Jotapian, Usurper

CNG 96, Lot: 859. Estimate $7500. Sold for $9500. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Jotapian. Usurper, circa AD 248-249. AR Antoninianus (22mm, 3.02 g, 12h). Nicopolis in Seleucia mint. IM C M F R IOTAPIANVS AVG, radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / [VI]CT OR [I A A]V G, Victory advancing left, holding wreath and palm frond. RIC IV 2b var. (obv. legend); Bland – (unlisted dies); RSC 1b var. (same); NAC 42 (Feirstein Collection), lot 161 (same obv. die). Good VF, darkly toned, usual rough surfaces. Very rare.

From the Ronald J. Hansen Collection. Ex Gemini VIII (14 April 2011), lot 408.

Jotapian led a short-lived revolt in Syria in the autumn of AD 249 while Philip I was still emperor. Little is known of Jotapian’s background. It was said that he boasted of a relationship to Severus Alexander, and his unusual name, although otherwise unknown for a man, is attested in its feminine form "Jotape" in the royal houses of Commagene and Emesa. The extreme rarity of his coins indicates that the revolt was brief, and the crude style proves that the revolt was geographically confined, for Jotapian plainly did not control a major Roman mint. His head was brought to Rome and shown to Trajan Decius "as was customary, although Decius had not asked for it" (Aur. Vict., Caes. 29.4). In his corpus of Jotapian's coins, Bland cites 18 antoniniani in total. On this example, one can clearly view the last letter in the obverse legend, the G of AVG. No dies are recorded by Bland that end with G, only A and AV. This coin and the Feirstein coin (CNG 84, lot 1302), both from the same obverse die, are the only known examples with this legend variety.