Al Kowsky

Your ideas sound reasonable, but it does seem odd that the mint would label coins "pecunia" (P) for a coin type that had been in use since circa AD 294. The early issue follis pictured below from the Ticinum mint has no P or officina letter in the exergue.

My issue of a Constantine I as Augustus follis, with a Mars reverse, struck AD AD 307/8, shows a considerable drop in weight to 6.65 gm. RIC VI 776.

I won the older coin at a CNG auction about 14 years ago where it was described as a 1st officina issue (prima for the P in exergue), & used the same reasoning for the later issue 😉.

Pictured below are two Constantine I folles from my collection, the 1st coin appears to be from the same issue as the 1st coin posted by Dirk ☺️. Constantine I as Caesar, AD 306-309 (struck AD circa summer of AD 307). Trier Mint, 1st Officina. AE Follis: 8.73 gm, 29 mm, 6 h. RIC VI 719b. Ex CNG Inventory 774824, July 2006. Constantine I as Caesar, AD 306-309 (struck circa AD 306-early 307) Trier Mint, 1st Officina. AE Follis: 9.50 gm, 28 mm, 7 h. A trace of silvering is still visible. RIC VI 666A.

Dirk, what are the weights of the two coins you posted 🤔?

You may be right, but time will tell. I scored my Siculo-Punic tetradrachm about 9 years ago for $1.762.50.

One popular trend that is still popular is taking raw high grade ancient coins sold at auction & getting them slabbed. Sometimes this can really payoff & at other times you can end up losing money. A good case to point at is a Siculo-Punic tetradrachm that will appear in a major Heritage auction, see photos below. This coin sold at Nomos Auction 20, lot 51, July 10, 2020, for a price realized of 2,800 CHF (Swiss francs). Add on the buyer's premium of 22.5 %, and take into account the fall in value of the U.S. $ since nearly 4 years ago, & this coin would have to sell for over $3,893.31 to show a profit 😮. I'll be curious to see what Heritage gets for this coin & would be surprised if it exceeds $3,000.00. The coin is well struck & attractive but has an annoying die-break on the cheek of Melqart-Heracles.

Your Owl is a stunning example 🤩! The owl side is literally flawless & struck from a fresh die 😃. I waited a long time before adding an Owl to my collection, & when the last massive hoard reached the market & prices fell I scored the example pictured below several years ago from a Roma auction. My priority in selecting an example was an attractive portrait of Athena ☺️. The owl side on my coin was struck from a worn die with considerable milage & not completely struck at the high points, never the less I'm happy with the coin. Athens, 454-404 BC. AR Tetradrachm: 17.22 gm, 25 mm, 3 h.

For comparison, the Class A2 follis pictured below I won at a Roma auction 5 years ago.

This coin or token looks like a possible late Roman coin that was worked over by tooling & engraving like the "hobo nickels". Pictured below is a "hobo nickel" from my collection ☺️.

"Be harmonious, enrich the soldiers, scorn all others."

Sometimes I wonder if it was worth getting the two Fizer Covid 19 shots when they first became available 🤔. I was sick for a week after the 1st shot with dizziness, nausea, & headaches, but the 2nd shot a month later wasn't as bad. After the first two shots I vowed to get no more Covid shots. This year I did get a Flu shot & was sick for two days, not taking into account the localized area in my left arm that was painful for a week. I later learned that I was given a double dose of the vaccine because of my age 😲. Does this really make any sense? Now I'm having my doubts about getting anymore Flu shots 🤨... https://www.news-medical.net/news/20230207/The-safety-profile-and-the-actual-known-adverse-effects-of-COVID-19-vaccines-in-at-risk-and-healthy-individuals.aspx

The die cutters at the Rome mint did a good job depicting Julia Mamaea 😊.

Seeing the double sestertius posted by robinjojo triggered my memory about a Postumus sestertius in my collection ☺️. Postumus, AD 260-269 (struck AD 261). Trier Mint, 3rd emission. AE Sestertius: 25.49 gm, 31.5 mm, 6 h. Obverse: Laureate, draped, & cuirassed bust of Postumus. Reverse: Victory holding wreath & palm branch, advancing left, seated captive on ground. RIC V 170.

The first time I saw a photo of this famous tree my jaw dropped 😮. Religious sects in China & Japan believe old trees are inhabited by the spirits of ancestors; I get that feeling when viewing photos of this tree....

Yesterday Philip Chrysopoulos posted an interesting article on Google, The Incredibly Diverse - And Healthy - Diet of the Ancient Greeks. The article also has an informative & amusing YouTube video attached to the article, Olive Relish. My mother's side of the family came from Sicily, so I wasn't too surprised at the similarity of the modern Sicilian diet compared to the ancient Greek diet 😉. https://greekreporter.com/2024/02/18/incredibly-diverse-healthy-diet-ancient-greeks/ Ancient Greeks drinking wine from a Kylix. Greek pottery fish plate, 325-290 BC. The oldest olive tree in the world, documented by ancient writers to be over 2,000 years old, Ano Vouves, western Crete. This tree was declared a protected natural monument in 1997, & amazingly still produces olives today 🤩.

Rand, Thanks for the comments ☺️. I won the Galerius follis at auction 7 years ago, aside from the condition, I was impressed by the weight of the coin. Diocletian era folles weigh on average about 10.50 gm, so 13.15 gm is hefty 😲.

Coinmaster, Thanks for sharing your Trier experience & the lovely photos 🤩. I'm ashamed to say after spending 18 months in Germany I never got to Trier ☹️. Pictured below are a few of my favorite coins from Roman-Trier ☺️. Constantine I, AD 307-330 (struck AD 307/8). AE Follis: 6.65 gm, 26 mm, 6 h. Reverse: Mars with spear & Shield. Ex Spink 169, July 15, 2004.

My 4 favorite Alexandrian coins ☺️.

I sold the tetradrachm pictured below a long time ago, it's a common type but very expensive in high grade. Parthian Kingdom. Mithradates II, 123-88 BC. AR Tetradrachm: 15.77 gm, 32 mm, 12 h. Seleucia on Tigris mint.

The front-facing Parthian portraits are fascinating 🤩.

On January 25, a Chinese porcelain moon flask, bianhu, was auctioned by Dixon's Crumpton Auction House. Despite being drilled through the base & obscuring most of the six character reign mark, the 11 inch tall flask attracted international attention. The Jiaqing flask, AD 1796-1820, had an estimate of $1,000-2,000, but sold for a staggering $195,000 including the buyers premium 😲! The quality & subject mater point to the flask being made at the imperial kilns at Jingdezhen. In the recent past connoisseurs of Chinese porcelain didn't hold porcelain from the Jiaqing period in high regard, but this has changed. Today collectors are paying very high prices for quality 19th century Chinese porcelain 😃. https://www.liveauctioneers.com/news/auctions/auction-results/chinese-famille-rose-porcelain-flask-once-converted-to-a-lamp-skyrocketed-to-195k-at-dixons-crumpton/ I have a finely painted Chinese porcelain bowl, 5 inch diameter, with the 6 character reign mark of Jiaqing on the underside, & of the period, see photos below. In the past I put the bowl up for auction but it didn't achieve the reserve price of $500 😞. Now I'm considering putting the bowl up for auction again 🤔. The theme of the bowl depicts women & children celebrating the Chinese new year. The photo on the lower left shows a boy blowing a horn & holding a stick with exploding fire crackers on the end. Pictured below for comparison are photos of the moon flask mark compared to the mark on my bowl. Website members are welcome to post any of their antique Chinese ceramics ☺️.

As long as the major auction houses aren't concerned about the legality of the coins they're selling, why should I be concerned 🤔? I don't care who comes to my home looking for coins that don't have a legitimate provenance, they're getting nothing 😠!

This story reminds me of the 19 Crimes Wine that is made in Australia. Each type of wine has a prisoner depicted on the label who was banished to Australia for crimes against England. Some of these wines are excellent quality for the money 🍷🍾😄.

That's a finely carved jadeite tortoise 🤩! In Chinese mythology it is believed when a tortoise becomes 1,000 years old it will turn into a dragon.