Lot 94: Cappadocia, Caesarea. Antoninus Pius. A.D. 138-161. AR didrachm. COS III (A.D. 140-144).

Cappadocia, Caesarea. Antoninus Pius. A.D. 138-161. AR didrachm (21 mm, 6.53 g, 6 h). COS III (A.D. 140-144). AYTOKP · ANTωNЄI-[N]OC CЄBACTOC ·, laureate bust of Antoninus Pius right, slight drapery on far shoulder / YΠA-TOC · Γ ·, agalma of Mount Argeus surmounted by star. Metcalf -; Sydenham -; SNG Copenhagen suppl. -. Unpublished and extremely rare. Toned with very slight porosity. Very fine. 

In contrast to the COS III issues of Antoninus Pius from Rome which are quite common, before now that from Caesarea was known from but five specimens. This is perhaps not surprising considering there is a high probability that the Caesarean silver coinage of Vespasian through Commodus was either struck at Rome or was made from dies manufactured at Rome, and with such massive output at the Rome mint for COS III for Pius it may have been seen as there was no need to provide the coinage for Caesarea at this time.

Although all Caesarean silver of Antoninus Pius is scarce, this issue dated COS III with slight drapery on the far shoulder is (so far as we are aware) unique. When Sydenham wrote his catalogue of Caesarean coinage in 1933, he claimed "No silver known of COS III (A.D. 140-144)." However, Malloy knew of a single specimen, which was acquired by von Aulock and had appeared in a 1957 Kricheldorf sale. He included it in his supplement to Sydenham (Sydenham 301b = SNG von Aulock 6426 = Kricheldorf 4, 352). The coin has Pius' head laureate but without any drapery on the far shoulder. Metcalf subsequently included that coin in his corpus of Caesarean silver coinage (Metcalf 125), where it is the only entry for Antoninus Pius dated COS III, and noted a further four specimens discovered in the hoard that initiated his study (conspectus nos. 529-32). All have the head of Pius laureate and without drapery. Thus, our coin appears to be unique in that it is the only known specimen with drapery, and otherwise one of only six known coins of Antoninus Pius from Caesarea that is dated COS III.

• Offered By: Barry P. Murphy
• Lot #: 94
• Listing #: 232988
• Closed: Thursday, July 10, 2014 5:31:00 PM CT
• Estimate: $200