Tacitus. AD 275-276. Double Antoninianus (22mm, 3.87 g, 12h). Antioch mint, 3rd officina. 3rd emission, January-June AD 276. VF.

Electronic Auction 544
Lot: 552. Estimated: $ 150

Roman Imperial, Silver

Sold For $ 225. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

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Tacitus. AD 275-276. Double Antoninianus (22mm, 3.87 g, 12h). Antioch mint, 3rd officina. 3rd emission, January-June AD 276. Radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Tacitus standing right, holding short eagle-tipped scepter, receiving globe from Jupiter standing left, holding scepter; Γ//XI. RIC V 211; BN 1833 var. (officina). Mostly silvered, toned, roughness. VF. Rare denomination.

An interesting and peculiar mark, the ‘XI’ on the coinage of Tacitus appears to have signified a higher silver content than the usual issue of Antoniniani. The study by Esty, Equall, and Smith (“The Alloy of the ‘XI’ Coins of Tacitus,” in NC 1993) corroborates the earlier study by Callu, Brenot, and Barrandon (“Analyses de Séries Atypiques,” in QT 8) showing that, though the consistency of the latters findings were not as universal, the series with this notation does exhibit a far higher silver content than the common ‘XXI’ marked coinage and represented an issue tariffed at a higher rate.

Closing Date and Time: 16 August 2023 at 13:03:40 ET.

All winning bids are subject to a 20% buyer’s fee.