Sale: Triton VIII, Lot: 1297. Estimate $300.  Closing Date: Monday, 10 January 2005.  Sold For $700. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

ANASTASIUS I. 491-518 AD. Æ Reduced Follis (8.47 gm, 6h). Constantinople mint. Struck circa 498-507 AD. DN ANASTASIVS P P AVG, diademed, draped, and cuirassed bust right, with fringe of beard along chin / Large M; cross above; CON. DOC I 16; Metcalf, Origins, 208; MIB I 22; SB 14. EF, green and brown patina. ($300)

From the Malcolm W. Heckman Collection. Ex Classical Numismatic Auctions XIX (19 February 1992), lot 15.

The clearly limned beard on Anastasius is unexplained. The beard has traditionally been seen as a sign of mourning, but there is no known death of an important member of the imperial family within the time frame of this coinage to account for it. While no follis in the Metcalf corpus shows a clear bearded bust, other stylistic elements of the portrait place it in his sub-group "d", his so-called "experimental" series. These display a number of anomalous details in facial details and adjuncts not seen on the regular issues. Metcalf explains them as possible transitional dies between the main stylistic groups. The bearded bust may just represent a trial of a new style portrait.