Medallion of the Three Monetae

Sale: CNG 78, Lot: 1831. Estimate $4000.  Closing Date: Wednesday, 14 May 2008.  Sold For $3500. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Claudius II Gothicus. AD 268-270. Æ Medallion (26.27 g, 7h). Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / The three Monetae standing facing, heads left, each holding cornucopia and scales above a stack of coins at their feet. Gnecchi 5, Cohen 181. VF, dark green patina with traces of gilding underneath, minor roughness.

Ex Robert Schonwalter Collection (Triton V, 15 January 2002), lot 2111.

The reverse of this medallion depicts the tres Monetae, female personifications of the three metals of gold, silver, and bronze, and commemorates the attempt of Claudius II to reform Roman currency. When Claudius II took the throne on the death of Gallienus in AD 268, the Roman Empire had reached its lowest point. In addition to the numerous internal and external rebellions, the economy was in a state of near-collapse. While gold aurei still continued to be struck in order to pay the army, silver denarii and antoniniani, as well as the earlier large bronze denominations, had disappeared completely. In their place, antoniniani of near-billon composition became the medium of daily exchange. These too, however, soon diminished in size and style. Claudius II seems to have planned a reform of the currency, and he also began minting a wide variety of reverse types which emphasized traditional divine protection and renewal of Roman power. Unfortunately, the early death of Claudius II delayed the anticipated monetary reformation, which his successor, Aurelian, would carry through.