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Titus as Caesar AR Denarius (July 77 to December 78 CE)

Titus, as Caesar (AD 79-81). AR denarius. Rome. 77-78 CE

(19mm, 3.09 gm, 7h).

Obv: laureate head of Titus right; T CAESAR VESPASIANVS

Rev: Goatherder seated left on rocks, milking goat over vessel; IMP XIII,

RIC 985 (Vespasian); BMC 230;RSC 103


This is a very special coin. I was able to acquire it very cheaply because it was overlooked. It was in an auction that featured mainly encapsulated coins so this one went under the radar so to speak. In a different auction this coin would have sold for at least 10 times what I paid for it. Of course the coin itself is rather unassuming and this also contributed to its being overlooked. This brings to mind a tip for finding coins like this. Search auctions where they may have a few ancient coins but where the main focus is not ancient coins or maybe even coins at all. I have picked up more than a few goodies in very unusual places.


This goatherd reverse was also used by Vespasian. That coin is also rare but not as rare as this one. No one really knows the meaning behind the reverse. The mystery behind it is another reason I wanted this coin. If you so happen to see one of these fore sale grab it fast because the Flavian specialists will go after it with incredible zeal.

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