ACHAEA, Fleet Coinage. Uncertain mint. Mark Antony. 38-37 BC. Æ “Sestertius” (33mm, 22.22 g, 9h). Heavy series. L. Sempronius Atratinus, auger and consul designatus. Near VF.

CNG Feature Auction 123
Lot: 384. Estimated: $ 3 000

Roman Provincial, Bronze, Coin-in-Hand Video

Sold For $ 4 000. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

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ACHAEA, Fleet Coinage. Uncertain mint. Mark Antony. 38-37 BC. Æ “Sestertius” (33mm, 22.22 g, 9h). Heavy series. L. Sempronius Atratinus, auger and consul designatus. Bare head of Antony right vis-à-vis head of Octavia left / Two figures embracing (Antony and Octavia as Poseidon and Amphitrite?) standing right on quadriga of hippocamps; HS to left; lituus to right; in exergue, Δ and astragalus. Amandry, Bronze I, Series II.1.A, 1-10 var. (unlisted dies); RPC I 1453; CRI 279; Sydenham 1261. Red-brown surfaces with green deposits, roughness, smoothed, details enhanced. Near VF. Extremely rare.

The curious “fleet coinage” of Mark Antony was struck at several mints over the course of 37/6 BC, probably commencing after Antony and Octavian signed the Pact of Tarentum, which renewed their triumval powers and partnership. Octavia, Antony’s wife and Octavian’s sister, was instrumental in the negotiations and frequently appears on the coins, including this rare specimen. The coins are all bronzes of a range of denominations that anticipate the ones in use during the empire – sestertius, dupondius, as, etc. Three Antonian admirals are named as moneyers, including L. Sempronius Atratinus, as seen here. All coins feature nautical themes, hence the term “fleet coinage.” Although Roman denominations and legends are employed, many of the numerals, including marks of value, are Greek, indicated they were intended for use in the east, where many were struck. The evidence points to an early experiment in a revolutionary new universal coinage system that was ahead of its time, but was later taken up, tweaked, and fully implemented by Augustus.

The final winners of all CNG Feature Auction 123 lots will be determined during the live online sale that will be held on 23-24 May 2023. This lot is in Session Two, which will begin 23 May 2023 at 2 PM ET.

Winning bids are subject to a 22.5% buyer's fee for bids placed on this website and 25% for all others.

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