| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 116 | Auction date: 18 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 813 Price realized: 80 GBP (Approx. 101 USD / 93 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Commodus AR Denarius. Rome, AD 191-192. L AEL AVREL COMM AVG P FEL, bust to right, wearing lion skin headdress / HERCVL ROMAN AVGV, written in three lines across club within wreath. RIC III 251; BMCRE 339. RSC 190. 2.84g, 18mm, 6h. Very Fine. Commodus is often credited by ancient sources with the near destruction of the Roman Empire, through a combination of disinterest in governance and an all-consuming belief that he was of god-like status. With his accession, says the contemporary historian Cassius Dio, the history of the Roman Empire descended from a kingdom of gold to one of iron and rust, as affairs did for the Romans of that day (LXXII.36.4). By the latter years of his reign when this denarius was struck, Commodus believed Hercules was his divine patron, and he worshipped him so intensely that eventually he came to believe himself an incarnation of the mythological hero, thus reinforcing the image he was cultivating of himself as a demigod who, as the son of Jupiter, was the representative of the supreme god of the Roman pantheon. The growing megalomania of the emperor permeated all areas of Roman life, as is witnessed in the material record by the innumerable statues erected around the empire portraying him in the guise of Hercules (including the famous 'Commodus as Hercules' sculpture now located in the Capitoline Museums), and his coinage. Estimate: 50 GBP |  |
Match 1:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 117 | Auction date: 22 February 2024 |
| Lot number: 907 Price realized: 95 GBP (Approx. 120 USD / 111 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Commodus AR Denarius. Rome, AD 191-192. L AEL AVREL COMM AVG P FEL, bust to right in lion's skin headdress / HERCVL ROMAN AVGV, written in three lines across club within wreath. RIC III 251; BMCRE 339. RSC 190. 3.30g, 17mm, 11h. Very Fine. Ex Roma Numismatics Ltd., E-Sale 104, 15 December 2022, lot 1010. Commodus is often credited by ancient sources with the near destruction of the Roman Empire, through a combination of disinterest in governance and an all-consuming belief that he was of god-like status. With his accession, says the contemporary historian Cassius Dio, the history of the Roman Empire descended from a kingdom of gold to one of iron and rust, as affairs did for the Romans of that day (LXXII.36.4). By the latter years of his reign when this denarius was struck, Commodus believed Hercules was his divine patron, and he worshipped him so intensely that eventually he came to believe himself an incarnation of the mythological hero, thus reinforcing the image he was cultivating of himself as a demigod who, as the son of Jupiter, was the representative of the supreme god of the Roman pantheon. The growing megalomania of the emperor permeated all areas of Roman life, as is witnessed in the material record by the innumerable statues erected around the empire portraying him in the guise of Hercules (including the famous 'Commodus as Hercules' sculpture now located in the Capitoline Museums), and his coinage. Estimate: 100 GBP |  |
Match 2:
| Leu Numismatik AG > Web Auction 28 | Auction date: 9 December 2023 |
| Lot number: 3800 Price realized: 130 CHF (Approx. 148 USD / 137 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Commodus, 177-192. Denarius (Silver, 17 mm, 2.42 g, 12 h), Rome, 191-192. L AEL AVREL COMM AVG P FEL Head of Commodus to right, wearing lion skin headdress. Rev. HERCVL / ROMAN / AVGV Club; all within wreath. BMC 339. Cohen 190. RIC 251. Harshly cleaned and rough, otherwise, very fine. Starting price: 25 CHF |  |
Match 3:
| Leu Numismatik AG > Web Auction 29 | Auction date: 24 February 2024 |
| Lot number: 2127 Price realized: 300 CHF (Approx. 341 USD / 315 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Commodus, 177-192. Denarius (Silver, 16.9 mm, 2.12 g, 6 h), Rome, 191-192. L AEL AVREL COMM AVG P FEL Head of Commodus to right, wearing lion skin headdress. Rev. HERCVL / ROMAN / AVGV Club; all within wreath. BMC 339. Cohen 190. RIC 251. Somewhat porous, otherwise, very fine. Starting price: 25 CHF |  |
Match 4:
| Leu Numismatik AG > Web Auction 29 | Auction date: 24 February 2024 |
| Lot number: 2128 Price realized: 300 CHF (Approx. 341 USD / 315 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Commodus, 177-192. Sestertius (Orichalcum, 29 mm, 22.39 g, 12 h), Rome, end of 191-192. L AEL AVREL COMM AVG P FEL Head of Commodus, as Hercules, to right, wearing lion skin headdress. Rev. HER-CVL / ROM-ANO / AV-GV / S - C in four lines across field divided by upright club; all within wreath. BMC 713. Cohen 194. RIC 638. Scuff marks on the obverse, otherwise, very fine. From The Friedrich Collection, Numismatica Ars Classica, 2 April 1995, 1568. Starting price: 75 CHF |  |
Match 5:
| The Coin Cabinet Ltd. > The Euclidean Collection | Auction date: 28 March 2024 |
| Lot number: 328 Price realized: 120 GBP (Approx. 152 USD / 140 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Very Fine; surface striations | ROMAN EMPIRE. Commodus. Bronze sestertius, AD 192. Rome. Obv: L AEL AVREL COMM AVG P FEL, laureate head right. Rev: PROVIDENTIAE AVG, Hercules in lion-skin standing left, foot on prow, resting club on rock and receiving corn-ears from Africa in elephant headdress standing right and holding sistrum; lion at feet, SC in exergue. Very Fine; surface striations. Reference: RIC III-641; BMCRE-720. Rarity: Rare. Provenance: from the Euclidean Collection; acquired from David Miller, December 2016. Die Axis: 1h. Diameter: 31 mm. Weight: 28.91 g. Composition: Bronze. PLEASE NOTE: 20% Buyer Premium + VAT on this lot. No other fees, including live bidding. Delivery cost will be added to your order. Estimate: 200 GBP Starting price: 100 GBP |  |
