Galba. A.D. 68-69. Æ sestertius. 25.82 gm. 35 mm. Rome mint. Struck autumn A.D. 68. His laureate and draped bust right; IMP SER GALBA CAES AVG TR P / Victory advancing left, holding palladium and palm; S C. RIC I 352 (S). Good Fine; bold portrait, well centered; dark green and red patina; some barely distinguishable light tooling along front of bust on obverse, and along front of Victory on reverse; two spots of old corrosion on reverse at 12' and 6'; collectors number '54' written in ink on obverse, second collectors number 'H 33' written in ink on lacquer on edge. Scarce.

This collection of early Roman Imperial bronze was formed by an American collector in the Midwest, buying coins in the 1950's from major London coin houses. He affixed collector 'H' numbers written in ink on lacquer on many of the coins. We have correspondence dated in 1950 and 1951 with Leonard Forrer at Spink & Son, Ltd. and William French at Glendining & Co. Ltd. in London, as well as Earle K. Stanton in Los Angeles, Paul S. Seitz in Pennsylvania, and Edward Gans, Numismatic Fine Arts in New York City.

Galba was a brilliant administrator but David Sear writes "his strict discipline and rigid economy made him unpopular with the army" and he was assassinated in the Forum in A.D. 69. This interesting and scarce reverse type suggests that Victory had the power to bestow control over Rome (the Palladium).