DANTE

1 hour ago, Al Kowsky said:

Does anyone know the reason for the odd shape of these coins 🧐?

Good question. I wish I knew the answer.

Here's another Seleucid. I got it partly because of Zeus Ouranios (Zeus, ruler of the Heavens)

Next: mottled patina, or round, but not quite.

Nice list!

I don't know all the auction houses in the chart, but I agree with what @Curtisimo said about underselling toning. The same could be said about Leu, I feel. Downside with underselling is that you might be tempted to take a chance ('it'll be better in hand'). I fell into  that trap once and, naturally, ended up with a bland, lusterless coin.🤢

On the other hand, Savoca and Nauman have a tendency to overexpose their silver. So much so that the highlights of the coin blend seamlessly into the snow white background. Very shiny, but way too flattering.

Thanks Ronaldovich and Helvius Pertinax. Like I said, your avatars inspired me.😊 I think I'll experiment some with the idea in the future.

But it isdefinitely time-consuming! Fortunately, I have lots of 'free' time at work.

Too difficult?

They come in pairs: this animal is almost always on the reverse.

Instead of watching TV this morning, I quietly whittled away on this one, inspired by @Helvius Pertinax and @Ronalovich's fantastic avatars. The original picture I used isn't really high-res, so it get's a bit blurry and granulated when you zoom in. Tracing the reverse was a labor of love (but also strangely therapeutic and calming). Also, it was surprisingly interesting, tracing every line and every detail the die-cutter has made in the die really makes you appreciate their handywork and incredible skill in a whole new way!). Overall, I'm quite pleased with the result.

'Reduced' follis:

Constantine II, Cyzikus, with some smoothing of the fields.

Peacock...Didn't see that one. So the Flying Giraffe of Antioch was wrong?

Here's another one:

1 hour ago, dougsmit said:

Do these auto renew?

Mine does. But you can easily switch it off. I got a PP pop-up in the window. Just follow the link and hit 'cancel' and the automatic subscription-renewal is stopped.

Lost a lot of weight:

And now for something completely different: a tetradrachm from Alexandria.

A common one, but in good condition with very high relief:

Next: another tetradrachm from Alexandria.

Randomly selected: I rubbed my finger over the mousepad in 'pictures', then did the same with the cursor. This is what you end up with. It's not even a coin, but you wanted random.😊 Still, it's better than a holiday pic...

34mm.

I bought this pendant last year, a bycatch in an auction, unprovenanced and undated. It caught my eye in the catalog and I liked it. I have always found the faravahar and winged sun fascinating. The winged sun as a symbol goes back to ancient Assyrian Mesopotamia, where it was associated with the god Ashur . In Achaemenid times it was adopted as a symbol in Zoroastrianism and as a general symbol of power and kingship, It fell out of use in Parthian times. The flower on the back is (I assume) a lotus, regarded as a symbol of purity. I have no idea of its age or provenance, but the Achaemenid period is as good a guess as any. I should really show this to someone more knowledgeable in this area than me. The symbols fascinate me, but the finer points of it still elude me.

A handsome young god (provided you don't look at his hands or feet):

Next: tripod, or an Indian coin by @Spaniard.

Hi @Restitutor

I believe my contribution payment to Nvmis Forvm just went through (through PP)...😊 

Does that mean the system is up and running? If it is, it's a pleasure to contribute...

Two perfect ruins:

Next: minimum 2 countermarks, but the more, the merrier.

Oops too late: still Impressive Horse Hooves...

It's here! 😊

4 minutes ago, Spaniard said:

.I don't know what others think but looking at the participation on this thread alone I do believe a sub forum for artifacts would really benefit...

You're not the first to mention it. And I wholeheartedly support the idea. Some have also suggested exonumia as a category

Go @Restitutor!😊

It's probably just a loincloth. But you're right: I'd love to see it as something else!😋

How about the great Herakles posing as a methhead from the eighties? He has all the attributes: mohikan, baseball bat, a fag-end hanging from his lips...

Lower Danube 2nd-1st century BC. Tetradrachm imitating Thasos.

Next: another Celtic coin

The reverse hurts my eyes, but I couldn't resist Mercury:

Next: caduceus

Looks very classy, @Restitutor!!!! And a nice logo and typeface to boot...

Thanks for doing a great job (and in such a short time)!

One question: I will happily contribute financially, but is it possible to pay a year in advance in a single transaction?

For some reason, I'm not too keen on monthly recurring payments.

The obverse is bland, but I love the rev:

Next: any river god/personification.

A modest goat:

 Next: prancing horse.

Nice!😊 

I know that some of these thumbs/fingers were made for pestles. Here's a pic:

Roman Bronze Thumb-Form Pestle - Ancient Roman Antiquities | Ancient & OrientalAncient & Oriental

I'm looking forward to examining mine!

Here's my latest non-coin acquisition. Because of export licence-issues outside the EU it presently resides in at my sister's house in Holland, so I haven't been able to examine it in hand yet.

Sold as part of a pestle. It may well be, but I like to examine it before passing judgement.

Judging from the pics, it has remarkable versatility for such a small object.

Viewed sideways, it's an uncoditional 'thumbs up': 

while the frontal view suggests something completely different:   

Joking aside, I'm looking forward to receiving it.

Roman, marble 2-3cent AD. Thumb. Sold as: part of a pestle. Height 6cm. without stand.

Here is my 'rare' coin. I have shown it before on the 'other place'. It is a scarce issue struck under in Syracuse under Agathokles (CNS II, 115, SNG ANS 695). Usually, they have a trident as adjunct on the reverse, mine has a triskeles at 12h, and 'ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΩΝ'. At first I thought my coin was unique (yeah!), but a thorough search on ACsearch yielded two other specimens (from different dies). Both times the triskeles went unnoticed. One was described as having the common trident variety (copy&paste), the other merely mentioned the absence of the trident as a noteworthy feature.  To be fair, on both coins the triskeles was almost erased by wear, so you'd have to know what you're looking for to see it. Still, I do take some pride in the discovery of an unpublished variety. 

There is one caveat. The only references I have on this coin are Wildwinds and CNG's 'Handbook of Coins of Sicily', so some other reference I don't know might have it.