Roman Bronze Coins

This hoard of 47,912 Third century A.D. bronze Antoniniani is one of the largest ever found in Britain. It was discovered by a metal detectorist in December 1985 in the parish of Normanby, about twelve miles north of Lincoln. The hoard was delivered to the British Museum for cleaning and study, and was the subject of a Treasure Inquest on 19 May 1987, where it was found not to be Treasure Trove, in view of the low silver content of the coins, and consequently became the property of the land owner. The hoard was immediately sold by the owner to a coin dealer and has been gradually dispersed in the trade. We have been fortunate to acquire a small group of coins from this hoard. The coins were struck between A.D. 260 and 287 and are mostly of Victorinus, Tetricus I, and II. You can have a choice of grades, Fine, Very Fine, or Extremely Fine with prices to please. These Roman coins will be over 1,700 years old soon, they were found in Britain and we will provide you with a certificate of authenticity. Get one for your collection today!

Bronze Antoninianus in Extremely Fine condition

Bronze Antoninianus in Fine condition

Bronze Antoninianus in Very Fine condition

Carinus. A.D. 283-285., Rome - A.D. 285. Billon Antoninianus. Radiate bust right / 'PIETAS AVG' Mercury standing left holding purse & caduceus. Good Very Fine & Scarce. Mercury is rare on Imperial Roman coins.

Constantine I. A.D. 307-337., LONDON - A.D. 310. Æ Follis. Laureate bust right / 'SOLI INVICTO COMITI' Sol, radiate & draped, stg. left holding globe; '*' in left field with 'PLN' in exergue. About Extremely Fine.

From the series of the famous Constantinian Dynasty, we are now offering Constantine II, the son who thought that he should have ruled alone as the eldest. Probably born in A.D. 316 to Constantine the Great, Constantine Junior was raised to the rank of Caesar very young in A.D. 317, showing some military prowess in the next 20 years. On the death of his father in A.D. 337, he was made Senior Augustus and given Spain, Gaul, and Britain to rule. He thought he deserved more so set out to take from his younger brother, Constans, in Italy. But Constantine was ambushed by his brother’s troops and killed in A.D. 340, lasting only three years. We offer bronze coins struck A.D. 330-337 with the reverse ‘GLORIA EXERCITVS’ or ‘Glory to the Army’. Here we offer the coin in Very Fine, very reasonable for a coin almost 2,000 years old. Get it now, so you won't feel jealous later...

Constantius I as Caesar. A.D. 293-305., Antioch - A.D. 297. Æ Ant. Radiate head right / 'CONCORDIA MILITVM' Constantius receiving Victory on globe from Jupiter. Good Fine.

Florian. A.D. 276., Cyzicus. Billon Antoninianus. Rad. bust R. / 'CONCORDIA MILITVM' Victory stg. on L. hdg. palm & offering wreath to Florian stg. hdg. sceptre. Good Very Fine & Scarce.

Galerius as Caesar. A.D. 293-305., Rome - A.D. 294-297. Billon Follis. Laureate bust right / 'GENIO POPVLI ROMANI' Genius stg. left holding patera & cornucopiae. Very Fine with silvering.

Gallienus ruled as sole emperor from A.D. 260-268 during one of the most difficult times in the history of the empire. He issued a fantastic group of bronze Antoniniani coins to ask Gods for their protection. We offer: the Doe for Diana, The Hippocamp for Neptune, The Gazelle for Diana, and the Panther for Liber. The coins are Very Fine and for some of them we have just seven left, get in quick.

Gallienus ruled as sole emperor from A.D. 260-268 during one of the most difficult times in the history of the empire. Not only was the empire facing natural disasters and invasions on all sides but he had to face at least eight rebellions from his own governors and generals! He issued a fantastic group of bronze Antoninianus coins to honour the Gods, asking for their protection against these troubles. Though made in Europe, these coins were used in Britain and are a large part of the Mildenhall Hoard in the British Museum. Depicted on these coins are a variety of animals, some real and some mythical, each linked to one of the Roman deities. This series is known as the 'Gallienus Zoo Coins' and make a great set to try to complete. From this series, we offer here the Gazelle, identified as different to the antelope by the numbers ‘XI’ or ‘XII’ underneath and the straight horns. These are designed to honour Diana, the sister of Apollo and the goddess of the hunt. This is likely to bring luck to hunting and like her brother, for plagues and disease. The coins are at least Very Fine but because of the chaos at the time remember they may be a little weakly struck. As always the first to order will get the best. This is the last to complete the set we have available!

Maxentius was born around A.D. 283 to the Emperor Maximian who ruled the Roman Empire with Diocletian in the Tetrarchy system. They retired in A.D. 305 and Maxentius was ignored by the new senior emperor, Galerius, in the reshuffle, so in A.D. 306 he seized power in Rome, eventually coaxing his father from retirement for support. He formed an alliance with Constantine (the Great) leaving him in control of Italy and North Africa and Constantine in Britain, France & Spain. Maxentius seized power in A.D. 306 because Galerius tried to disband the Praetorian Guard and tax Rome for the first time in 400 years; Maxentius said he would protect tradition and he was made emperor with an army! We offer his bronze coin in Very Fine which states this directly on the reverse with ‘CONSERV VRB SVAE’ meaning ‘the Preserver / Protector of His City’ around the goddess Roma in a six-column temple. These coins were struck in Rome between A.D. 307-311 and found in Cambridgeshire in the 1970s, museum conserved, and later sold to a dealer who sat on them for years until he sold them to us. It always amazes us that you can buy a coin knowing where and when it was made, who by and why, and a direct link to someone in Britain over 1700 years ago.

Maximian was humbly born around A.D. 250 near Sirmium. He rose rapidly through a military career and was chosen by the emperor Diocletian as his co-emperor in A.D. 286. After a successful reign he reluctantly abdicated with the senior emperor Diocletian in A.D. 305. But Maxentius, his son, rebelled in Rome in A.D. 306 against the current emperor Galerius, luring Maximian out of retirement. In A.D. 308 he tried to usurp Maxentius’ authority so was forced to take refuge in Gaul with his son-in-law Constantine. Trying the same in A.D. 310 Maximian was besieged and defeated by Constantine, dying rather than retire. The coins we offer here are Billon Follis in About Extremely Fine condition showing his laureate bust on the obverse and with various reverses. They are from the same small group as the Diocletian Follis from last issue meaning they are big, beautiful and there are only 22 of them so do not miss out…

Maximian. A.D. 286-305., Lugdunum - A.D. 293. Billon Antonininianus. Radiate bust right / 'PAX AVGG' Pax standing left holding Victory on globe & sceptre. Reverse struck from worn die, Extremely Fine.

Maximianus. A.D. 286-305., Trier - A.D. 297. Æ Follis. Laureate head right / 'GENIO POPVLI ROMANI' Genius stg. left holding cornucopiae & patera. Cracked flan, Very Fine.

Romano-British Empire. Carausius. A.D. 286-293., London - A.D. 291. Æ Antoninianus. Radiate bust right / 'PROVIDENT AVG' Providentia stg. left holding globe & transverse sceptre with 'B-E' in fields & 'MLXXI' in Ex. Good Fine & Scarce.

Vabalathus. A.D. 271-272., Antioch. Billon Antonianus. 'VABALATHVS V C R IM D R' Laureate bust right / 'IMP C AVRELIANVS AVG' Radiate bust of Aurelian right. Good Very Fine & Very Scarce. Made by Zenobia to try to legitimise her regime.