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| Classical Numismatic Group > Mail Bid Sale 66 | Auction date: 19 May 2004 |
| Lot number: 1368 | |
| Lot description: BRITANNICUS, son of Claudius and Messalina. Died 55 AD. Æ Sestertius (24.95 gm). Thracian mint. Estimate $10000 BRITANNICUS, son of Claudius and Messalina. Died 55 AD. Æ Sestertius (24.95 gm). Thracian mint. Bare-headed and draped bust right / Mars advancing left, holding spear and shield. RIC I pg. 130, note; Von Kaenel, "Britannicus, Agrippina Minor und Nero in Thrakien," SNR 63 (1984), Type B3 and Tafel 20, 1-3 (same dies); BMCRE 306 (Titus) var. (head left); Cohen 1. See also RPC I pp. 311 and 319 for a discussion of this issue. Choice Fine, green patina, scattered areas of minor pitting. Extremely rare, the fifth recorded Britannicus sestertius with head right . ($10,000) Originally, this issue was attributed to Rome, either at the very end of Claudius' reign when Britannicus adopted the toga virilis, or in the initial days of Nero's reign when the young son of Claudius and Messalina became the focal point of opposition to the new regime. Mattingly demonstrated such an attribution was problematic and assigned the type instead to the early years of Titus, when many restoration and commemorative issues were being struck. Based on localized finds of this and other types in the Balkan region, von Kaenel argued for a Thracian provenance. Two of the three specimens of this variety known to von Kaenel are in public collections (Berlin and the Bibliothèque Nationale). |  |
