis, Antioch mint, c. 313-314, 3.81g; Licinius II, Caesar, (AD 317-324), AE Follis, Cyzicus mint, c. 317-320, 3.39g; AE Follis, unknown mint, 3.34g; Constantius II, as Caesar (AD 324-337), AE Follis, Cyzicus mint, c. 331-334, 2.54g; AE Follis, Cyzicus mint, c. 331-334, 2.49g; Constantius II (AD 337-361), BI Centenionalis, Cyzicus mint, c. 351-354, 2.42g; Commemorative Series (AD 330-354), AE Follis, unknown mint, 2.43g; AE Follis, Constantinople mint, c. 330-335, 2.52g; AE Follis, Cyzicus mint, c. 333-336, 2.97g. See photos for condition. (15) Starting price: 150 GBP |  |
Match 4:
| Classical Numismatic Group > Triton XXVII | Auction date: 9 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 909 Price realized: 8,000 USD (Approx. 7,327 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Constantine I. AD 307/310-337. Æ Follis (19mm, 3.16 g, 12h). Constantinople mint, 1st officina. Struck AD 327. CONSTANTI NVS MAX AVG, laureate head right / SPES PVBLIC, labarum, with Christogram at top and three medallions on drapery, spearing serpent; A|–//CONS. RIC VII 19. Dark brown-green patina, scratches, smoothing. Good VF. Rare and popular type. From the J. K. Biblical Collection. Ex Nomos 19 (17 November 2019), lot 358 (hammer CHF 5500). There has been much speculation regarding this rare issue, minted only at Constantinople during AD 327/8, since it is the only issue of Constantine I which appears to be so overtly Christian in its symbolism. The reverse shows for the first time the labarum (a Christian emblematic replacement for the vexillum) firmly planted on the back of a wriggling serpent. Influenced by the ancient sources (the Panegyrici Latini and, in particular the Vita Constantini of Eusebius), J. Maurice, in his Numismatique Constantinienne (II, pp. 506-13), was the first to argue for such an unambiguous interpretation – the symbol of Christ piercing the dark powers of Satan – a view accepted by subsequent scholars and numismatists (P. Bruun, "The Christian signs on the coins of Constantine" in Studies in Constantinian Numismatics: Papers from 1954 to 1988 [Rome: 1991], p.61). Constantine I was constantly adjusting his public image to meet the changing status of his political career. Such was the case with his new diademed portrait, adopted in 324 following his victory over Licinius I, which depicted Constantine I looking slightly upward, as if in the attitude of prayer. There, the emperor seemed to have been intentionally ambiguous, so that imperial images could be viewed by various groups within the empire in the context of their own hopes and aspirations (for a discussion of Constantine's use of deliberately ambiguous language and imagery, see T.G. Elliot, "The Language of Constantine's Propaganda," TAPA 120 [1990], pp. 349-353 and H.A. Drake, Constantine and the Bishops: The Politics of Intolerance [Johns Hopkins, 2000]). Is that same ambiguity, however, at work here? Beginning with the sons of Constantine and their successors (excluding Julian II, the Apostate), the labarum would appear more regularly on imperial solidi of the mid-fourth century onwards and would be interpreted by Christians and pagans alike as an emblem of imperial power. Likewise, the serpent (or dragon), which first appeared as a non-beneficent symbol on the denarii of Julius Caesar (Crawford 443/1), came to represent enemies of the state, such as "barbarians", "pagans", and "heretics" (cf. Gnecchi 2 for the serpent as a representation of Germanic tribes on a bronze medallion of Constantine I). As with the labarum, the serpent thereafter became an integral part of late Roman imperial iconography, particularly on the reverse of various solidi, where the emperor is depicted triumphally placing his foot on a serpent. In 327, however, the imagery presented on this coin may not have been so ambiguous and may have been directed specifically to those Christians living in and around the new capital. Following his defeat of Licinius I at Chrysopolis in 324, Constantine I worked to reestablish peace and stability within a restored empire. In 325, he successfully convened and oversaw an ecumenical council of Christian bishops in at Nicaea, primarily to address the trouble produced by the Arian controversy in the eastern portion of the empire. The result of this council was the creation of the Nicene Creed and the establishment (under imperial auspices) of a theologically orthodox Christianity. This success, however, was tempered the following year when the imperial family underwent a crisis when Constantine executed his son and heir-apparent, Crispus, and the empress Fausta, allegedly on account of mutual improper behavior. Now, a new dynastic arrangement needed to be implemented, and a period of contrition followed. Not only were the remaining three sons elevated to receive the empire jointly, but also the emperor's mother, Helena, went on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, in part to expiate the sins of the imperial household, and during which journey she discovered a number of important holy relics, including the True Cross, which she brought back to Constantinople. Now, with religious controversies settled, the difficulties of the previous heir replaced by the three new co-heirs, and the bringing of holy relics to the new capital, Constantinople could be untainted by the faults of the old. In the context of these recent events, this coin, meant for local popular consumption, could reassure the populace that Constantine I and his rule, inspired by divine intervention and represented by the labarum, would ensure orthodox stability against all imperial enemies, represented by the serpent. Estimate: 3000 USD |  |
Match 5:
| Noble Numismatics Pty Ltd > Auction 135 | Auction date: 9 April 2024 |
| Lot number: 4532 Price realized: 180 AUD (Approx. 119 USD / 110 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancient Roman AE issues including, Constantine I, (A.D. 307-337), follis, issued 334-335, Treveri Mint, (RIC 525) (2); Constans, folles, (A.D. 337-350), (RIC 196) (2), (one illustrated); Constantine II, AE follis. Antioch, (A.D. 337-348), follis, Antioch Mint, (RIC 342); another, Trier Mint, (RIC 520). Toning, nearly extremely fine - extremely fine. (6) Estimate: 150 AUD |  |
