A donative of Constantine the Great
This impressive piece belongs to a small series of silver medallions celebrating the vicennalia of Constantine II, the eldest surviving son of Constantine the Great, in 336.
The Son of Divine Caesar
Two rare aurei of the Gorny & Mosch sale from Augustus’ early years obtained impressive prices. Yet as intriguing as the two coins is the history of the man who minted them: Octavian better known as Augustus.
Coins of Lucilla ‘born to the purple’
Lucilla Augusta was very special at her time: not only was she the daughter of emperor Marcus Aurelius, but at the same time she was his co-emperor’s wife. Claire Franklin illustrates by Lucilla’s coin designs how she lived her role.
The First Marcomannic War of Marcus Aurelius
In the middle of the 2nd century AD the tribe of the Goths left its native homeland. The tribesmen moved southwards and expelled other people from their homes who in their turn tried to find new land further south. One of these tribes were the Marcomanni.
A fresh interpretation of the Portland Vase as depiction of the first wedding on earth
An ancient cameo vase has recently appeared on the market. It does not only captivate by its beauty. It resembles another famous object, the Portland Vase whose interpretation had been controversially debated for a long time. But a closer look at the “new finding” permits a deeper understanding of the Portland Vase as well.
Globalisation in Roman times: Trade with India
In the upcoming auction of Künker on 13 March 2017, several interesting aurei are going to be put to auction. They are Indian imitations of Roman gold coins, which bespeak the close trade relations between Rome and the Indian subcontinent.
Honni soit qui mal y pense or What exactly was the spintriae’s function?
One has to pay high prices indeed for the so-called spintriae – brothel tokens as one is secretly whispered to. There are experts who know exactly what the function of these objects was…
Great is Artemis of the Ephesians
On his visit to Ephesus, St. Paul was in imminent danger to be lynched. Why was it that the Ephesians felt so threatened by this herald of a new god? Were they more pious than other Greeks? They were, in a way, since they lived on their religion…
Emperors bearing Gifts
June 9, 2017, Münzen und Medaillen GmbH will auction off the Markus Weder collection at Weil am Rhein featuring some extremely rare miliarense. Claire Franklin will tell us the story of these coins.
The unlucky emperor Clodius Albinus – a portrait study
What a huge surprise when the company Gorny & Mosch – Giessener Münzhandlung auctioned off a Roman portrait head from the late 2nd cent. A. D. at auction sale 184 on December 18th, 2009. It was a high quality marble portrait in a remarkable state of preservation which some …
