Lot 2721
Claudius, 41-54 AD. Gold Aureus (7.5 g), Rome mint, struck 44-45 AD. Scarce. Laureate head of Claudius right. Reverse: View of Praetorian camp, figure next to aequila standard within; along the walls, IMPER RECEPT. RIC 25; C. 43. Better style, with even wear. Good to Very Good.
Estimated Value $250 - 300.
The remarkable reverse of this aureus commemorates the role the Praetorian guard played in elevating Claudius to the office of emperor. Another feature of note is the treatment of the edges. The coin, although well circulated, had retained much of its desired weight, and it would seem that it had been prepared in antiquity to be overstruck by working the edges of the flan. A not too distant comparison to this can be found in the occasional Roman silver coin that appears on the market, and which was prepared for restriking by the rebels of the Bar Kochba War, but never made it. Note a silver drachm from Bostra in a sale catalog, Antiqua VIII, no. 84, where like the gold coin above, the flan had been rounded and the edges worked inward somewhat. The above aureus' current weight would be consistent with the gold issues of Domitian.
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| Realized $776 |
