IMP XXXXII COS XVII P P (type III / II, B) (441 / 450)
Bust of Theodosius II facing, cuirassed, wearing a helmet with crest and a pearl diadem. Holding a spear passing behind his head with the right hand and a decorated shield with a horseman slaying an enemy, with the left hand.
XXXXII COS – XVII P P Constantinople seated left on a throne, holding a spear with the left hand and a globe surmounted by a cross with the right hand. A shield behind the throne and a star in the field to the left.
Marks
Photo of a coin sold on 18/ May 2022 by Classical Numismatic Group, Electronic Auction 516, lot 544, link to the sale: https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=9481752, link to their website: https://www.cngcoins.com/.
Variant without a dot on the obverse and a dot on the reverse located after the first P of IMP. COMOB mark. Reverse of type III (legend with dots) and design of type II, shield of type B.
The officina letter S is melted with the shield. The letter M in COMOB is incomplete; we see two beginnings of bars in the middle that suggest the letter M.
The RIC X does not reference any coin with only one dot. It is possible that coins with only one dot actually have two or more... the same reasoning applies to coins with two or three.. dots, which could have more. These details are too small and shallow, prone to wear or poor minting quality. Coins with almost invisible dots are regularly observed. Coins in excellent condition leave little doubt as to the number of dots inscribed, but we must still remain open to the possibilities I just outlined.
Type III: with the mark CONOB or COMOB (CONOB here). Legend punctuation on the reverse. This corresponds to type II of RIC X. Variant A and B are the same as RIC X: A = large, B = smaller, rounder shield. This type blends characteristics of types I and II in terms of design and the position of the legend relative to the shield: Constantinople large or small, helmet flat or not, drapery tight or not natural, legend ending before or at the level of the shield. The likely reuse of old reverse dies (there are already links between obverse dies and coins without reverse dots) consequently mixes the first two types. This mixing of the two types may also demonstrate the high probability that this series with dots on reverse is the last. For each Type III coin, I add the reverse design type after ''/'', thus giving either: ''III / I'' or ''III / II'', designating a Type III reverse with a Type I or II design followed by shield type A or B.