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Orbis Collectibles

RIC IV Trajan Decius 225

DocumentedSupported by at least one credible specialist source.

Record status

Individual type · research required

Period

AD 251

Issuing entity

Roman Empire

Maker / issuer

Rome (ancient mint)

Sestertius in bronze struck at Rome under Hostilian, AD 251, catalogued as RIC IV Trajan Decius 225. Obverse: Bust of Hostilian, laureate, draped, cuirassed, right.

Reverse: Securitas, draped, standing front, head right, resting right hand on head and resting left elbow on column. Obverse legend: IMP CAE C VAL HOS MES QVINTVS AVG. Reverse legend: SECVRITAS AVGG S C.

Evidence at a glance

Linked sources
2
Photograph views
4
Catalogue references
1

Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.

Historical context

Hostilian, born Gaius Valens Hostilianus Messius Quintus to Decius and Herennia Etruscilla, was elevated to caesar in 250 by his father. After Decius and his brother Herennius Etruscus were killed at the Battle of Abritus in an ambush by the Goths, Trebonianus Gallus was proclaimed emperor by the legions. Gallus almost immediately elevated Hostilian to co-emperor alongside him in 251. This bronze sestertius represents Hostilian's brief period as Roman emperor before his death, caused either by plague or murder.

Physical characteristics

Material
Bronze
Manufacture
Struck
Denomination
Sestertius

Technical characteristics

Mint
Rome
Issuing authority
Hostilian

Design

Obverse type
Bust of Hostilian, laureate, draped, cuirassed, right
Reverse type
Securitas, draped, standing front, head right, resting right hand on head and resting left elbow on column
Obverse legend
IMP CAE C VAL HOS MES QVINTVS AVG
Reverse legend
SECVRITAS AVGG S C

Identification

How to identify
RIC separates types by mint and officina marks, obverse legend and bust form, and reverse legend and type; check the exergue and field marks against the RIC number before accepting a match.
Type corpus record
https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.4.tr_d.225
Catalogue reference
RIC IV Trajan Decius 225
Type corpus identifier
ric.4.tr_d.225
Source note
The type record is Online Coins of the Roman Empire (OCRE), the American Numismatic Society's digital edition of Roman Imperial Coinage.

Documentation checklist

Denomination
Recorded
Issue or mint date
Recorded
Material
Recorded
Weight
Research required
Mint or printer
Recorded
Mint or printer mark
Research required
Catalogue reference
Recorded
Attached photograph (check rights)
Recorded

Recorded means a field is present, not independently verified. Read its wording, supporting source and the entry’s confidence level.

Catalogue references

Research required

  • Nominal weight not transcribed from a primary reference
  • Diameter and die axis not transcribed
  • Mint mark and officina detail not transcribed
  • No rights-cleared photograph identified yet
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