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Licinius I. AD 308-324. Æ Follis (18.5mm, 3.75 g, 12h). Thessalonica mint, 1st officina. Struck AD 319. Laureate and cuirassed bust right / Plan of Roman camp; in the middle, Sol standing left, raising hand and holding globe; •TS•A•. RIC VII 68. Dark brown patina, silvering. EF. Very rare and especially so in high grades.
From the Denis P. Barrett Collection.
Many explanations have been offered for the description of this rare reverse type. What is certain is that there is a military connection due to the reverse legend. Brunn et al in RIC VII described the type as the plan of a Roman camp. Sear considers this an unsatisfactory explanation, but is noncommittal in his Roman Coins and Their Values as to what the alternative explanation should be. He notes that Carson suggested it is could be an aerial view of a statue to Sol with the ‘camp’ being the base of the statue. Concerning that particular suggestion, there is frankly no historical basis for it. Also suggested, perhaps more convincingly, is that this type is connected to an account of Constantine’s vision, taking place two years earlier than Milvian Bridge in AD 310 while he was marching his army north from Marseilles. For further detail, see Peter Weiss’ article in the 2003 edition of The Journal of Roman Archeology. For an updated evaluation of the debate regarding the accounts of Constantine’s 310 or 312 vision, see R. Bhola’s “A Man of Visions:
A New Examination of the Vision(s) of Constantine (Panegyric VI,
Lactantius’ De mortibus persecutorum, and Eusebius’ De vita Constantini)” (University of Ottawa, 2015).
Closing Date and Time: 4 June 2026 at 10:59:00 ET.
All winning bids are subject to a 20% buyer’s fee.
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