Roman Empire, Trajan, denarius, 108, minted in Rome.
Obverse: IMP TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P, bust of the emperor wearing a laurel wreath, facing right.
Rev. COS V P P S P Q R OPTIMO PRINC, Victoria walking left over shields, holding a wreath in her right hand and a palm branch in her left hand.
Silver, 3.14 g, 18.2 mm. Cohen 76 var.; RIC 29.
Condition II-
This type is much rarer than various publications suggest. H. Cohen rightly valued this denarius at 10 francs in gold, compared to 2 francs for other Trajan denarii depicting Victoria. The reverse alludes to Trajan’s Dacian campaign, and the figure of Victory commemorates the emperor’s successes, the conquest of the Dacian kingdom, and its transformation into a Roman province. On the reverse, Victoria (Victory) stands on an oblong shield with a round umbo or on a round shield.
