Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 901
Constans I AR Siliqua. Nicomedia, AD 337-340. Laurel and rosette-diademed head right, with eyes raised to heaven / CONSTANS AVG, Victory advancing left, holding wreath and palm; SMN in exergue. CNG E-377, lot 532 (same obv. die); CNG 103, lot 883; otherwise unpublished. 3.06g, 20mm, 6h. Extremely Fine. Flan crack, some porosity, hairline scratches. Lightly toned. Very rare, one of three known specimens of the type. Ex Classical Numismatic Group 102, 18 May 2016, lot 1099. Previously unpublished, the cataloguer of CNG 102 assigned this piece to the mint of Nicomedia in the decade following the loss to the city of its status as capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. Certainly this mint produced plentiful coinage in the name of Constans I after he was raised to the purple in AD 337, however the type and specifically the mintmark fit with the known emissions from the mint at Heraclea, and apparently oppose that struck for Constantius II at Nicomedia, so some small doubt remains. The SMN mintmark seen on the present piece would seem to imply that the coin was struck in Nicomedia, however a very similar mintmark was employed at Heraclea (cf. RIC VIII 12, RSC 2b) on issues known for both Constans I and Constantius II, whereas the known type from Nicomedia for Constantius II bears the mintmark SMN? (cf. RIC VIII 3, RSC 4b). The authors of RIC VIII noted that caution was required with regard this piece as they referenced Henry Cohen's earlier work, however this has now been confirmed (Peus E-420, 18 November 2017, lot 6346). Could this coin then simply bear the SMH mintmark of Heraclea, with an inexpertly engraved H? The clarity of the N on this particular example, and the existence of coins from other dies of the same type, strongly suggest it to be an unpublished type from Nicomedia and therefore extremely rare, with only two other examples being known.
![Etruria, Populonia AR 20 Asses. 3rd century BC. Facing head of Metus, tongue protruding, hair bound with diadem [X:X] below /](https://cdn.globalauctionplatform.com/a82493de-74b6-4494-b0c2-a93800aa028d/438099ba-c705-4926-fffe-68170c7017e8/468x382.jpg)
![Etruria, Populonia AR 5 Asses. 3rd century BC. Head of Turms right, wearing winged petasos, [› behind] / Three protuberances.](https://cdn.globalauctionplatform.com/a82493de-74b6-4494-b0c2-a93800aa028d/8938a6b9-6f8a-4990-d418-f11ffe40a17d/468x382.jpg)
