Nice antoninianus of Numerian, son of Carus, as Augustus, minted in Rome between the end of 283 and the death of the Emperor in November 284.
Roman Imperial
Numerian (283-284), Billon antoninianus 283-284, Rome mint
Obverse: radiate bust right
IMP NVMERIANVS AVG
Reverse: Pietas standing to left, holding purse and caduceus, KAΔ in exergue
PIETAS AVGG
Weight 3.5 g
Offered Numerian antoninianus belongs to the so-called type XXI or KA (Greek spelling for the numeral 21, where K stands for 20, A = 1) introduced in 274 as part of the Aurelian reform, which guaranteed that 20 units of copper contained 1 unit of silver, which was 5% of the metal. The mint mark on the reverse deserves attention. Well, in the mint in Rome, the cradle of the Latin language, Greek inscriptions appear frequently in the designations of the coins: here it is KA and the designation of the fourth officina by the delta Δ.
Quite precise dating allows us to know that in December 283, after the death of his father Carus, Numerian was promoted by his older brother Carinus to the rank of a real co-ruler with the title of Augustus and he died in November of the following year. The abbreviation of the AVGG legend on the reverse refers to the fact that the Numerian and Carinus coordinate.
