Roman coin and sestertius replicas in Rome

In short. The replica reproduces a sestertius of Caligula struck in Rome in AD 37–38, showing the emperor addressing the cohorts (ADLOCVT COH): in the OCRE catalogue it is type RIC I² Gaius 32.

Date of the original

AD 37–38 OCRE, RIC I² Gaius 32

Mint of the original

Rome OCRE, RIC I² Gaius 32

Metal of the original

Orichalcum (ancient brass) Nomisma.org, sestertius

The story

ADLOCVT COH is short for adlocutio cohortium, the address to the cohorts. Caligula, bare-headed and in a toga, stands on a low platform and holds out his hand to five soldiers with helmets and shields; the last ones carry the eagle. The cohorts, in the usual reading, are the praetorians, the emperor’s guard, whom Tiberius had gathered in one camp in Rome. Cassius Dio tells us that as soon as he came to power in 37, Caligula reviewed the praetorians and paid each man the thousand sesterces left by Tiberius, plus another thousand of his own. That the coin recalls that day is a hypothesis.

Read more: doubts, catalogue and sources

Hypotheses and doubts

• COH does not say which cohorts: “praetorians” is the usual reading.
• The link between the coin and the payment to the praetorians is a hypothesis; the text says so.

Catalogue

RIC I (2nd ed.) Gaius/Caligula 32: sestertius, Rome, AD 37–38, laureate head left with C CAESAR AVG GERMANICVS PON M TR POT. The same reverse returns in 39–40 and 40–41 (RIC 40 and 48), with a different legend around the portrait.

Sources (10)

1. Nomisma.org, Gaius/Caligula [S25]
2. OCRE, RIC I (2nd ed.) Gaius/Caligula 32 [S32]
3. OCRE, search for ADLOCVT COH of Caligula [S33]
4. Harvard Art Museums 1942.176.101, Sestertius of Caligula, Rome [S34]
5. Lewis & Short, entry allocutio (adl-) (on Perseus) [S35]
6. K. Feeney, The adlocutio at the accession of the Roman emperor, Classical Quarterly 73.1 (2023), pp. 397–418 [S36]
7. Cassius Dio, Roman History 59.2.1 (Loeb translation on LacusCurtius) [S37]
8. Suetonius, Tiberius 37.1 (Loeb translation on LacusCurtius) [S38]
9. Nomisma.org, sestertius [S29]
10. CoinArchives, archive of auction-house results (hammer prices), searches read on 14 October 2026, partly reread on 21 October 2026; European Central Bank exchange rates of 13 October 2026 [M01]

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In short. The replica reproduces a copper as of Caligula struck in Rome in AD 37–38, with Vesta enthroned and the word VESTA: in the OCRE catalogue it is type RIC I² Gaius 38. The original is not a sestertius.

Date of the original

AD 37–38 OCRE, RIC I² Gaius 38

Mint of the original

Rome OCRE, RIC I² Gaius 38

Metal of the original

Copper ANS, Introduction to Roman Coinage

The story

Caligula was emperor from 37 to 41. Around his portrait you can read PON M: pontifex maximus, Rome’s high priest, an office held by the emperor. On the other side sits Vesta, veiled, with the offering bowl called a patera and a long sceptre. The Vestals guarded her sacred fire and answered to the pontifex maximus: the historian Livy tells how once the fire went out, and the Vestal on watch that night was flogged on the pontifex’s orders. The original is not a sestertius: it is an as, a copper coin worth a quarter of a sestertius.

Read more: doubts, catalogue and sources

Catalogue

RIC I (2nd ed.) Gaius/Caligula 38: as, Rome, AD 37–38. Portrait with C CAESAR AVG GERMANICVS PON M TR POT, bare head left; on the other side VESTA, S C.

Sources (7)

1. Nomisma.org, Gaius/Caligula [S25]
2. OCRE, RIC I (2nd ed.) Gaius/Caligula 38 [S27]
3. American Numismatic Society, An Introduction to Roman Coinage [S26]
4. Lewis & Short, entry patera (on Perseus) [S45]
5. Livy, History of Rome 28.11.6 (trans. Roberts, on Perseus) [S28]
6. Nomisma.org, sestertius [S29]
7. CoinArchives, archive of auction-house results (hammer prices), searches read on 14 October 2026, partly reread on 21 October 2026; European Central Bank exchange rates of 13 October 2026 [M01]

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In short. The replica resembles Caligula’s dupondius for his brothers Nero and Drusus, struck in Rome in AD 37–38 (RIC I² Gaius 34): the riders’ legend is barely legible, so the type is “similar”, not confirmed.

Date of the original

AD 37–38 (similar type) OCRE, RIC I² Gaius 34

Mint of the original

Rome OCRE, RIC I² Gaius 34

Metal of the original

Orichalcum (ancient brass); OCRE says “bronze”, in the broad sense ANS, Introduction to Roman Coinage

The story

Nero and Drusus were Caligula’s brothers, sons of Germanicus. Under Tiberius they fell from favour and died: according to Suetonius, Nero on the island of Pontia, Drusus of hunger in a room of the Palace in Rome. In 37 Caligula became emperor and, Suetonius adds, set off at once, in stormy weather, to bring the ashes of his mother and brother back to Rome. In his first year the mint of Rome struck the two brothers galloping, cloaks flying. On the other side, around a large S C, run the emperor’s name and titles.

Read more: doubts, catalogue and sources

Hypotheses and doubts

• The same S C side also exists on the as struck for Germanicus (RIC 35): it is the horseman that points to the brothers’ dupondius.

Catalogue

Similar to the dupondius RIC I (2nd ed.) Gaius/Caligula 34: NERO ET DRVSVS CAESARES with the two riders; on the other side C CAESAR AVG GERMANICVS PON M TR POT around S C. “Similar” because the riders’ legend is barely visible on the replica.

Sources (6)

1. OCRE, RIC I (2nd ed.) Gaius/Caligula 34 [S21]
2. Suetonius, Tiberius 54.2 (Loeb translation on LacusCurtius) [S22]
3. Suetonius, Caligula 15.1 (Loeb translation on LacusCurtius) [S23]
4. Nomisma.org, Gaius/Caligula [S25]
5. American Numismatic Society, An Introduction to Roman Coinage [S26]
6. Nomisma.org, as and dupondius [S30]

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In short. The replica reproduces a sestertius of Hadrian struck in Rome between AD 130 and 133, reading ADVENTVI AVG AFRICAE, “to the arrival of the Augustus in Africa”: type RIC II.3 Hadrian 1715–1719, 1721–1722 and 1725.

Date of the original

AD 130–133 OCRE, RIC II.3 Hadrian 1715

Mint of the original

Rome OCRE, RIC II.3 Hadrian 1715

Metal of the original

Orichalcum (ancient brass) OCRE, RIC II.3 Hadrian 1715

The story

Hadrian ruled from 117 to 138 and spent years travelling the empire. In the summer of 128 he was in Africa: at Lambaesis, in today’s Algeria, he inspected the legion, and his speeches to the soldiers were carved in stone. According to the Historia Augusta, a late and not always reliable source, it rained on his arrival for the first time in five years. A few years later, between 130 and 133, the mint of Rome struck this scene: Hadrian facing Africa, who wears an elephant scalp, with an altar between them. ADVENTVI is a dative: the coin is dedicated to his arrival.

Read more: doubts, catalogue and sources

Hypotheses and doubts

• That the portrait and the scene are the two sides of one coin is very likely, not proven.
• The rain on his arrival comes only from the Historia Augusta, a late source: the text says so.

Catalogue

RIC II.3 (2nd ed.) Hadrian 1715–1719, 1721–1722 and 1725 (sestertii). The exact number depends on the bust, which cannot be made out on the replica. The same reverse also exists on the dupondius and as (RIC 1723–1724).

Sources (8)

1. Nomisma.org (American Numismatic Society), Hadrian [S04]
2. Livius.org (J. Lendering), The Lambaesis inscription [S06]
3. Historia Augusta, Life of Hadrian 22.14 (Loeb translation on LacusCurtius) [S07]
4. OCRE (American Numismatic Society), RIC II.3 (2nd ed.) Hadrian 1715 [S01]
5. OCRE, search for ADVENTVI AVG AFRICAE [S02]
6. OCRE, RIC II.3 (2nd ed.) Hadrian 1723 [S03]
7. J. Williams (curator of Roman coins at the British Museum, 1993–2005), The Republican identity of Roman imperial coinage, ICOMON, Hanover 2007, pp. 57–72 [S05]
8. CoinArchives, archive of auction-house results (hammer prices), searches read on 14 October 2026, partly reread on 21 October 2026; European Central Bank exchange rates of 13 October 2026 [M01]

In our catalogue: the statue of Emperor Hadrian →

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In short. The portrait on the replica is Maximinus Thrax, emperor from 235 to 238: MAXIMINVS and PIVS AVG can be read. It resembles his sestertii struck in Rome in 236–238; the other side, with military standards, cannot be read.

Date of the original

AD 236–238 (similar type) OCRE, RIC IV Maximinus 78

Mint of the original

Rome OCRE, RIC IV Maximinus 78

Metal of the original

Bronze (copper alloy) OCRE, RIC IV Maximinus 78

The story

Maximinus was proclaimed emperor by his soldiers in 235, at the army headquarters near Mainz, on the Rhine. He stayed with the army: in Germany, then in Pannonia. The historian Herodian tells us that he had his battle in Germany painted on huge canvases and set up in front of the Senate house, so that the Romans could see it and not only hear about it. Later the Senate had them taken down. In 238 he marched on Rome, but was held up at the siege of Aquileia, where soldiers of one of his legions killed him. As emperor, he never reached Rome.

Read more: doubts, catalogue and sources

Hypotheses and doubts

• That the side with the standards belongs to the same coin as the portrait is not proven: only the position in the sample photo suggests it.

Catalogue

Similar to the sestertii of Maximinus reading MAXIMINVS PIVS AVG GERM, Rome, 236–238 (for example RIC IV 78). The side with the standards resembles RIC IV 78 (Fides holding a standard in each hand) or RIC IV 37 (the emperor between standards): not settled.

Sources (5)

1. Nomisma.org, Maximinus Thrax [S08]
2. De Imperatoribus Romanis, Maximinus Thrax (M. L. Meckler, Ohio State University) [S12]
3. Herodian, History of the Empire 7.2.8–9 (trans. E. C. Echols, on Livius.org) [S13]
4. OCRE, RIC IV Maximinus 78 [S09]
5. OCRE, RIC IV Maximinus 37 [S10]

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In short. Replica of an unidentified Roman bronze coin: a female figure with a sceptre between the letters S C, short for senatus consulto, “by decree of the Senate”. Only …ANVS remains of the name: we give neither a name nor a date.

Date of the original

Cannot be determined

Mint of the original

Cannot be determined

Metal of the original

Copper alloy (Roman bronze with S C) ANS, Introduction to Roman Coinage

The story

S C stands for senatus consulto, “by decree of the Senate”. On Roman copper, bronze and brass coins of the early Empire these two letters appear again and again; what exactly they meant is still debated by scholars. Here, next to S C, a woman stands holding a long sceptre. On Roman coins it is usually the legend around a figure that tells you who she is: VESTA, for example, or PAX AVGVSTI for Peace. Many figures hold a sceptre, Vesta on Caligula’s coins and Peace on those of Maximinus. On the replica the legend is worn away: we will not invent her name.

Read more: doubts, catalogue and sources

Hypotheses and doubts

• Some may think of Hadrian because of …ANVS: we do not write it, because many names end that way.
• That the two sides belong to the same coin is not proven: only the position in the sample photo suggests it.

Catalogue

Not identified. On the portrait …ANVS can just be seen, on the other side perhaps COS III: too little for a name or a date.

Sources (4)

1. J. Williams (curator of Roman coins at the British Museum, 1993–2005), The Republican identity of Roman imperial coinage, ICOMON, Hanover 2007, pp. 57–72 [S05]
2. American Numismatic Society, An Introduction to Roman Coinage [S26]
3. OCRE, RIC I (2nd ed.) Gaius/Caligula 38 [S27]
4. OCRE, search for sestertii of Maximinus reading MAXIMINVS PIVS AVG GERM [S11]

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In short. Replica of a Roman bronze coin with a woman’s portrait, not identified: no letter of her name can be read, and on this page we do not give her one.

Date of the original

Cannot be determined

Mint of the original

Cannot be determined

Metal of the original

Copper alloy (Roman bronze with S C) ANS, Introduction to Roman Coinage

The story

The hairstyles of women at the imperial court changed often and are well documented. That is why, the Metropolitan Museum in New York explains, portraits of unknown women can be dated by their hair: a girl carved in marble wears a hairstyle very similar to that of Domitia, wife of the emperor Domitian, as she appears on coins of the early 80s AD. On this replica the woman portrayed has horizontal waves and a bun at the nape of the neck. On the other side a figure stands with a long staff, between S and C. The legend is worn: her name remains unknown, and we will not invent one.

Read more: doubts, catalogue and sources

Hypotheses and doubts

• The waved hairstyle recalls third-century fashions, but without a legend we do not state it as fact.
• That the two sides belong to the same coin is not proven: only the position in the sample photo suggests it.

Catalogue

Not identified. No letter of the name can be read; we give neither a name nor a date.

Sources (3)

1. The Metropolitan Museum of Art 20.188, Marble portrait of a young girl (AD 81–96) [S39]
2. J. Paul Getty Museum, Mummy Portraits of Roman Egypt, glossary [S40]
3. American Numismatic Society, An Introduction to Roman Coinage [S26]

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In short. The replica resembles the silver decadrachms of Syracuse with Arethusa and the quadriga, struck around 405–390 BC and weighing about 43 grams: it is a Greek coin, not a sestertius.

Date of the original

about 405–390 BC ANS 1997.9.64 ANS 1997.9.77

Mint of the original

Syracuse, Sicily ANS 1997.9.64

Metal of the original

Silver ANS 1997.9.64

The story

On one side is Arethusa. In Ovid’s Metamorphoses she is a nymph chased by the river god Alpheus: she turns into water and, through the earth opened by Diana, rises again on the island of Ortygia, in Syracuse. The Fountain of Arethusa can still be visited there, facing the sea. On the original, four dolphins swim around her head. On the other side a four-horse chariot gallops and a flying Victory crowns the driver. Below lies a full set of armour with the word ATHLA, “prizes”: these were the prizes of the race. A decadrachm was worth ten drachms and weighed about 43 grams of silver. Some carry the engraver’s signature, Euainetos.

Read more: doubts, catalogue and sources

Hypotheses and doubts

• Museums call the quadriga side the “obverse” (ANS, Harvard); other catalogues do the opposite. On the page we write “one side” and “the other side”.

Catalogue

Similar to the silver decadrachms of Syracuse signed by Euainetos (American Numismatic Society 1997.9.64, 405–400 BC, and 1997.9.77, 400–390 BC). No letters can be read on the replica, so we do not say which die it copies.

Sources (7)

1. American Numismatic Society, decadrachm of Syracuse 1997.9.64 [S14]
2. American Numismatic Society, decadrachm of Syracuse 1997.9.77 [S15]
3. Harvard Art Museums 1.1965.883, Decadrachm of Syracuse, by Euainetos [S16]
4. Ovid, Metamorphoses 5.572–641 (Latin text on Perseus) [S17]
5. italia.it (Italian Ministry of Tourism), Fonte Aretusa [S18]
6. Liddell–Scott–Jones, entry ἆθλον (on lsj.gr) [S19]
7. Nomisma.org, decadrachm [S20]

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