Low Cost LRBs

While one can spend thousands of dollars on a popular, beautiful ancient coin, you can also get an interesting coin for under $5.

LRB is a Late Roman Bronze (LRB), I usually think of these as starting with Constantine, or perhaps from Diocletian. I am not aware of a generally agreed start of "Late" - ~4th century AD is how I think of it.

This coin came in a group of uncleaned coins that were about $2/coin. It is a Fel Temp - happy times - type of Constans or Constantius? At 2.9g is a favorite of mine for because of it's detail carved by an ancient engraver, the strike and design on both the obverse and reverse - unusually high relief. The jagged edges of the coin reinforce the drama and violence of the reverse design.

Constantius II (?), AE

Obv: D N CONSTANTIVS P F AVG, pearl-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right

Rev: FEL TEMP REPARATIO, soldier standing left, spearing bearded horseman, hair in two braids, who is reaching backwards.

Perfection in a LRB is affordable at $55 (this seems shockingly high in 2025 compared to a few years ago when I first wrote this note - 2021):

Constantine I BI Nummus. Cyzicus, AD 325-326. CONSTANTINVS AVG, laureate head right / PROVIDENTIAE AVGG, camp gate with seven rows, no doors and two turrets; star above, SMKA• in exergue. RIC 34. 3.29g, 18mm, 12h.

This unusual Crispus (son of Contantine) is quite nice for $30

Bronze AE2 Crispus as Caesar, Arelate, 322–323. RIC VII Arelate 254, RIC 254

Canonical

Obv: CRISPVS - NOB CAES, head of Crispus, laureate, right

Rev: CAESARVM NOSTRORVM, VOT/X within a laurel wreath, palm frond on either side of the X, in exergue T*AR

Barbarous radiates from Gaul are another group that are plentiful and can be found for $5. By my definition this wouldn't be an LRB - pre-Diocletian, pre-4th century.

Despite its ugly, rough, irregular flan, with it's abstract variation on a Tetricus I Antoninianus, blundered legends, brown and rusted patina, line drawing rendition of "PAX" with a right arm that looks more like a cornucopia than a scepter, I like the rugged look of this coin from the northwest territories that were separated from the Roman Empire between 260-274 AD as the Gallic Empire.

Aurelian reunited the empire in AD 274 in a bloody defeat of Tetricus' army in the Battle at Châlons (today Châlons-en-Champagne, France). Tetricus surrendered and survived, perhaps by betraying his army, and later was appointed by Aurelian to the role of governor in Lucania (southern Italy).

A shortage of official coins in the northwest with Aurelian's reform of the monetary system is a leading explanation for why there are so many barbarous coins from this time.