| Ira & Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles > Auction 137 | Auction date: 29 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 1281 Price realized: 2,300 USD (Approx. 2,130 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | Show similar lots on CoinArchives Find similar lots in upcoming auctions on  |
| Lot description: Martinian. Æ Follis (3.02 g), Usurper, AD 324. Nicomedia. D N M MARTINIANO P F AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust of Martinian right. Reverse: IOVI CONS-ERVATORI, Jupiter standing facing, head left, nude but for chlamys over left shoulder, holding Victory on globe and scepter surmounted by eagle; at feet to left, eagle standing left, head right, holding wreath in beak; at feet to right, bound captive right, head left; X/IIΓ//SMNB. RIC 46. Well centered with full legends and brown patina. Much nicer than typically found. Conservatively graded. NGC grade Ch VF; Strike: 5/5, Surface: 3/5. Estimated Value $4,000 - UP Little is known of the emperor Martinian. Before his elevation to the throne by Licinius I in early July AD 324, Martinian was an official in Licinius' court. It was only after Constantine the Great defeated Licinius at Hadrianopolis on 3 July that Licinius, seeing a need for a trusted colleague to help secure Asia Minor and to prevent Constantine from invading, raised Martinian to the purple.However, Martinian was unequal to the task. Having command of Licinius' navy, he suffered a crushing naval defeat by Constantine's son, Crispus, at the Hellespont, which allowed Constantine to storm across the strait and invade. The result was the total defeat of Licinius by Constantine at Chrysopolis on 18 September AD 324. Through the intervention of Constantia, Constanine's sister and the wife of Liicnius, Constantine spared both Licinius and Martinian. However, subsequently Constantine must have exerienced a change of heart because during the following year, 325, he had both Licinius and Martinian executed. |  |
