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Ancient Rome (Imperial): silver antoninianus of Philip I "The Arab" (244-249 AD), struck c
lordmarcovan
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Ancient Rome (Imperial): silver antoninianus of Philip I "The Arab" (244-249 AD), struck circa 247 AD
Obverse- IMP M IVL PHILIPPVS AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
Reverse- ROMAE AETERNAE, Roma sitting left, holding Victory and scepter.
RIC 44b, RSC 169, 22-23 mm, 3.26 g. NGC XF (strike 5/5, Surface 2/5, "granularity"). Ex- Mathew Baca ("bronzemat"), through a swap on Collectors Universe, 11/15/2011.
Philip the Arab* was reportedly tolerant of Christianity* and some traditions have him as the first Christian emperor, though Constantine the Great from the fourth century is more commonly associated with that distinction. (It's hazy and controversial in both cases, but so much of ancient history is, where sources vary.) NGC calls this a "double denarius", which it was, but I think "antoninianus" is a more widely used term for this denomination. I could buy these affordable antoninianii for quite a while before getting sick of them. Being bigger than denarii, they just pack a lot of visual bang for the buck, and often come really nice, sharp, and bright, like this. This one is a little granular, as NGC noted, but the sharp strike and near-perfect centering compensate for that. I've had some really nice antoninianii from this era for under fifty bucks. They are great "entry level" ancient silver for a collector on a budget. This one cost me about $35 in trade, so I have roughly the same amount invested in the coin as I do the slab it it's in.
NGC cert verification page
As of the last edit, this coin was part of my "Eclectic Box of 20" collection.
Obverse- IMP M IVL PHILIPPVS AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
Reverse- ROMAE AETERNAE, Roma sitting left, holding Victory and scepter.
RIC 44b, RSC 169, 22-23 mm, 3.26 g. NGC XF (strike 5/5, Surface 2/5, "granularity"). Ex- Mathew Baca ("bronzemat"), through a swap on Collectors Universe, 11/15/2011.
Philip the Arab* was reportedly tolerant of Christianity* and some traditions have him as the first Christian emperor, though Constantine the Great from the fourth century is more commonly associated with that distinction. (It's hazy and controversial in both cases, but so much of ancient history is, where sources vary.) NGC calls this a "double denarius", which it was, but I think "antoninianus" is a more widely used term for this denomination. I could buy these affordable antoninianii for quite a while before getting sick of them. Being bigger than denarii, they just pack a lot of visual bang for the buck, and often come really nice, sharp, and bright, like this. This one is a little granular, as NGC noted, but the sharp strike and near-perfect centering compensate for that. I've had some really nice antoninianii from this era for under fifty bucks. They are great "entry level" ancient silver for a collector on a budget. This one cost me about $35 in trade, so I have roughly the same amount invested in the coin as I do the slab it it's in.
NGC cert verification page
As of the last edit, this coin was part of my "Eclectic Box of 20" collection.
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