Parthicus

The first set of dates refers to dates in the AH (Islamic) calendar, which is pretty often used even in Western sources when discussing the history of Muslim states. And indeed, 884 AH starts on March 25, 1479 AD, which is the end of the Jaunpur (not Juanpur, which I guess is a spellcheck artifact?) sultanate. 863 AH starts on November 8, 1458 AD, and 1458 is the start of the reign of the last Jaunpur sultan, Hussain Khan (who uses "Hussain Shah" on his coins). The Wikipedia article "Jaunpur Sultanate" is informative, and shows several coins. Yes, mixing dates in two different systems can lead to confusion. Yes, authors do it anyway.

I definitely have a soft spot for Islamic figural coins, and have collected quite a few. But there is something about the simplicity of Post-Reform types, with their simple, unadorned Arabic script, that I also find very visually appealing. And the highly stylized formula of inscription on Umayyad and Abbasid coins makes it a lot easier for non-linguistic folks like me to figure out the inscriptions. Here's an Abbasid dirham (description borrowed from myself on another forum 😀😞 Abbasid Caliphate. Armenia mint. AR dirham. 145 AH (762/3 AD), time of Caliph al-Mansur (136-158 AH/ 754-775 AD). Anonymous type, inscriptions in Arabic written in Kufic lettering. Obverse: in center first half of Kalima "la ilah illa/ Allah wahdadu/ la sharik lahu" (There is no god but God/ He is alone/ no partner to Him), legend around "bismillah zuribu haza ed-dirham bi-Arminiyat fi sanat khans wa arba'in wa miat" (in the name of God was struck this dirham in Armenia in year five and forty and one hundred). Reverse: in center second half of Kalima "Muhammad/ rasul/ Allah" (Muhammad is the messenger of God), legend around from the Quran, Sura 9:33 "Muhammad rasul Allah arsalahu bi-'l-huda wa din el-haqq li-yuzhirahu 'ala ed-din kollihi walau kariha el-mushrikun" (Muhammad is the messenger of God, He sent him with the guidance and a religion of the truth in order that he might cause it to be bright over the religion, all of it, although polytheists dislike it). Album 213.1. This coin: Auctions Sale 367 (NBJ Numismatics), lot 305 (2021).

I have two coins featuring Marsyas, though neither is as nice as @ambr0zie's coin. I have a provincial of Elagabalus from Berytus (Beirut) with a statue of Marsyas on the reverse (you can just barely see the aulos he's holding): And a Roman Republic denarius of Lucius Marcius Censorinus (82 BC) with Marsyas and his wine-skin (but no aulos) on reverse: And here's one of the many videos on Youtube that feature the mournful sound of the aulos:

Happy Canada Day! (Or as we say down here in the States, "Not quite the Fourth of July".) I don't have very many Canadian coins, unfortunately, but please enjoy this Prince Edward Island cent:

Neat, thanks for sharing. The Islamic pieces look like they are from the time of the Almohads (12th-13th century AD), which was after the intellectual and artistic peak of Islamic culture in the Iberian peninsula. I spent a week in 2005 in Madrid visiting the various museums there, including the National Museum of Archaeology. There were only a few coins on display (I remember an exhibit showing the different Roman denominations, and a nice aureus of Augustus with hippopotamus on reverse). The highlight was the Dama de Elche (a statue of a woman from c. 400 BC). I also remember some crowns of Visigothic kings, but what stood out to me among the VIsigothic artifacts were some elaborately-decorated belt buckles in bronze and with inexpensive colorful stone decorations. You'd expect that wealthy people in a culture would show off with fancy gold and gemstone items, that's not surprising. But the fact that less-wealthy people, who could only afford bronze and cheap stone, still felt the need to express themselves artistically in their clothing, shows a higher level of sophistication and makes the Visigoths seem less "barbaric". Anyway, thanks for sharing, hope I can make it back to Spain sometime.

Interesting! I think you might have a "faker" on hand; there are lots of rocks that look kind of like fossils but aren't (and sometimes these fool even very experienced collectors). Your piece looks a fair bit like a vertebra in shape but... not quite. But of course I could be wrong. I have been collecting fossils on-and-off since I was a teenager (back in the 1980s) and have some knowledge of fossils, but I would not call myself an expert. I'd recommend going over to The Fossil Forum (www.thefossilforum.com) and asking there; they've helped me with some of my pieces, and they are very knowledgeable (there are some professional paleontologists who post regularly). Signing up (to ask a question) is free. Just note that, while they are happy to explain exactly what you have, discussion of monetary value is specifically not allowed there.

Very nice coins, all! I've already shared my lifetime JC denarius a number of times over on CT, but it's worth another look:

Indeed, the reform of coinage was not as instant as is sometimes implied. Bronze coinage was in general more locally-controlled, with a lot more varieties which often included some imagery mixed in with the new religious inscriptions. Stars, various animals and plants, and anchors are common, and there's even a scarce and eagerly-sought type that features a menorah. Gold and silver was more tightly centrally-regulated, and those mostly transitioned to the "post-reform" types pretty quickly, but a few outlying areas took longer. Tabaristan (on the southern shore of the Caspian Sea) and Eastern SIstan (the easternmost region of the Caliphate) were still striking silver coins with Sasanian-based designs until around 800 AD, nearly a century after the big coinage reform! (I can show examples if requested, but don't want to derail this thread too much.)

It's certainly possible that a coin from Arles circulated far enough that it was buried in a desert. But unfortunately, there are a few sellers out there who like to add an artificial desert patina to their bronzes, regardless of where the coins were found. (The specific dealers I'm aware of are based in the Middle East, so many of the coins they handle were originally found in a desert, but even they get coins from other places too.) It enhances the attractiveness of the coin, but it can also be used to unscrupulously cover up roughness on the coin's surface. Your coin looks OK as far as I can tell, but look closely at any "desert patina" bronzes you consider buying in the future to make sure there are no surface issues being concealed.

Very cool! I also have a LRB that was overstruck by the Umayyads. On my coin, the under type is a little less clear, but in the obverse margin from about 1-3 o'clock you can read DNCON, indicating the under type is Constantinian.

Here's a 5 Lire from Napolleon-controlled Italy:

Sasanian Kingdom. AR drachm. Hormazd IV (579- 590 AD), Royal Year 3. Narmashir mint. Obverse: Bust of king right, Pahlavi inscription before "AHRMZD" (Hormazd), behind head APZWN (May [his glory] increase). Reverse: Zoroastrian fire-altar with two attendants, star and crescent at top, to right mintmark NAL (Narmashir), to left date 3. Gobl 201. This coin: Bought from eBay seller, 2022; apparently deaccessioned from National Museum of Wales, part of a hoard found in Kirkuk in 1922/3.(Historical section contains reused text that was first posted over on CT. Just mentioning that to avoid charges of (self-)plagiarism.)Hormazd IV was the son of Khusro I Anushirvan and took the throne on his father's death in 579 AD; his mother was the daughter of a foreign khagan, though whether it was the Turkish or Khazar khagan seems to be in dispute. Hormazd clashed often with the nobles and the Zoroastrian religious leaders, and is said to have ordered the executions of over 13,000 of his noble and religious opponents. He fought a series of minor battles against the Byzantines in the 580s, but the main military highlights of his rule came from the east. In 588 he sent a force under general Vahram Chobin to repel the Turkish forces that had conquered Balkh. Vahram was spectacularly successful, driving back the Turks and acquiring new territory, killing the Turkish khagan and capturing his son, and seizing a huge quantity of gold and other plunder. Unfortunately, the glory of Vahram made Hormazd jealous of his subordinate, and in 589 he had Vahram humiliated and removed from office. Vahram began to raise a rebellion, which inspired a palace plot to depose, blind and kill Hormazd and place his son Khusro on the throne. The rather opportunistic Vahram now declared himself the avenger of Hormazd and marched against Khusro, which did not end well for Vahram.This is a decent portrait for Hormazd IV (he tends to look very "fish-eyed"), and I did not have this mint for him (the small city of Narmashir in Kirman Province, Iran). But what made this even more interesting was the provenance that came with the coin. The seller included this photocopied letter: It would appear from this letter that a hoard of several hundred late Sasanian drachms was unearthed by British soldiers digging barracks near Kirkuk, Iraq in 1922/3 (British troops were in the region as part of the post-World War I breakup of the Ottoman Empire), and that 10 of these coins were later donated (probably in 1946) to the National Museum of Wales by a Dr. William Dunlop (perhaps one of the soldiers who found the hoard?). Unfortunately, the eBay seller who who sold this coin didn't know when or why this coin was later deaccessioned, and so far my (admittedly very cursory) Internet searching hasn't turned up much. I did find a couple of other late Sasanian drachms listed on the National Museum of Wales site with the same backstory (hoard found at Kirkuk, 1922/3) but there is no photo of the hoard, or even a list of the various coins, that I could find. So, absent further evidence such as a museum or auction catalogue listing I can't directly prove that this coin was part of the hoard, but it does seem pretty reasonable to me. Anyway, an interesting coin with potentially an even more interesting backstory. Please post your coins of Hormazd IV (with or without fish-eye), or coins with interesting provenances, or whatever else is relevant.

It's a Ban Liang, these were issued during the Qin and Western Han periods in many varieties. As @Severus Alexander says, diameter and weight would be critical in potentially narrowing it down further.

I have some cool fossils that I bought, but of course it's much more fun when you find them yourself, so I'll show those instead. First off is a bunch of shark teeth from a famous site called Big Brook in central New Jersey. The sharks and other marine fossils found here are from the end of the Cretaceous period (c.66 million years old). This is a RIker mount display case of just shark teeth from the site (I've also found various fish fossils, a few types of shells, and even a couple of mosasaur teeth (an extinct group of swimming reptiles- think crocodiles with flippers instead of legs). While these are easily recognizable as sharks, the particular species are all extinct: Next is a site closer to where I live now, the Calvert Cliffs of the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. This site is of Miocene age (c. 14 million years old). Many of the shark teeth and other fossils are from species that still exist. In the group below, the sharks include the extinct Snaggletooth shark, an extinct Mako relative, and an extinct Tiger, while extant (still-living) species include Tiger, Sand Tiger, Bull, Hammerhead, Six-gill, and Angel sharks. The bottom rows also include sting ray, drumfish, barracuda, and porpoise. There are no fossils found in or immediately around Baltimore City (no exposures of fossil-bearing rocks), but there are a few minerals around. My local city park has lots of mica that weathers out after storms. Here's a few pieces I've found (they are about 2 inches [5 cm] long):

Hi @Furryfrog02, sorry to hear your experience in our fair city was disappointing. I totally agree with you on the beauty of French (and many other) 19th and early 20th century coins- I love to look through dealers' junk boxes, and try to take time for it at any show I go to, even when I'm also buying higher-end coins. I wasn't able to go to the spring show this year, but I'm definitely planning on making it in the Fall. Oh, and just to include some photos, here's my "junk box" buys from the Fall 2017, Fall 2019 and Fall 2021 shows:

On my sixth or seventh birthday, I received a packaged coin collecting kit (I think it was made by Whitman) that included Lincoln cent and Jefferson nickel folders, a guidebook, some flips, and other supplies. I was quickly hooked, and started collecting whatever US and foreign coins I could get. I checked my family's change for interesting coins, I asked family friends who traveled internationally to bring back coins, and I spent what little money I had at several local coin shops. I lost interest when I was about twelve, and put away my meager collection. Then when I went away to college in 1991, I discovered a coin shop just a short walk off campus, and became interested again. I started again accumulating interesting foreign coins in an unsystematic way, and also bought a Krause catalogue of 19th and 20th century coins (well, up to about 1990). The junk boxes yielded some interesting coins, even a couple of medieval, but I had yet to find an area to focus on. In the winter of 1992/3, the coin store got in a bunch of ancient coins. A few were ID'd in flips, but most were cleaned but unidentified, and in two lots: $3 each for mostly LRB AE3 and AE4, and $5 each for mostly larger coins (some Roman provincial, heavily worn asses, and a few random Greek AE). I bought a few of the better preserved, more identifiable-looking pieces, and using the college's reference books I was able to identify my new coins. (The references included Stevenson's Dictionary of Roman Coins, Barclay Head's Historia Numorum, and a book called something like Atlas of Coins that showed representative historical coins from various mapped areas.) I also bought a copy of Sear's Roman Coins book (4th edition, the last single-volume version), and subscribed to a few dealer and auction lists. My online participation also started during this period, as I read and posted to the Usenet discussion group rec.collecting.coins . (If you remember Usenet, you can officially call yourself an old-timer.) During this time I was mainly collecting Roman coins, with occasional Greek if they caught my eye. During graduate school, I continued collecting ancients, though now only by mail as there was no shop near the university. I started buying some of my coins through the Internet, through dealers with their own websites and from a place called eBay. I also started expanding my interests to the East, first getting a copy of Mitchiner's mammoth work and then trying to collect representative examples of the various Hephthalite/Hun coinages. My Parthian interest started during this time, and fortunately I bought both the Sellwood and Shore references right at the beginning. I also started collecting Chinese cash as a side area. Ever since, I've continued collecting mainly ancient "Persian" (Parthian, Sasanian, and related) with various others as they appeal to me. Here's one of the first ancient coins I was able to identify back in '92/3, an AE3 of Constantius II:

Here's three obols of the same ruler, with three distinct styles. First, a "pre-Sasanian" of Ardashir V of Persis (c. 211-224), who rebelled against his Parthian overlords and began the Sasanian epoch: Next, an obol where he has become Ardashir I (c.224-240, Shahenshah, and founder of what we recognize as the Sasanian kingdom. This is from early in his reign, where he still wears a tall Parthian-style tiara. Note also the appearance of the Zoroastrian fire-altar on reverse, which would appear on Sasanian coins to the very end (and beyond, in various imitative and derivative versions): And an obol from later in his reign, where he has adapted a more distinctly Sasanian crown and hairstyle:

Hey, nobody told me you were going to have a Parthian party! Guess I'll at least poke my head in this new forum a bit. And how about a nice tetradrachm:

I sold most of my first Parthian collection (about 400 coins) through CNG back in 2016. The entire process was very easy, and I was happy with the results. First I sent them an intro email, with an attached inventory of the coins, to gauge their interest. They said it would make sense to sell in their auction, as a named collection (you can look up the "Parthicus" collection). Then I sent them the coins, waited a few months for them to catalogue everything and list it in an auction, and I got a nice settlement check 90 days after the auction closed.