Nero. AD 54-68. Æ Sestertius (33.5mm, 22.46 g, 7h). Lugdunum (Lyon) mint. Struck AD 65. VF.

Keystone 17 – The W. Toliver Besson Collection
Lot: 219. Estimated: $ 600

Roman Imperial, Bronze

Sold For $ 2 250. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

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Nero. AD 54-68. Æ Sestertius (33.5mm, 22.46 g, 7h). Lugdunum (Lyon) mint. Struck AD 65. laureate head left, globe at point of neck / Triumphal arch surmounted by statue of emperor in quadriga accompanied by Pax and Victory, flanked by two soldiers; a nude, helmeted statue of Mars in side niche of arch; ornamental reliefs on the faces and plinths of the arch. RIC I 393; WCN 414; Lyon 74; cf. Elkins, Monuments Figure 79 (for rev. type). Brown patina, some red and brassy highlights, old corrosion, cleaning scratches on obverse, edge marks. VF. An important architectural reverse.

From the W. Toliver Besson Collection. Ex Cederlind 166 (3 October 2012), lot 200.

The arch to Nero was built in AD 62 to celebrate his victories in the Parthian War and the seizure of Artaxata. It was dismantled by decree of the senate upon is death in AD 68 as part of the damnatio memoriae to remove his memory form public spaces. No physical evidence of the structure survives outside of the few depictions on Nero’s coins.

Closing Date and Time: 22 July 2026 at 11:12:40 ET.



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