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Classical Numismatic Group > Auction 132Auction date: 18 May 2026
Lot number: 763

Price realized: 2,125 USD   (Approx. 1,825 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description:


Titus. As Caesar, AD 69-79. Æ Sestertius (33mm, 23.70 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck under Vespasian, 1 July AD 72–30 June 73. Laureate head right / Mars advancing right, holding spear and trophy. RIC II.1 500 (Vespasian). Green patina, smoothing, some details enhanced, minor doubling on reverse. Good VF. Not suitable for encapsulation.

Ex Leu Numismatik AG 17 (31 May 2025), lot 428 (hammer 3,400 CHF).

Flavius Titus Vespasianus was born in AD 41, as son of the successful general Vespasian. Titus had the honor of being raised and educated at court alongside the emperor Claudius' son, Britannicus. He grew into an intelligent, handsome, and charming young man who became his father's second in command for the Judaean campaign of AD 66-69. When Nero's regime collapsed, Titus played a key role in the negotiations with other provincial governors that led to Vespasian's acclamation as emperor. While Vespasian marched on Rome to confront his rivals, Titus took over direction of the Judaean war. He led his legions with dash, verve and personal courage, thus becoming an idol to his men. The Judaean campaign culminated in the brutal storming of Jerusalem in AD 70. Titus was granted a Triumph and the victory was celebrated with a widespread issue of coinage for Vespasian, Titus and his brother Domitian, both "Judaea Capta" types and simple Victory issues. These types include this Victory aureus of Titus as Caesar, struck cira AD 72-73. Though still theoretically subordinate to his father, Titus is shown wearing the laurel wreath or radiate usually reserved only for the emperor, visually signaling his status as virtual co-ruler with Vespasian.

Estimate: 1500 USD

Match 1:
Classical Numismatic Group > Electronic Auction 618Auction date: 7 October 2026
Lot number: 684

Price realized: 375 USD   (Approx. 335 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description:


Titus. As Caesar, AD 69-79. Æ Sestertius (33mm, 26.46 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck under Vespasian, July AD 72. Laureate head right / Salus seated left with patera and scepter; SC in exergue. RIC II.1 459 (R3; this coin illustrated). Brown patina, roughness. Near VF. Unique - only one in CoinArchives. When Ian Carradice and Ted Buttrey produced the second fully revised edition of RIC II.1 they knew of only this coin.

Ex Stack's (17 January 2025), lot 36191; Lars Rutten Collection.


Estimate: 200 USD

Match 2:
Classical Numismatic Group > Auction 132Auction date: 18 May 2026
Lot number: 44

Price realized: 27,500 USD   (Approx. 23,623 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description:


Titus. As Caesar, AD 69-79. AV Aureus (20mm, 7.39 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck under Vespasian, AD 76. T CAESAR IMP VESPASIAN, laureate head right / COS V, heifer of Myron standing right. RIC II.1 857 (Vespasian); Calicó 733a; BMCRE 185 (Vespasian); BN 162 (Vespasian); Adda 64; Biaggi 363 (this coin); Jameson 71 (this coin); Mazzini 51. Minor scratch on obverse, minor marks on reverse. EF. A magnificent portrait.

From the PLZ Collection. Ex Leo Biaggi de Blasys Collection (Numismatica Ars Classica 49, 21 October 2008), lot 162; Robert Jameson Collection (publ. 1913); M. Fellot Collection (Bourgey, 13 April 1904), lot 79.

Another great provenance with an iconic reverse. (PLZ)

Titus Flavius Vespasianus was the elder son of the emperor Vespasian. Like his father, he made his reputation in the Roman army, holding ever-more important positions in Germania and Britannia. Later, he led the 15th Legion to Judaea to join his father in the suppression of the Jewish rebellion known as the First Jewish War. In AD 69, "the Year of the Four Emperors," Vespasian broke off the Judean campaign to make his own attempt to seize the purple. Titus remained behind in Judaea to finish the campaign against the Jewish rebels. Vespasian would already be emperor when Titus finally besieged the city of Jerusalem in AD 70. When Jerusalem fell, the city and its centerpiece, the Second Temple, suffered almost total destruction.

Titus returned to Rome in AD 71 and was given a grand triumph. Details of this event are still to be seen on the arch of Titus in the Roman Forum. Titus and Domitian were both declared Caesars by the Roman Senate, but Titus was clearly preferred and, as Praetorian Prefect, was virtually co-emperor with his father, holding seven consulships in total. Upon Vespasian's death in June of AD 79, Titus succeeded to the throne without opposition.

He proceeded to rule with moderation, intelligence and compassion. Vespasian used the spoils of the Jewish war to build Rome's most recognizable and enduring monuments, the great Flavian Amphitheater (Colosseum). Although begun and largely constructed under his father, it would be Titus who officially opened the Amphitheater in AD 80. The inaugural games to open the Colosseum lasted for 100 days and included gladiatorial contests, naval battles, chariot and horse racing, and a wide variety of exotic animal events. To this day, even in ruins, it remains one of the most visited sites in Rome.

Unfortunately, Titus' brief reign also included more than its fair share of tragedy. The eruption of Mount Vesuvius destroyed the cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, likely in October AD 79, shortly after he assumed office. His relief efforts, which included large personal donations, are widely admired, and Titus is known to have visited the area on two occasions. In AD 80, another major fire broke out in Rome, and many buildings were destroyed, including the Pantheon, Temple of Jupiter, and Theater of Pompey. Again, Titus provided money from his personal fortune to aid in the relief and repair efforts.

Unfortunately for Rome, his time was destined to be short. Titus was observed to weep at the games opening the Colosseum and took seriously ill shortly thereafter. He seems to have sensed his doom and lamented that he was going to an early grave with only one serious regret, the nature of which has been the subject of speculation ever since. He died on September 1, AD 81 at the age of 40, in the same house where his father had succumbed two years before.

This impressive aureus of Titus was struck while he was Caesar to Vespasian, in AD 73. Although the Flavian dynasty was on firm footing by the time of issue, the reverse design of a standing sacrificial cow reprises an issue of Augustus and is intended to further legitimize Flavian rule. Hailing from the prestigious Biaggi Collection, this piece has an exceptionally detailed portrait of Titus, depicting him as a "chip off the old block" of his father.

Estimate: 10000 USD

Match 3:
Classical Numismatic Group > Electronic Auction 609Auction date: 13 May 2026
Lot number: 597

Price realized: 3,750 USD   (Approx. 3,195 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description:


Titus. As Caesar, AD 69-79. AV Aureus (19mm, 6.26 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck under Vespasian, AD 74. T CAESAR IMP VESP, laureate head right / PONTIF TR POT, Fortuna standing left on cippus, holding rudder and cornucopia. RIC II.1 696 (Vespasian); Calicó 751. Fine.


Estimate: 2000 USD

Match 4:
Classical Numismatic Group > Electronic Auction 609Auction date: 13 May 2026
Lot number: 600

Price realized: 375 USD   (Approx. 320 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description:


Domitian. As Caesar, AD 69-81. Æ Dupondius (28mm, 12.84 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck under Vespasian, AD 73-74. Laureate and draped bust right / Felicitas standing left, holding caduceus and cornucopia. RIC II.1 658 (Vespasian). Brown patina, brassy high points, some roughness. VF. Bold portrait.


Estimate: 150 USD

Match 5:
Classical Numismatic Group > Keystone Auction 17Auction date: 22 July 2026
Lot number: 246

Price realized: 1,300 USD   (Approx. 1,140 EUR)   Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees.
Lot description:


Marcus Aurelius. As Caesar, AD 139-161. Æ Sestertius (32mm, 24.33 g, 11h). Rome mint. Struck under Antoninus Pius, AD 159-160. Bareheaded bust right, slight drapery / Mars advancing right, holding spear and trophy over shoulder. RIC III 1352Aa (Pius); Banti 383. Brown patina, minor roughness, edge mark. Good VF.

From the W. Toliver Besson Collection. Ex Gemini VIII (with Heritage, 14 April 2011), lot 350.


Estimate: 500 USD