CNG 84, Lot: 1252. Estimate $500. Sold for $700. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Philip I. AD 244-249. Æ Sestertius (29mm, 19.22 g, 12h). Rome mint, 4th officina. 1st emission, AD 244. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Salus standing left, holding rudder set on globe and feeding serpent rising from altar at left. RIC IV 187a corr. (rudder not scepter); Banti 55 corr. (same). Near EF, dark gray-brown patina. Attractive surfaces.

The entries in RIC and Banti for this type are full of errors. RIC 187a-b notes that Salus holds a scepter, but cites Cohen 207 and 208, both of which note Salus holding a rudder. Furthermore, although RIC only lists a sestertius for both RIC 187a and b, it is clear from Cohen that RIC 187a should be a sestertius, while RIC 187b is an As. Banti similarly notes Salus holding a scepter, although his illustration of an example clearly shows a rudder. He also cross references to RIC 187 rather than RIC 187a.