8 hours ago, MrZun said:

Just wondering about that, these chocolate patinas seems to have been made artificially

Take a look at the leaves on the laurel wreath on Vespasian's head. These are the high contact points and bright which would be normal during handling ( which is why some collectors slab). If the coin was recently artificially toned you would not see this unless the toning was so thin and poor that handling rubbed it off quickly.

The other issue is that you cannot form a perfect opinion from a photograph. "Chocolate" is an unusual colour for a silver coin, black, grey and maybe blue yes but I've not got a chocolate one in a collection of hundreds. My photography is lousy but even I can manipulate a coin to look any colour under the rainbow with photoshop so discretion is needed when evaluating coins as they will always look different, and often better "in the flesh". Some dealers post videos of coins, mainly modern, as moving them around can show the "cartwheel hue" that is removed when cleaning or striking metal flow lines. I have bought several cleaned coins unwillingly but often don't care. For example ,  if I can find a Marc Antony Legate IIII fleet denarius I would buy or trade it at any colour including chocolate!

On 5/15/2024 at 8:10 AM, MrMonkeySwag96 said:

 

 

 

Here is a post I made last December .

In this instance the coin, within weeks of a sale, was artificially toned which is the reverse of your situation. I bought it anyway as it filled a gap for me but generally I would not buy an artificially toned coin. My preference is always to buy toned coins if I can and some "shiny" coins I bought have mellowed down over the years. A dealer once told me to put a shiny coin in a manilla envelope and it will tone down in about a year. It works! In respect of Lodge I don't think they were the "dipper" because I have bought several toned coins from them over the years and they have a decent reputation. 

My last venture into owning a Julius Caesar ended badly last year as I had to return the coin as  being fake but with superlatives such as made from "high quality bronze metal" , "exceptional craftsmanship", "must have" and an explanation that Julius Caesar played a significant role in Roman history, I bit the bullet and parted with $85 for this Ebay purchase on Friday. 

It is accompanied by a COA and in a velvet lined case. Normally these type of presentation boxed coins, when originally sold, are priced way above their value, a little like the limited edition "one of only 10,000 that will ever be made" type items sold in tabloid newspapers but  in this instance I guess the description limited bids. I looked up Westminster coins and they are still in business and make and sell commemoratives such as this.

They have no ancient coins on their website so I guess my purchase was something they ventured into in the past.

This is the coin I bought together with the COA and I hope the images reflect the actual coin which should arrive in the next day or so.

Here is my example with a pretty serious looking Apollo.

I have a fondness for the accents of many actors but as a Welshman was particularly impressed recently by this rendition of Dylan Thomas' "Do not go gently into that good night" by Michael Sheen. See below.

As I am conscious that I am drifting off the OP here is a "left hander" of mine  I always admired as an iconic coin.

Roman Republic - L. Cassius Longinus - Silver denarius = Rome mint, 63 B.C.

Head of Vesta left, wearing veil and diadem; 

Voter standing left, dropping tablet marked 'V' into cista on right; LONGIN•III•V downwards to right.

Crawford 413/1; Sydenham 935; RSC Cassia 10.

See ;

2 minutes ago, DonnaML said:

As much as "Clockwork Orange," I remember loving "O Lucky Man" -- another Lindsay Anderson movie with Malcolm McDowell, like "If" -- when it came out in 1973. All of those movies made a big impression on me when I was a (personally non-rebellious!) teenager. Another British movie I very fondly remember from that era is "The Ruling Class," with Peter O'Toole. They just don't make them like that anymore.

Gosh I'd forgotten "The Ruling Class" @DonnaML it was truly "off the wall". In my opinion Peter O'Toole's outstanding role he played was Lawrence of Arabia.

I read somewhere years ago that there was a preponderance of left handedness amongst the Vikings and the gene sometimes exhibited itself as a condition known as Dupuytren's contracture. Left handedness was mentioned in the Sagas. I also remember Malcolm McDowell portraying Caligula @expat  His later role as "Little Alex" maintained the violence and rebelliousness.

 contracture

On 3/27/2024 at 1:53 AM, Ocatarinetabellatchitchix said:

Nice one. This is definitely a schnauzer paw print, weighting probably between 30-35 pounds. IMHO the beast was around 5 years old, with salt & pepper colored hair and black eyes.

Agree, but you missed the limp , a result of active guard dog service

Welcome @Silbannacus you will find we are an eclectic bunch and I have found members really helpful and erudite when I ask for assistance 

VICTORINUS ANTONINIANUS

269-271 AD

SALUS FEEDING SNAKE RISING FROM ALTAR AND HOLDING SCEPTRE

NEXT CARRY ON POST.

This pleased me as it is my second non Roman ancient coin, the first being an "Owl".

I know you asked for the singular @Ryro but hope you don't mind me posting more than one because they all made a difference for me.

Kings of Macedon. Uncertain mint in Asia Minor. Alexander III "the Great" 336-323 BC. Struck 323-310 BC
Bronze Æ

20 mm, 5,63 g

Head of Herakles to right, wearing lion skin headdress / Club and bow in bow case, ??S???OS between; race torch below.

These two also made an impact as they took me closer to my full "Fleet" collection.

ANT AVG / III VIR R P C.
Praetorian galley right with scepter tied on prow.
CHORTIVM PRAETORIARM.
Aquila between two standards.

Next : Carry on this theme.

This is my only Marius

Marius, 268 Antoninianus Cologne 268, billon 17.00 mm., 3.25 g. Priapus Numismatics Auction 1 November 2023.

Not quite sure how I would describe this portrait. He looks bemused...

256-260 AD. Uncertain Syrian mint. Obv: IMP C P LIC VALERIANVS AVG legend with radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right. Rev: PIETAS AVGG legend with Valerian and Gallienus standing, facing each other, sacrificing over altar, one holding eagle-tipped sceptre, the other a parazonium. RIC 285; Sear 9955 (obverse variant").3.64 grams.

Here are a couple of Elizabeth 1 and other well known Queens of the United Kingdom.

Shilling

Three pence 1578

Then moving on to Anne

Shilling 1708.

Then Victoria

Farthing 1862.

Finally to get back onto ancient topics,

Otacilia Severa AD 244-249. Rome
Antoninianus AR   

22mm., 3,98g.

Really beautiful coins. Here is my Albinus Brutus.

On 3/4/2024 at 7:47 PM, ChrisB said:

This is one of my favorite coins. I like it so much that I purchased one of the modern restrikes put out by the Royal Dutch Mint

 

 

This is weird @ChrisB. My father originated from the Province of Groningen in the Netherlands and  only last night I was looking at the 1998 Netherlands Mint set for Groningen , drifted into the Netherlands Mint, saw this exact coin and started looking for one. I have some Maria Theresa bullion coins and thought one of these would be an interesting companion for them. This is one of the last Guilder sets and has an interesting token with an ancient derived reverse thus:

and the obverse. 

Unfortunately not a different one but I believe the dot on mine that is touching the "B" confirms your theory @DonnaML

GALBA (68-69), AR denier, 68-69, Rome. D / IMP SER GALBA AVG T. naked to r. R / SPQR / OB / CS in an oak wreath. BMC 314, 34; RIC 167. 2.73g  Ex Jean Elsen 2019 and bought as a suspected fourree.

Eventually I bought the same coin as a full weight denarius.

Next continue Donna's theme as this was a Hijack !

Although significantly later, this is an easy to acquire pair that many of us may have.

M. PORCIUS CATO, SILVER DENARIUS Roman Republic, M. Porcius Cato.

From the image, it looks as if the knuckles would be bared and vulnerable, I cannot see this being practical and wonder if this was ceremonial ? 

2 minutes ago, Heliodromus said:

Here's a much better photo of it from the Yale website.

3rdC AD, found at Dura Europos, Syria.

 

4 hours ago, expat said:

Maybe you can post a short write up with some photos after your visit. Hope you enjoy what is displayed.

I am sure I will enjoy my visit and I will post some photos. 

There are several really interesting Roman museums in the UK but on my bucket list is Lyon, this will be a really great bonus.

The British Museum exhibition had an interesting write up commending it on 27th January in the Times newspaper.

The surviving long shield is not what I visualised. I thought it would be much plainer. Then again I am probably psychologically influenced by Sidebottom and Fabbri who , from memory, never mentioned colour as they wouldn't have known. 

That is so impressive! It makes it more of a personal possession that a simple military issue like modern day fatigues. I guess if your life depended on this, you may put some care into it, and from what I can see we have homage to Victory and of course the imperial Eagle. I wonder if they were all the same or differed?

A fascinating subject.

3 hours ago, expat said:

Maybe you can post a short write up with some photos after your visit. Hope you enjoy what is displayed.

I am sure I will enjoy my visit and I will post some photos. 

There are several really interesting Roman museums in the UK but on my bucket list is Lyon, this will be a really great bonus.

The British Museum exhibition had an interesting write up commending it on 27th January in the Times newspaper.

The surviving long shield is not what I visualised. I thought it would be much plainer. Then again I am probably psychologically influenced by Sidebottom and Fabbri who , from memory, never mentioned colour as they wouldn't have known. 

Many thanks @expat for bringing this to the forum attention.

Appears to be very interesting and I had  already booked tickets for next month. 

My observation, not quite a reservation, as I'm going anyway,  is that the general exhibition in museums in the UK are normally free and there is a charge for this exhibition for  as a "special exhibition". Fortunately the cost is of no relevance to me but charges in museums can  exclude people particularly young people. The British Museum does not charge for entry only "special exhibitions". To be precise there is opportunity for children to visit free at specific times so not all bad.

This is the public statement of the National Museum of Wales. 

"We believe that everyone has the right to access and engage with their culture and heritage free of charge. After all, the national collections belong to to the people of Wales.

I have no issue with paying entry fees  for private museums who clearly need support but in my opinion,  national collections should be supported by taxation, maybe diverting the cost of one missile to find them?

277 AD. Lugdunum mint. Obv: IMP C PROBVS P F AVG legend with radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right. Rev: MARS VICTOR legend with Mars advancing right carrying trophy and spear; II in exergue. RIC 84; Sear 11992.3.47 grams.   Ex-Timeline Auctions 2021.

3 hours ago, DonnaML said:

@John Conduitt, I received an email from the French auction house this morning apologizing and withdrawing all the VAT charges, both on the buyer's premium and on the postage. So I'm glad I didn't simply throw up my hands and pay it. The total extra amount charged was only about 20 Euros, but this was one case where I thought the principle really was important! 

In any event, I can only conclude that at least as to the concept of charging VAT on the buyer's premium as a service rendered in the country where the auction house is located, either the UK rule you cited is different in France, or there's an exception somewhere for private customers in the United States, or the auction house simply isn't aware of the rule. I sincerely hope that auction houses in the UK (or any other VAT-charging country) don't suddenly get the bright idea from reading this thread that they should start charging buyers an extra 20% of the buyer's premium for VAT! Those premiums are getting way too high of late even without that amount added. An amount that wouldn't even be reimbursable under the rule you cited.

Well done @DonnaML sometimes principals can be expensive but I always stick to mine. Often, invoicing is raised using proprietary software that is only as good as the input data and this looks like a genuine error on behalf of the auction house. You may well have saved another collector hundreds of dollars in the future by taking a stand.

What an interesting thread.

I remember my teacher in 1966 asking how many people had TV's. I could not put my hand up and I lived in what we would typically call a "middle class" area. That soon changed and within 5 years from myself and one other in a class of 30 admitting we didn't have a TV the question was how many people had colour TV's.

When I started work I had a secretary who typed my letters. For decades I have dealt with my own correspondence with my laptop and every laptop has replaced a person.

I once said to a board of directors that  we needed a fax machine and was laughed at with the comment that why would we need one when we bought a perfectly new Telex machine the month before? Within 18 months there was no such thing as a Telex machine in business other than in banks and the FBI.

In the 1980's I had a "mobile" phone in my car , it was the size of a suitcase, a couple of years later I had a cell phone the size of a house brick and now my cell phone is tiny and I can speak and see people 15,000 miles away. I wrote an article a while ago called "Beam me up Scottie" and I opened the article explaining how my grandfather ridiculed Captain Scott and his "communicator" saying that it was impossible because we couldn't even get a decent call to a village 20 miles away! The article was about Nomophobia and since that time when my grandfather laughed at the Star Trek communicator being fantasy, the mobile phone is possibly the one item that history will record as being the most important possession of the masses and the most influential device ever, possibly apart from the printed word, that has manipulated and influenced mankind. It addicts people with Serotonin and Dopamine releases and is addictive to many.

In reality, I guess the bulk of us have lived through the second industrial revolution and the ties of many of us to recent history are profound. My Father heard Hitler speak and appreciated he was a madman and narcissist and thankfully had the sense to join the Dutch Navy and that saved him. I was born in 1956 and played on bomb sites in the UK and our link to the past was not tenuous. In the 1970's I tape recorded World War One veterans and recorded extraordinary stories and that has perpetuated individual histories more so than the histories of the victor. I can truly appreciate @DonnaML's comments as our generation was born within a decade of the madness and it was as raw a memory to our parents as my explanation of my hippy dippy youth was to my children and grandchildren. 

I find our knowledge of the Roman and Greek civilisations extraordinary given what we know from surviving histories and numismatic study and archaeology but the invention of photography has created records of the Crimean and US Civil War that for the first time leave little to  interpretation as they are literal.

Unless we experience another major Carrington Event the historians of the future will be able to attempt to  decipher history from the most powerful media of all - the spoken word.

We all share an interest in history and that binds us and without that there would be no forum despite disparate interests in era and civilisations.

I will end my ramble on something I watched recently that was a major TV hit in the UK when I was growing up.

Sexist, non-PC , and weirdly unscientific. Apparently the producers had never heard of gravity and why didn't we notice the strings? Maybe our diet was so poor it affected our eyesight!