Otacilia Severa

RIC Volume IV, Part III - Otacilia Severa

	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 248, Rome, Officina 4 OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PIETAS AVGG Pietas, veiled, standing facing, head left, right hand raised, box of perfume in left, lit altar at left D in left field 23mm x 24mm, 5.80g RIC IV, Part III, 115 (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 248, Rome, Officina 4 OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PIETAS AVGG Pietas, veiled, standing facing, head left, right hand raised, box of perfume in left, lit altar at left Δ in left field 22mm x 23mm, 4.57g RIC IV, Part III, 115 (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 248, Rome, Officina 4 OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head SAECVLARES AVGG Hippopotamus standing right, head down IIII in exergue 22mm x 24mm, 4.35g RIC IV, Part III, 116b (C) Note: This coin belongs to the 1000th Anniversary of Rome series.
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 248, Rome, Officina 4 OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head SAECVLARES AVGG Hippopotamus standing right, head down IIII in exergue 20mm x 22mm, 3.93g RIC IV, Part III, 116b (C) Note: This coin belongs to the 1000th Anniversary of Rome series. Also, this is the most peculiar example I've seen for a hippo - If I didn't know it was supposed to be a hippo, I would have definitely called it a bear. Note the small, round nose on the end of the snout and the angle of the skull from the brow to the base of the snout. Also note the clawed feet. The short tail and round ears are common to both animals.
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 248, Rome, Officina 4 OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head SAECVLARES AVGG Hippopotamus standing right, head up IIII in exergue 22mm x 23mm, 3.89g RIC IV, Part III, 116b (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 244-246, Rome MARCIA OTACIL-SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PIETAS AVG Pietas, veiled, standing left, right hand raised, holding box of perfume in left 23mm x 25mm, 4.36g RIC IV, Part III, 120b (R)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 244-246, Rome MARCIA OTACIL-SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PIETA_S AVG Pietas, veiled, standing facing, head left, right hand raised, holding box of perfume in left 22mm x 23mm, 4.79g RIC IV, Part III, 120b (R)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome MARCIA OTACIL-SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PVDICITIA AVG Pudicitia, veiled, seated left, drawing veil with right, holding transverse scepter in left 21mm x 23mm, 3.52g RIC IV, Part III, 123c (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome MARCIA OTACIL-SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PVDICITIA AVG Pudicitia, veiled, seated left, drawing veil with right hand, transverse scepter in left 23mm x 25mm, 3.94g RIC IV, Part III, 123c (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome MARCIA OTACIL-SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PVDICITIA AVG Pudicitia, veiled, seated left, drawing veil with right hand, transverse scepter in left 22mm x 23mm, 4.82g RIC IV, Part III, 123c (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome M OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head CONCORDIA AVGG Concordia seated left, holding patera and double cornucopiae 22mm x 23mm, 3.29g RIC IV, Part III, 125c (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome M . OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head CONCORDIA-AVGG Concordia seated left, patera in right hand, double cornucopiae in left 22mm x 24mm, 4.76g RIC IV, Part III, 125c (C) Ex Vel Garnett Collection Note: The "pellet” in the obverse legend appears to be more of a spacer for the engraver versus an actual device meant to be struck up on the coins themselves as this piece seems to have been struck from very fresh dies. Most likely the “pellet” is not as evident on later strikes from this die and would instead appear more like an intentional space.
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome M OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent CONCORDIA AVGG Concordia seated left with patera and cornucopiae RIC IV, Part III, 125c Although the coin has no actual wear, it is very difficult to read. It was double-struck so far off on the second strike, there are actually a couple of millimeters between the arcs of the crescent and makes Otacilia appear to have a jugate bust with herself.
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome M OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head CONCORDIA AVGG Concordia seated left, patera in right hand, cornucopiae in left, altar to left 21mm x 22mm, 3.12g RIC IV, Part III, 126 (C) Ex CNG, Electronic Auction 121, Lot 243, September 2005
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome M OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head CONCORDIA AVGG Concordia seated left, patera in right hand, cornucopiae in left, altar to left 22mm x 25mm, 4.62g RIC IV, Part III, 126 (C) Consignor notes: aEF/VF. Well-centered, good metal, traces of luster, small flan flaw on reverse.
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 246-248, Rome? M OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head CONCORDIA AVGG (retrograde N) Concordia seated left, patera in right hand, cornucopiae in left, altar to left 21mm x 24mm, 4.07g RIC IV, Part III, 126 (C) Note: The obverse looks completely official, but the reverse legend has a retrograde N and the style of the letters do not match the obverse and are inconsistent to other contemporary official examples. An imitative piece of exceptional style? A new celator just starting out on the reverse legend?
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 248-249, Rome OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head CONCORDIA AVGG Concordia seated left, patera in right hand, cornucopiae in left, altar at left 23mm, 4.40g RIC IV, Part III, 129 (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 248-249, Rome OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PIETAS AVGVSTAE Pietas standing left, right hand raised, box of perfumes in left 22mm, 3.94g RIC IV, Part III, 130 (C)
	Otacilia Severa, AE Sestertius, 244-249, Rome MARCIA OTACIL-SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head CONCORDI (sic) AVGG Concordia seated left, patera in right hand, double cornucopiae in left SC in exergue 29mm x 31mm, 19.55g RIC IV, Part III, 203a (C) Consignor notes: VF. Double-struck, moreso on reverse, the die shift causing the reverse legend to be missing an A and leaving a weak second S in the exergue.
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 244-246, Antioch MARC OTACI SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PIETAS AVG N Pietas, standing facing, veiled head left, globe in raised right hand, transverse in left, child at left facing right with raised arms RIC IV, Part III, 134 var. (R2) Image courtesy Lanz Numismatik, eBay, March 2013 Notes: Variant for obverse legend. The L is missing from OTACIL.
	Otacilia Severa, AR Antoninianus, 248-249, Viminacium? OTACIL SEVERA AVG Diademed, draped bust right on crescent, hair weaved in straight lines and rows with long plait carried up the back of head PIETAS AVGVSTE Pietas standing facing, veiled head left, right hand raised, box of perfumes in left 21mm x 23mm, 4.20g RIC IV, Part III, -- Note: RIC footnotes on p.84 "C.49 (Cohen) quotes variant of rev. AVGVSTE (Antoninianus)." but does not mention if it is of non-Rome style or fabric. Update - CoA from David Sear received, dated November 7, 2008: "Little is known of Marcia Otacilia Severa other than that she was the daughter of a certain Severus, sometime governor of Pannonia, and that about AD 234 she married an Arabian, M. Julius Philippus, who was to ascend the imperial throne a decade later as Philip I. She bore a son and a daughter to her husband, the former (born circa AD 237) being the future Philip II. Reputedly a Christian, she is said to have been subjected to ecclesiastical penance by the Bishop of Antioch for her part in the death of the emperor Gordian III, but the story must be regarded as highly suspect. She was given the rank of Augusta soon after her husband's accession in AD 244 and was allowed a substantial share in the coinage, one of the six officinae of the Rome mint (apparently the 4th) working exclusively in her name. A few scarce issues were also produced by the eastern mint of Antioch in Syria and recently a further group of coins have been attributed to the mint of Viminacium, an important city of the Danubian province of Upper Moesia, which was especially active as a provincial mint at this time. This rare piece appears to be attributable to Viminacium on stylistic grounds. It celebrates "the Piety of Our Empress" and in addition to being of unusual style and fabric it has a curious error in the ending of the reverse legend - AVGVSTE instead of the AVGVSTAE found on the equivalent issue from the mint in Rome (RIC 130, plate 7, 18). A specimen of this type appears to have been known to Cohen as early as 1885 as he cites an antoninianus with this reverse legend in Volume V of his Médailles Impériales (second edition), though it does not appear in the 1860 first edition. It is cited from the collection of a certain Dr. Lechat and is picked up by RIC in the footnote to no. 130. The crescent behind the empress's shoulders on the obverse, symbolic of the moon-goddess Luna, indicates the double value of the denomination. It is equivalent of the radiate crown of the sun-god Sol worn by emperors on antoniniani (double denarii), double sestertii, and dupondii (double asses). It is reported that following her husband's downfall in AD 249 Otacilia was forced to witness the murder of her son, the younger Philip, in the praetorian camp t which they had fled for safety. She then retired into private life and nothing further is known of her."