A C A S E S T U DY O N H O W T O I D E N T I F Y T H E M
ROMAN IMPERIAL COINS
Gustavo TrappJune 18th, 2012
EXAMPLE
Coin found in Sanisera in 2011
Obverse side Reverse side
OBVERSE
TITLESAVG. Augustus or AugustaARM. Armeniacus (conqueror of Armenia).BRIT. Britanicus (conqueror of Britian.CAESAR, CAES. Heir to the throne.CENS. or CENS. PER. Censor PerpetuusCOS. or C. ConsulDAC. Dacicus (conqueror or Dacia).DIVI, DIVO or DIVA Divine (acclaimed a deity).D.N. Dominus Noster ('Our Lord').F. or FIL. or FILI Filius or Filia GERM. Germanicus (conqueror of Germany).IMP. Imperator (supreme army commander).IMP. C. Imperator Caesar.NOB. Nobilissimus or Nobilissima (noble).N. C., NOB. CAES. Nobilitas Caesar ("Royal Heir").OPTIMO or OPTIMO PRINCIPI Best ruler.PART. Parthicus (conqueror of Parthia).PERP. Perpetuatae (forever or for life).P. F. Pius Felix (dutiful and wise).P. M., PON. M. Pontifex Maximus.P. P. Pater Patriae (father of the country).PRINC. IVVENT. Princeps Iuventis (young prince)
TypeFigure of the emperor or
empress
LegendName & Titles
OBVERSE LEGEND
? ? ? ? ? O D O
N T E ?
Check the roman emperor's list, e.g.: http://wildwinds.com/coins/ric/i.html
TheodoraTheodosius ITheodosius II
CANDIDATES
Theodosius I - last emperor to rule both western and eastern halves of the roman empire, from 379 to 395 AD
Theodosius II - Byzantine emperor, 408 to 450 AD
Theodora - Roman empress, second wife of Constantius I, 337to 340 AD (but has a different hair style)
REVERSE
No Inscription
Reverse Design:
Exergue: SHKΓ or SMKΓ
VOTX
MVLTXX
EXEGUER
SHKΓ or
SMKΓ
Minting house abbreviation
Last letter: Officinae (workshop)roman letter - western mintgreek letter - eastern mint
3rd workshop
SMK - Cyzicus, Turkey 294-491AD
DESIGN
VOTX
MVLTXX
Vows for 10 years reign, wishing for 10 additional
Votis Decennalibus
Multis Vicennalibus
Could not find this design on coins from Theodosius II
EXAMPLES
CONCLUSION
• Coin is probably from Theodosius I (379-395 AD)• Full legend is DN THEODO [SIVS PF AVG] • Dominus Noster THEODOSIUS Pius Felix Augustus• Our Lord THEODOSIUS Dutiful & Wise Augustus
• Minted in Cyzicus • Officinae #3 • Between 389 and 395 AD
BIBLIOGRAPHY
• Reading and Cataloguing Roman coins - http://coins.calkinsc.com/old_site/rcrc/rcrc.html
• Virtual Catalog of Roman Coins - http://vcrc.austincollege.edu/
• Portable Antiques Scheme - http://finds.org.uk/romancoins
• List of Roman Mints: http://www.time-lines.co.uk/glossary-of-ancient-roman-coin-mintmarks-3042-0.html
• NumisWiki - http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/
• Abreviaturas numismática romana - http://www.tesorillo.com/roma/abreviaturas_af.htm
• Wildwinds - http://wildwinds.com/coins/ric/i.html
• Cyzicus - http://www.numisology.com/Cyzicus.htm