Owner Comments:
From the peak of the "Pax Romana." Attributed to the year 155/156 A.D. Evidently a rare variety with the drapery on both shoulders of the emperor's bust.
Antoninus Pius (AD 138-161). AV aureus (19mm, 7.31 gm, 5h). NGC Choice AU 5/5 - 5/5. Rome, AD 155-156. ANTONINVS AVG-PIVS P P IMP II, bare bust of Antoninus Pius right, drapery across both shoulders / TR POT-XIX-COS IIII, Victory, draped, advancing left, wreath upward in right hand, cradling palm frond in left arm. RIC III 255 var. (bust type). Calicó 1671.
In 155, Pius started a new war against the Parthians who were led by Vologases IV. The war was brief and resulted in an inconclusive peace. Perhaps this is what the Victory on the Reverse is referring to. Also this year Rome took the position that while it would not be recognized as an official religion, Judaism must be tolerated. To restore peace between the Jews and Romans, Antoninus re-legalized circumcision. The Romans began to abandon Hadrian's Wall.
The aureus (pl. aurei, 'golden', used as a noun) was a gold coin of ancient Rome originally valued at 25 pure silver denarii. The aureus was regularly issued from the 1st century BC to the beginning of the 4th century AD, when it was replaced by the solidus. The aureus was about the same size as the denarius, but heavier due to the higher density of gold (as opposed to that of silver.)
Before the time of Julius Caesar the aureus was struck infrequently, probably because gold was seen as a mark of un-Roman luxury. (A token of those effeminate easterners, like Greeks). Caesar struck the coin more often, and standardized the weight at 1/40 of a Roman pound (about 8 grams). That is pretty close to, but a little lighter than, the gold staters struck for hundreds of years around the Greek world. Augustus (r. 29 BC – 14 AD) tariffed the value of the sestertius as 1/100 of an aureus.
The mass of the aureus was decreased to 1/45 of a pound (7.3 g) during the reign of Nero (r. 54–68). At about the same time the purity of the silver coinage was also slightly decreased. My understanding is that this coin adheres to the same standard set by Nero, which persisted until the reign of the emperor Marcus Aurelius, who immediately followed Pius' reign. Marcus Aurelius further reduced the weight of these coins.
That all said, I have found examples of these coins from the reign of Pius which are neither clipped nor filed, but weigh ranging from 7.19 grams to 7.55 grams.
NGC would tell you they have certified 210 of these in all conditions, but that includes all the aurei of all years of Antoninus, and there are many different varieties. There are several on acsearch in poorer condition, no others have sold on Heritage of this variety. One of almost the same variety in duller AU condition did not sell on Heritage at an August 1, 2017 auction, lot 34068. That example was of a slightly different variety that appears just slightly more common (RIC 255(b)) which is distinguished by the emperor having NO drapery on the left (back) side of his bust, but only on the right (front) side. This example here has drapery on both shoulders, and, I find only one example of this on acsearch, which appears to be the same coin sold twice at Kuenker auctions in 2011 and 2016, as VF ex jewelry. There are also examples with the same reverse motif, attributed to the same date, but with no drapery on either side of the emperor's bust. I find more of those in the archives.
This is my first Roman Emperor, and certainly my last for a long time. This coin puts a dent in the 400-year gap I need to fill between about 42 B.C. and 393 A.D.
I won this coin sitting in the kitchen in Thailand on my phone using Heritage Live during the auction, just moments before my wife came down. Not a moment too late.