Ancient Rome Maximinus Thrax Denarius 235AD to 238AD

Maximinus Thrax (or Maximinus I) ruled the Roman empire for a few years from the mid to late 240s AD. He was not a liked emperor. He had his opponents assassinated to gain power, and sent thousands soldiers into their deaths to claim Pyrrhic victories just for the sake of military titles. When a revolt in Africa spawned a usurper, the Senate instantly turned their backs on Maximinus, and his attempt to reclaim power only ended with his death.

His silver denarii (plural of denarius) are liked by collectors today. He is usually portrayed with a large nose and a big, pointy chin. The reverse varies a bit. Popular motifs are listed as follows: the emperor standing with a spear, flanked by battle standards; Pax (the personification of peace) standing with an olive branch and a scepter; Providentia (the personification of foresight and provision) standing with a wand and a cornucopia (a horn of plenty); Salus (the goddess of health) sitting towards the left feeding a snake; or Victory (the goddess of, well, victory) walking towards the right, holding a wreath and a palm branch.

These many varieties all catalog at around the same values:
worn: $25 US dollars approximate catalog value
average circulated: $125
well preserved: $240
denarii with the reverse 'VOTIS DECENNA LIBVS' in three lines are rare and catalog at $1500+ in well preserved condition

CoinQuest thanks Numismatica Ars Classica for use of their coin photo. It's a beauty!

Damaged coins are worth about the same as worn coins. Worn and damaged coins are worth a few dollars at most.

Please visit our Important Terminology page found at the top left in order to properly interpret the catalog values used on this page.
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