Trajan. AD 98-117. Æ Medallion (44mm, 47.64 g). Rome mint. Struck circa 100-102. VF.

Keystone 17 – The W. Toliver Besson Collection
Lot: 228. Estimated: $ 3 000

Roman Imperial, Bronze

Sold For $ 7 000. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

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Trajan. AD 98-117. Æ Medallion (44mm, 47.64 g). Rome mint. Struck circa 100-102. IMP CAES NERVA TRA-IAN AVG GERM, laureate and draped bust right / Blank as made. F. Gnecchi, “Bronzi unilaterali e prove di conio,” in RIN XX (1907), p. 35, 1 and pl. III, no. 1 = Mittag, Römische Tra 1 = Woytek 920g (this coin); Gnecchi –; Banti –. Green-brown patina, gouge on reverse. VF. Unique – the sole known example and one of the only uniface medallions of Trajan.

From the W. Toliver Besson Collection. Ex Oslo Myntgalleri 28 (6 May 2022), lot 469; Classical Numismatic Group 31 (9 September 1994), lot 978; Sotheby’s (10 April 1992), lot 224; H. C. Levis Collection (Ars Classica XI, 18 June 1925), lot 498; Giovanni Pansa (1865-1929) Collection.

Other auction appearances of this piece are slightly incorrect. It is not a contorniate, but a medallion contemporary to Trajan. Some sales cite it as being found in Rome in 1905, but the earliest description of the piece merely attributes it to the collection of Giovanni Pansa, a noted Italian numismatist who resided in Sulmona.

Closing Date and Time: 22 July 2026 at 11:15:40 ET.



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