Beautiful Full Facing Portrait Aureus of Licinius
II
699
Licinius II (Caesar, AD 317-324), Gold Aureus, 5.3g. Mint of Nicomedia, AD 321/2.
D N VAL LICIN
LININIVS NOB C
, bare-headed, draped and cuirassed bust facing. Rev.
IOVI CONSER-VATORI CAES
, Jupiter
seated facing on throne set on platform, holding Victory on globe and sceptre, platform inscribed
SIC V/SIC
X
in two lines, eagle standing left at feet to left, head right, holding wreath in beak,
SMN
∆
(RIC 42; Depeyrot
31/2; Calicó 5150 (this coin)). Boldly struck with full legends on both sides on a full flan with margins, a few
faint hairlines on the obverse, delicately toned, superb extremely fine.
$ 40,000
This remarkable facing head Aureus commemorates the fifth anniversary of the young Caesar Licinius II as well as the tenth
anniversary of his father, Licinius I. Although early, the facing portrait here established the precedent for what would become a
standard type of late Roman/Byzantine numismatic imperial iconography: the facing portrait coins of the Licinii are extremely
rare, those of Constantius II who revived the type are much more common, and with the joint reigns of Arcadius and Honorius it
becomes the norm, lasting in various forms through the entirety of Byzantine coinage.
700
Constantius II (AD 337-361), Gold Solidus, 4.39g. Mint of Constantinople, AD 347-355.
FL IVL CONSTAN-
TIVS PERP AVG
, diademed, draped and cuirassed bust facing right. Rev.
GLORIA REI-PVBLICAE
, Roma
seated facing and Constantinopolis seated slightly left, resting foot on prow, each holding sceptre and
supporting between them shield inscribed
VOT/XX/MVLT/XXX
in four lines;
SMANZ
(RIC 83; Depeyrot
6/3). In NGC holder graded choice about uncirculated, strike 5/5, surface 4/5.
$ 1,500
