| Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XXX | Auction date: 21 March 2024 |
| Lot number: 484 Price realized: 3,400 GBP (Approx. 4,307 USD / 3,966 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Trajan Decius AV Aureus. Rome, AD 249-251. IMP C M Q TRAIANVS DECIVS AVG, laureate and cuirassed bust to right / PANNONIAE, the two Pannoniae standing facing, veiled and draped, their heads turned to left and right looking away from each other, each holding standard pointed outwards. RIC IV 21a var. (bust type); C. 85; Calicó 3295. 3.94g, 20mm, 6h. Extremely Fine; minor surface flaw on cheek. Ex Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co. KG, Auction 341, 1 October 2020, lot 6026 (hammer: EUR 4,000). Trajan Decius was acclaimed emperor by his troops while campaigning in Moesia and Pannonia on behalf of Philip I 'the Arab'. He had been sent to quell the revolt of the usurper Pacatian, who had been proclaimed emperor himself by his troops but was, ultimately, also killed by them before the intervention of Decius. According to Zosimus, Decius was apparently reluctant and unwilling to take power. However, having taken the purple, Philip advanced against Decius and the two met in battle near Verona, in which Philip was routed and killed. Subsequently, Decius' accession was recognised by the Senate, who conferred on him the name Traianus in reference to his predecessor Trajan, the optimus princeps ('best ruler') of the Roman Empire. Taking the name of Trajan was more than simple vainglory - in the first Dacian War of AD 101-102 Trajan had reduced the Danube region to the status of a client kingdom, later absorbing it into the empire after the second Dacian War in 105-106. The new emperor, who hailed from the very same region, was seen to have already quelled a revolt in the troubled frontier area, and it was hoped he would restore the strength of the State. Estimate: 2500 GBP |  |
Match 1:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XXX | Auction date: 21 March 2024 |
| Lot number: 483 Price realized: 6,000 GBP (Approx. 7,601 USD / 6,998 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Trajan Decius AV Aureus. Rome, AD 249-251. IMP C M Q TRAIANVS DECIVS AVG, laureate and cuirassed bust to right / PANNONIAE, the two Pannoniae, veiled and draped, standing facing, their heads turned to left and right, each holding standard pointed outwards. RIC IV 21a; C. 85; Calicó 3295. 4.82g, 20mm, 7h. Near Mint State; minor edge marks, lustrous metal. Fine style. Ex Leu Numismatik AG, Auction 1, 25 October 2017, lot 318 (hammer: CHF 7,500). Trajan Decius was acclaimed emperor by his troops while campaigning in Moesia and Pannonia on behalf of Philip I 'the Arab'. He had been sent to quell the revolt of the usurper Pacatian, who had been proclaimed emperor himself by his troops but was, ultimately, also killed by them before the intervention of Decius. According to Zosimus, Decius was apparently reluctant and unwilling to take power. However, having taken the purple, Philip now advanced against Decius and the two met in battle near Verona, where Philip's forces were routed and he himself was killed. Subsequently, Decius' accession was recognised by the Senate, who conferred on him the name Traianus in reference to his predecessor Trajan, the optimus princeps ('best ruler') of the Roman Empire. Taking the name of Trajan was more than simple vainglory - in the first Dacian War of AD 101-102 Trajan had reduced the Danube region to the status of a client kingdom, later absorbing it into the empire after the second Dacian War in 105-106. The new emperor, who hailed from the very same region, was seen to have already quelled a revolt in the troubled frontier area, and it was hoped he would restore the strength of the State. This however was not to be. Barbarian incursions into the empire were becoming more frequent and more daring, while internally the empire was weakened and unable to secure its frontiers. In 250-251 a major Gothic incursion crossed the Danube and raided parts of Moesia and Thrace. Decius surprised the Goths as they were laying siege to Nicopolis, and while they at first made to retreat, they doubled back and in turn caught Decius unprepared, dispersing the Roman army and sacking their camp. Once the Roman army had reformed, Decius again marched to confront the Gothic invaders along with his son Herennius Etruscus and the general Trebonianus Gallus. At the Battle of Abritus in the second week of June 251 on a swampy patch of ground the Roman army initially routed the Goths' front line, but made the mistake of pursuing their opponents into the swamp where they were ambushed and destroyed under a barrage of missiles. Both Herennius Etruscus and Decius were slain, their bodies never recovered. Decius' pay-chests amounting to several tons of gold, along with many weapons, were despoiled by the Goths and have since been discovered hoarded in many locations throughout the historic Gothic territories (The Battle of Abritus, the Imperial Treasury and Aurei in Barbaricum, Numismatic Chronicle 173, 2013, p. 151). Trajan Decius thus earned for himself the dubious distinction of becoming the first reigning Augustus to be killed in battle by a foreign enemy. Trebonianus Gallus, maligned by Zosimus (1.25), became emperor on Decius' death, and adopted his predecessor's younger son, Hostilian, as joint emperor despite the latter's young age preventing him from ruling in his own right. Estimate: 5000 GBP |  |
Match 2:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 115 | Auction date: 21 December 2023 |
| Lot number: 939 Price realized: Unsold | |
| Lot description: Trajan Decius Æ Sestertius. Rome, AD 249-251. IMP C M Q TRAIANVS DECIVS AVG, laureate and cuirassed bust to right / GEN ILLVRICI, Genius standing to left, holding patera and cornucopiae; S-C across fields. RIC IV 116a; Sear 9403. 23.19g, 31mm, 6h. About Very Fine. Ex Roma Numismatics Ltd., E-Sale 28, 2 July 2016, lot 672. Estimate: 50 GBP |  |
Match 3:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 115 | Auction date: 21 December 2023 |
| Lot number: 938 Price realized: 45 GBP (Approx. 57 USD / 52 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Trajan Decius Æ Sestertius. Rome, AD 249-251. IMP C M Q TRAIANVS [DECIVS AVG], laureate and cuirassed bust to right / [D]A[CI]A FELIX, Dacia standing to left, holding standard; S C across fields. RIC IV3 114a; C.35. 15.06g, 25mm, 12h. Good Very Fine. Estimate: 50 GBP |  |
Match 4:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 116 | Auction date: 18 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 886 Price realized: 65 GBP (Approx. 82 USD / 76 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Trajan Decius Æ Sestertius. Rome, AD 249-251. IMP C M Q TRAIANVS DECIVS AVG, laureate and cuirassed bust to right / VICTORIA AVG, Victory running to left, holding wreath and palm; S-C across fields. RIC IV 126d; C. 118; Banti 31. 17.44g, 31mm, 12h. Good Very Fine. Acquired from Den of Antiquity Ltd. (dealer's ticket included). Estimate: 50 GBP |  |
Match 5:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > E-Sale 117 | Auction date: 22 February 2024 |
| Lot number: 1015 Price realized: 40 GBP (Approx. 50 USD / 47 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Trajan Decius Æ Sestertius. Rome, AD 249-251. IMP C M Q TRAIANVS DECIVS AVG, laureate and cuirassed bust to right / DACIA, Dacia standing to left, holding staff surmounted by head of ass; S-C across fields. RIC IV 113b. 17.06g, 28mm, 12h. Good Very Fine; an attractive portrait of Decius. Ex cgb.fr e-shop. Estimate: 50 GBP |  |
