The Roman Empire
Domitian


Obverse
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Reverse
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Coin Details

  

Set Details
Coin Description: Constantine II Follis
Grade: NGC Ch MS Strike: 5/5 Surface: 5/5
Grade Comment: silvering
Owner: Kohaku
 
Set Category: Ancients
Set Name: The Roman Empire
Slot Name: Domitian
Research: Currently not available

Owner's Description

As eldest son of Constantine I and Fausta, Constantine II (ca. 316 - 340 AD) needed to grow up quickly. He achieved rank of Caesar while still an infant, and saw his first battle (against the Sarmatians) at age seven. Within his first decade, the junior Constantine already racked up enough military experience to replace his deceased half-brother Crispus as commander of Gaul. There was no doubt the young Constantine was destined for the purple, and it was important to maintain him on such an accelerated career track. Moreover, it was important to advertise his status, and at the time the most effective venue was on coinage, such as this nummus, struck around 326-327 AD in Antioch. The obverse bust portrays a youthful visage (he was probably ten at the time), but not overly so: it was important to convey that he was already an effective and rapidly maturing leader. The obverse epithet reflects his title the noble Caesar, or NOB C. On the reverse is a campgate, a popular numismatic motif for coins of the Constantinian dynasty. The campgate represented the protection that was afforded by the military, for example against barbarians. Atop the campgate are structures typically referred to as “turrets” that were actually beacons, or large kettles that, during times of attack, were lighted and subsequently signaled, by fire and/or smoke, any other line-of-sight camps. Encircling the campgate is the epithet, PROVIDENTIAE CAESS. The latter indicates that there were two Caesars, namely Constantine II and his younger brother, Constantius II. This NGC Ancients custom set also includes an example campgate nummus of Constantius’, not surprisingly with nearly identical features to the current coin. The reverse motif conveys the providence, or forethought, in this case related to the two young Caesars. By the time Constantine I died in 337 AD, he named two more Caesars, his youngest son Constans and his nephew Delmatius. It may have been the forethought of the elder Constantine to restore an Imperial Tetrarachy, instead, his dynasts grappled among themselves for supremacy. In 340 AD, the struggle claimed the life of 24-year-old Constantine II, ambushed by a elite military unit dispatched by his younger brother Constans. Coin Details: ROMAN EMPIRE, Constantine II, As Caesar 316-327 AD, Struck in Antioch, fourth officina, 326-327 AD, Æ3 Follis/BI Nummus (19mm, 4.98 g, 1h), NGC Grade: CH MS, Strike:5/5, Surface: 5/5, Obverse: Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust left, CONSTANTINVS IVN NOB C, Reverse: Camp gate surmounted by two turrets; star above; ·//SMANTΔ, Reference: RIC VII 73.

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