From Hadrian, to Probus. With love?



One amongst several unusual reverses of Probus, a coin which illustrates Roman awareness of their past numismatic history, even in the midst of a turbulent era. 

Not listed in RIC V.2, it would fit between RIC 631 and 632. Not known by Andreas Alföldi and thus absent from his survey¹ of Probus' Siscia coins. A remarkable reverse, both because it reprises a type of Hadrian, and manages to bungle the legend while doing so. Thus far, only known from a specimen with the error. There are approximately 140 years between the two issues.

Chronology: Pink's 4th emission of Siscia, 277 CE.

RIC bust type F, Bastiens's type B.

OBV.: IMP C M AVR PROBVS AVG

Radiate, armoured bust right.

REV.: ADVENTVS AVGSTI [sic]   Cesures: ADVEN_T_VS AVGSTI

Roma (or Virtus) standing right, holding reverted spear and clasping hands with Probus in toga praetexta, standing left, and holding roll.

Mintmark: -|-//XXIT

Weight: 4.18 g.
Die axis: ?
Diameter: ?

Image provided courtesy of Paul-Francis Jacquier, JACQUIER NUMISMATIQUE ANTIQUE, ex Philippe Gysen.

Hadrian denarius image courtesy of Gorny & Mosch

https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=193851



¹ - Alföldi, Andreas

Siscia. V, Probus sisciai antoninianusai
Numizmatikai Közlöny, XXXVI-XXXVII, 1937-1938, p. 3-88.
Stádium Sajtóvállalat Részvénytársaság, Budapest, 1939.

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