Catalog
Antoninianus - Tetricus I Sacrificial implements; Barbarous imitation
| Issuer | Uncertain barbarous mint |
|---|---|
| Year | |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | 12 mm |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Radiate and draped bust of Tetricus I facing right, rendered in a crude barbarous style with heavily simplified facial features and exaggerated radiate crown. A garbled and largely illegible imitation legend surrounds the effigy, composed of pseudo-Latin letters that are poorly formed and only loosely derived from the prototype imperial titulature. The flan is small and irregularly shaped, consistent with unofficial barbarous production, and the die execution is notably rough with shallow, imprecise engraving. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Sacrificial implements depicted in the central field, comprising an altar or lituus, patera, and jug (urceus), rendered in a schematic and debased style characteristic of barbarous imitations of Tetricus I antoniniani. The surrounding legend is a garbled imitation of the prototype reverse inscription, with pseudo-Latin letterforms scattered around the field that are largely illegible and non-meaningful. The overall composition closely follows the official PIETAS AVG type but is executed with marked crudeness, the individual implement forms being simplified to the point of near abstraction. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Barbarous radiates imitating Tetricus I flooded the northwestern provinces after 274 AD, when Aurelian's reunification of the empire severed the Gallic supply of official coinage without immediately replacing it. Local workshops — some barely qualifying as mints — struck these pieces in enormous numbers to fill the gap. At 0.70g, this example sits at the extreme low end even for barbarous radiates, suggesting either deliberate weight reduction or multiple generations of copy removed from the prototype.