334, Lot: 308. Estimate $200. Sold for $650. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Domitian. AD 81-96. Counterfeiter’s hub (20x12mm, 27.34 g). Made after AD 94. Obv. type: [IMP CAES] DOMIT AV[G] GERM P M TR P XIIII, laureate head right. Denarius attached to bronze shaft. Slight remains of iron around shaft. VF, encrusted. Rare and interesting forger’s tool.

The intended use of this counterfeiter’s tool was as a hub for creating dies or molds, rather than the imitative coins themselves. For a die or mold, an intaglio image of the eventual coin was necessary. A hub was used to impress this image.