Orange Julius

On Roman Imperial coins, the radiate crown was used into Constantine’s time (anything later?) but when was the last appearance of the crescent for an empress?

Here’s a Severina:

Thanks for all of the hard work. I’ve used it over the years and as someone who buys eBay coins occasionally, I’ve found it extremely helpful for finding seller images and notes I forgot to save. It also is helpful in finding sale prices, although as many are from eBay, those prices can be all over the board. 

Here’s a coin that I bought years ago (2016) as a cleaning project. I forgot to save the seller’s image and went back last year to find it. I’ve made some progress on cleaning the coin but it’s been stubborn!

1 hour ago, Edessa said:

Alexius III Angelus-Comnenus, AD 1195-1203. BI Aspron Trachy (24x26mm, 2.90g, 6h). Constantinople mint. Struck AD 1195-1197. Obv: KE RO-HQ[EI]; Nimbate, bearded, facing bust of Christ Emmanuel wearing tunic and kolobion, holds scroll in left hand; IC-XC across fields. Rev: [AΛЄ] ΣIⲰ [ΔЄCΠ] (pellet in circle) [KOMNHNⲰ]; Full-length figure of emperor on left and of a nimbate St. Constantine on right holding between them globus cruicger. Emperor and Saint wear stemma, divitision, collar-piece and jeweled loros of simplified type; both hold labarum-headed scepter; Symbol in field to right. Ref: DOC 3; SB 2013.

I like the coin but also really like the look of that blue background. Black, gray and white are the usual backgrounds, and often I think colors are distracting… but that blue is really nice! It looks great with bronze hues and I’m sure it would look great with silver as well. I’m going to try it out!

Caught another tigress… to add to my other 5 or 6 Tigresses… The new one is the first photo. The second is proof I didn’t need this one because it’s got a better cat. 🐅 

On 4/10/2024 at 3:47 PM, Qcumbor said:

Crude, yet interesting issues

Here's a RY9 tetradrachm, with the year written in full

Dioclétien (20/11/284 - 01/05/305) - Tétradrachme de l'atelier d'Alexandrie, officine A - AD 292-293
ΔΙΟΚΛHΤΙΑΝΟC CΕΒ, Buste lauré et drapé à droite, vu par l'avant
L - ENATOY, Nike volant à droite tenant une couronne (9° année de règne), A à l'exergue
7.91 gr
Ref : Emmett # 4064/9 (R3), Kampmann #119/89

Q

 

That’s a nice coin! I have one with the year written the same way.

Diocletian Potin Tetadrachm of Alexandria. Year 9 = 292-293 AD. Obv: DIOKLETI-ANOC CEB, laureate & cuirassed bust right Rev: ENATOV, L to right, Elpis standing left, holding flower and raising hem of robe. A in ex. Milne 5063.

Yep, this one doesn’t have the usual preamble to the name. The obverse legend is ΔΙΟΚΛΗΤΙΑΝΟC CEB. 

Here’s mine like the second one you posted. 

On 3/30/2024 at 10:29 PM, Heliodromus said:

I can't think of many gambles, but having been collecting a long time I've certainly had my share of dumb luck - being in the right place at the right time and getting rare coins very cheaply.

Here's an example from a few years ago.

"Lote De Monedas Romanas Antiguas Son 4 + Pedacería" for which I paid the fixed asking price of $849 ... except that's Mexican Pesos meaning $45 US.

The Constantine coin is rare and highly collectible due to the Chi-Rho on his helmet. The thing in the middle is small rock - not sure why it was included! 😃

The main luck element here wasn't just the price, but the fact I saw the coin at all, since it was listed on the Mexican e-commerce site "Mercado Libre", which I had never been to before, or since. I have zero recollection of how I ended up on that site on that day.

It wasn't exactly an easy purchase either since I had to navigate the site and communicate with the seller in Spanish, pay via Western Union, and then pray that Correos de Mexico wouldn't lose it, which sounded like a 50/50 proposition from what I'd read. It didn't help my confidence that the provided tracking number was invalid. I really didn't have much faith that I'd actually receive it, but sure enough it eventually did arrive, with a bunch of nice "day of the dead" stamps on it.

 

It's honestly puzzling to me how I ended up on that web site. I have no recollection.

 

Haha, I love the coin… but I also love that the rock is featured in the center and came with the lot. Did you keep it?!

5 hours ago, Victrix said:

Bought this encrusted Gallienus ant for a cleaning project. First time I attempted to clean a coin and the result is quite good 😄. 

Wow! How’d you clean it. It looks great!

I’m looking for a bit of help. I recently bought my first Sasanian coin… or maybe a later imitation of one. I’ve always wanted to include a selection of these coins in my collection, and learn about them. This coin is my first and I know nearly nothing about reading or attributing these coins. 

The only information that came with the coin is this: TABARISTAN SILVER HEMIDRACHM SA'ID 776-779 AD

The coin is 25mm, 1.84 grams.

I’m hoping to:

1.) Understand… is this a Sasanian Coin? A later Islamic imitation? 

2.) Confirm the attribution or attribute the coin (ruler, date, primary reference, etc.)

3.) Get any education on the legends (what they say, where’s the date?, is the ruler named?, where?)

4.) See your favorite eastern coins! Persian, Parthian, Sasanian, Islamic, or anything else cool that I’m not throwing my money at yet!

thank you!

22 hours ago, Finn235 said:

Like @Orange Julius said, this is how most of my collection was assembled, so I could drone on for pages about it.

Probably my biggest gamble that paid off the most was this lot from CNG

Properly laid out:

That's a Carausius, Macrianus, Quietus, Marius, and a Magnia Urbica for $240 after fees. I ended up keeping the Carausius, Tacitus, and Saloninus, and still profited almost $600 from selling the rest on eBay.

 

My worst lot:

Seems like a great big pile of good silver antoninianii in superb condition with 3 Macrianus antoninianii right on top, right?

Most of the lot was conveniently arranged to hide the fact that one side was extremely poorly struck. Here's the Valerian in the center right:

That was a "keeper" - many were significantly worse. All in, I think I kept 8 coins and fell $1,000 short of breaking even. Would have been substantially better off just buying individual coins.

Wow… that top lot is a “who’s who” of figures missing from my collection (Macrianus, Quietus, Marius, and a Magnia Urbica). I see a lower grade Florian in there too! 

That lower lot would have been a bummer… it looks so nice with all of that silver. To find the other sides of each coin were bad, would be a let down.

Early in my collecting, I saw a medallion of some late third century figure (Florian, Carus, Tacitus… can’t remember) on eBay with terrible photos. You could barely tell what it was through the blur and there was no info other than ‘ancient coin’ but I could see through the bad photography that it was pretty nice. I was (fairly) certain it was authentic and it drew little attention but I just couldn’t pull the trigger (initial bid was at $150 or so.) because the “too good to be true” factor was too high. I still regret not taking a chance on it.

I’ve been meaning to post some of my disappointments… but haven’t yet found the time. Those are harder to post than the wins, but I hope to see more of those in this thread too! 

As an update… the OP coin also seems to be the Wildwinds coin for the type/mintmark. So that’s fun!

Wildwinds coin:

My Coin:

What’s interesting is that you can’t see many of the obverse mineral encrustations on the Wildwinds photo. Either you can’t see them because the lighting is much different and the definition is much lower, or they weren’t there at the time the image was taken. Perhaps the coin was stored improperly in a pvc flip? The encrustations look and feel stable, like round hard nodules of minerals on the surface, and not like BD at all. 

Anyway… an interesting find late last night as I was cataloging the coin. The listing gives a bit of the coin’s history, back to 2000, if you can call that history when taking about a ~1750 year old coin. “Barry and Darling, ebay, Jan 2000. Sold for $78.00” …which is 4.5X what I bought it for in 2024.

An informative snippet from Monumental Coins Buildings & Structures on Ancient Coinage by Marvin Tameanko:

35 minutes ago, Victor_Clark said:

 

Here are the original auction pics for the previously unknown type...center top coin

 

 

 

 

Constantine I
Circa A.D. 313
21mm    3.7gm
IMP C CONSTANTINVS P F AVG; laureate and cuirassed bust right.
VICTORIA [AETERNA AVGG NN]; Emperor on right, in military dress, holding spear, receiving palm branch from Victory; kneeling figure between them [holding offering].
In exergue SARL

 

 

Thanks for sharing the photo! That was a cool snag. If I remember right, this one was minted after the defeat of Maxentius and likely along side of the coins commemorating the move of the Ostia mint to Arles… this is from memory, so if I’m wrong let me know!

This find reminds me of @Finn235, who I know hunts lots for interesting tidbits. I’m sure he has some good find stories.

@Victor_Clark That shield Chi-Rho is a much sought after coin, that’s a great find. There are some finds to be had out there if you’re persistent. I remember when you found that otherwise unknown Constantine reverse on eBay. I was watching that one and bid (what I thought was) high but was blown out of the water! A cool coin and very cool that you helped it find a place in the city where it was minted.

@ela126 That’s an interesting note on your coin, matching it to a very specific moment in history. Congrats. As for my coin, I just used toothpicks and fingernails… so no scratches. However there’s still some black staining from the crud that someday I need to clean as it’s distracting and makes the coin look a bit crappier than it is.

@Sulla80 That’s a great crab (I need one!) and much nicer than it looks in the seller’s photos. Coins are hard to photograph, so seeing past those bad photographs is a skill that can have its rewards.

19 hours ago, Marsyas Mike said:

Great snag, @Orange Julius.   I too seek out the iffy photos, nice coins - from the same seller, apparently, here's my Gordian III sestertius ($32.95):

Seller photo:

My photo:

Here's another one that was a pleasant surprise - Trebonianus Gallus Temple antoninianus:

Seller's photo:

My photo: 

@Marsyas Mike Haha, hunters in the same forest. That Gordian is much nicer that it appears in the seller’s photos. That same seller has a really nice Galerius follis that I’ve considered buying… but although still a good deal, it’s priced a bit high to be a great deal.

@Herodotus That shield coin is a beauty with just the right level of toning. Those other coins were a great buy too. I’m a sucker for anything from Alexandria.

@seth77 I’m not as familiar with medieval coins. What is it and what makes it special (I’m sure it is, but interested in why)?

@Amarmur What a great buy! $25 for those 3 is a steal. I’ve dreamed at finding coins at a flea market or garage sale set in costume jewelry but have yet to have it happen. $20 for that historic type for LV is great too!

@Nerosmyfavorite68 I have yet to snag an Aemilian and have been hunting for a deal on one but… they’re scarce and even on eBay draw attention. I remember that Nero too, sad thing that it broke. I once bought an Egyptian Eye of Horus that arrived smashed. I got a refund but was super bummed out. I still have the pieces.

@ela126 Oooh is that a late Byzantine Alexandrian coin? Who is it? Love that. I find coins of regions that were slipping away or briefly recaptured during that time period very interesting. Coins of Carthage, Rome, Alexandria in the Byzantine era are very cool.

@Roman Collector Love that coin too, I remember reading your original write up on it. Consecratio coins are so cool. I’ve considered a side collection of just those. I think the last funeral pyre type was minted by Claudius II.

@Harry G Oh that Decentius is a gem! I actually thought about you when creating this post as you seem to have a love for rare 3rd and 4th century stuff. That Laelianus you have is a dream coin and you always seem to have interesting Claudius II and Aurelian coins as well. You’re likely my bidding competition that I loose out to for some of these coins haha!

For wins… I also have this Domitian bought on eBay for $9. I could see a bit of silver poking out and suspected it was a nice encrusted denarius… and it was. It’s still not full cleaned. I like it but these days, I kind of wish I’d left it encrusted as you done see many 1st century silver coins “as found.”

Oh and for anyone that didn’t catch the joke above with the eBay Sold screenshot… that’s a coin (1 of I think about 3 known) of Domitian II. Ugly but rare and something I could see poping up on eBay, although I’m sure it would not go unnoticed.

Fun idea! Do you have the images so we can see the results? 

@JAZ Numismatics Thank you!

@ela126 thanks, I agree. It’s fun to sniff out something others missed… although sometimes you find you’re not the only one to notice!

@Romismatist Great score! That Volusian is a beauty! How’d you clean it? That obverse is great and I love how it retains the toning/patina after removing the crud. Nice job. I’ve been stung by a few fakes… although with most, I know it’s a likelihood beforehand and take the chance anyway sometimes, then get the refund. Other times, it works out and what looks dodgy is a great coin in bad lighting or scanned by a scanner.

Later I’ll post some disappointments.

For now… I’m ever looking for this situation:

As a guy on a budget, I look for deals and sometimes take chances in the swamp that is eBay on coins with bad seller photos.

Sometimes those gambles pay off, and sometimes they don’t and I may have well just burnt my money in the front yard. I’ve won and lost, bought gems and fakes.

Anyway, this was a low-stakes gamble at just $16.95 all in. The seller’s photos were distant, the coin was dark and looked like it may have bronze disease but… I could see there was some good detail and I was pleasantly surprised with the coin when it arrived. Luckily it’s a really nice coin and the speckled green is just mineralization as I suspected.

Anyway, I thought it would be fun to start a thread of your “take a chance” coins, misattributions, gambles, group lot finds, fails and successes! Let’s see them. Post the seller photo if you have it, why you took the gamble and if it paid off.

Seller’s Photos:

My own not great pics of the coin:

Probus. AD 276-282. Antoninianus
Cyzicus mint, 3rd officina. 3rd emission, AD 280. Radiate and mantled bust left, holding eagle-tipped scepter / Sol, head left, raising hand and holding whip, in spread quadriga facing; CM//XXIΓ.
RIC V 911; Pink VI/1, p. 44.

A lot of sour grapes here from people missing out on a deal of a lifetime. I mean… the images show the columns of actual archeological sites. Take my money! 💰 

….but seriously… I don’t like the way the images show (AI generated) dug up sites, or that people would purchase anything from these people.
 

I love old images like this, they feel like they get you a bit “closer” to the Romans, even if the ~170 years is just a 1/5 or so of the way back.

i have a smattering of Theodosius coins. I don’t like him as an emperor as I feel his reign was the last chance to ‘right the ship’ and save the empire of old. After Theo, the slope was too slippery and his children were useless.

I photographed this ugly coin today too. It’s ugly but I like it. It’s unlisted in RIC but in the MER-RIC V-1/2 as 1001.

Claudius II
IMP CLAVDIVS PF AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right, seen from the back. Three dots beneath the bust
FELICIT TEMP, Felicitas standing half-left, holding caduceus and cornucopiae.
RIC V-1 Unlisted
MER-RIC V-/2 temp 1001
mid 270 – September 270

Some really cool coins in this thread. I’d love to collect Hadrian’s travel series but those can get expensive. 

I’ve always like this personification of Alexandria from Alexandria. The Claudius II portrait isn’t of great style but the reverse portrait of Alexandria is beautiful.

Claudius II, AE Potin tetradrachm of Alexandria, Egypt. Year 2. AYT K KΛAYΔIOC CEB, laureate, cuirassed bust right / L-B to left and right of Alexandria, draped and turreted bust right, wearing close fitting cap, curls of hair down the neck. Maerkl Coll. 29; Mionnet VI 3427, Pl. III 56. Kampmann 104.19; Milne 4246; BMC 2330; Emmett 3869.

Here’s a fairly new coin I just shot some (meh) photos of today. Eastern just by a bit. It’s a fun coin. It had some crud on the reverse and I got most of it off. What remains is very thin but stubborn and I decided to leave it rather than scratch up the coin removing it.

Claudius II Antoninianus. Cyzicus. IMP CLAVDIVS PF AVG, radiate, draped, cuirassed bust right, two or three dots beneath bust / VIRTVS AVG, Virtus, Mars or soldier standing left, holding spear and resting hand on shield. Mintmark SPQR. RIC V-1, 254.
c. end 269 – early 270

2 hours ago, JAZ Numismatics said:

 

Well now I know what to do with my 3rd century ants. I can't sell the things even if they come with free beer and dancing girls.

Sold! I’ll take that deal all day!