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1 Quinarius - Imitating Gordian III, 238-244
| Issuer | Uncertain Germanic tribes |
|---|---|
| Year | 270-325 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Quinarius = 1/2 Aureus |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Crude barbarian imitation of a Roman imperial portrait, depicting a laureate and draped bust facing left, rendered in a simplified, provincial style characteristic of Germanic imitative coinage. The effigy shows a rudimentary treatment of facial features and hair, reflecting the limitations of the local die-cutter working from a Roman prototype. The partial legend IMP GORDIANVS runs around the bust, imitating the titulature of Gordian III (238–244 AD), though the lettering is irregularly spaced and crudely executed. The overall style and fabric are consistent with gold imitations struck by Germanic tribes north of the Roman frontier during the late 3rd to early 4th century. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Germanic imitations of Roman gold coinage proliferated through the late third and early fourth centuries as tribal elites used Roman numismatic vocabulary to project authority and facilitate exchange along the frontier. This piece imitates Gordian III, whose reign ended in 244, meaning the prototype was already a generation or more removed from circulation by the time this was struck — a lag entirely typical of how Roman models traveled through and persisted in barbarian monetary practice.
The Boutin reference going unassigned reflects the broader problem: no systematic corpus of these imitations has achieved consensus, and attribution to specific tribal groups remains speculative without secure archaeological find contexts.