AncientNumis

2 minutes ago, ambr0zie said:

What is the coin with the shewolf and twins reverse? is it the Roma city commemorative from 4th century?

I know it is present on many coins (and I intend to buy more varieties).

My favorite is this Macrinus from Laodicea ad Mare.

Yep - it is! Just a late roman bronze 😞, but I still like mine. 

It's quite amazing just how many coins feature this as the reverse - the Romans must have been really proud to commemorate their founding so much. That Macrinus looks really cool! A lot more interesting than mine 🤣. I'd like to get some other coins featuring it too - I'm thinking of getting a RR version. 

Just now, Qcumbor said:

I have two gold coins from the dombes principality (yes, it's me again 😄 ) that are unlisted so far. I published one of them a couple of years ago

 

Louis II de Montpensier (1560-1582), Pistole - 1579

 

Louis II de Montpensier (1560-1582), Demi-pistole - 1576

 

Q

WOAH! Those look spectacular - and really great you were able to publish one 🎉

6 hours ago, Furryfrog02 said:

I eventually want to get as many pieces as possible and have them on a shelf with some back-lit blacklights. They really are just too cool. I don't think I'll ever find a piece this cheap again though.
This particular piece was from the early-mid 1930's as far as I can tell.

That sure would look awesome! Really interested to see what other pieces you can find. Although I guess you're right that it might be hard to get them this cheap, $4 is an absolute steal 😄 

That's really interesting! Most of my coins are very common, but I guess I have one that is quite unusual. This is probably one of the most underweight sigloi ever, and it's not a fourree. It weighs only 3.04 grams (when it's supposed to weigh quite a bit more, of course - around 5 grams?). Sure it doesn't make it rare or desirable, rather the opposite, but I like it for how unusual it is 🙂 

On 5/24/2022 at 8:08 AM, ambr0zie said:

Hello ladies and gentlemen,

I guess it's time for me to add a coin to the new forum.

Due to some recent bad events plus being generally busy I didn't have the time to check it properly.

Not a fabulous coin - but exactly the type of coin that ticks many boxes for me. A pleasant design and with interesting symbolism, related to mythology and affordable. Would have, of course, preferred a slightly better condition, but with the prices nowadays you can never know. I have seen way too often F coins going for decent prices (and usually I get them =)) ) and the same coin, a liiiiiiitle better, F+, going for prices I stop considering a good deal. But this is another topic.

M. Herennius. 108-107 BC. Rome

 

. Denarius AR

 

18 mm, 3,77 g

 

PIETAS, head of Pietas r., wearing diadem; hair twisted around lower part of diadem; single drop earring; beaded necklace; tendrils falling down the back of her neck / M·HERENNI, nude male figure bearing a man on his shoulder, r. (one of the Catanaean brothers, Amphinomus, carrying his father Nisos on his shoulder); M.HERENNI downwards l.; control mark on r.; dot border

 

RRC 308/1b; Herennia 1a; B.M.C, 1258-85; Syd. 567a

 

 

Amphinomus or Aeneas? the best interpretation of the reverse I found is this

There are two possible interpretations of this reverse design, each with merit. The first is that the moneyer M. Herennius, who perhaps had a connection with Sicily, chose to illustrate a local example of Piety: the brothers Amphinomus and Anapias, who are supposed to have saved their parents from an eruption of Mt Etna by carrying them from danger on their shoulders. The second interpretation reaches back to the mythological founding of Rome; Aeneas, during the fall of Troy, carried his father Anchises from the burning ruins of the city. Romulus and Remus, the founders of the city of Rome, through their descendence from him, made Aeneas progenitor of the Roman people. Long before Virgil makes reference to ‘pious Aeneas’ in his Aeneid, the Roman concept of piety was threefold; duty to the gods, to one’s homeland and to one’s family, which neatly links the reverse type with the obverse on this coin.

 

 

Overall, a coin I wanted a lot and I consider it a good addition.

If you feel appropriate, please post coins with mythological scenes.

Sadly, I don't have this type but here are 2 mythological scenes on some rather affordable ancient coins I own:
-Herakles strangling the Nemean lion
-Legendary founding of Rome, Romulus And Remus

17 hours ago, expat said:

Only one coin I possess with any relevance to WW1 (apart from the dates of course) is a half penny from 1917. My Mother tells of the years after her Father came back from war a different person than people remember. Apparently he would sit in silence rubbing this half penny with his thumb for hours while whatever demons were running through his mind.

 

 

Wow. This must be very special for you - sometimes even normal looking coins can be so much more because of what they remind us of, and this definitely seems the case here. 

On 5/25/2022 at 3:20 AM, Restitutor said:

I can think of no better way to start my thread posting here than with my newest addition, one that is sure to see all my money disappear very quickly! 😂

Justinian the Great needs no introduction as likely one of the most recognizable faces in the ancient world. The man who, in conjunction with his formidable wife, pushed back against the tide of history to try and reclaim Rome's place as the supreme power in the Western World. If only his success was longer lived... but, on to the coin!

Justinian I. 527-565. AV Solidus. (20mm, 4.45g). Constantinople mint. 4th officina. Struck 545-565. D N IVSTINI ANVS PP AVG, helmeted and cuirassed bust facing, holding globus cruciger in right hand and shield decorated with soldier on horseback motif in left / VICTORI A AVGGG, Angel standing facing, holding globus cruciger in left hand and long staff terminating in staurogram in right; star to right; Δ CONOB. SB 140. 

 

This one was extra fun as the auction house I acquired it from did not choose an officina, I presume because the letter is slightly "smudged" on the reverse. After a lot of staring I am pretty confident it is the delta symbol and thus officina 4 (may be easier to see in the video vs. the photo) but curious to get other opinions! 

Let's see those solidi, Justinians, or any other coins you think are relevant! 

 

Wow that's soooooooo lovely. I don't have any ancient gold yet, but I've got a couple of modern coins. Would they be relevant or should I keep them out of an ancient coin thread? Just wondering if I can post pictures of them here, but no worries if not!

Here are the other coins I got from that car boot sale - this makes up over half of all my medieval coins 😆

Posted it on CT before, but hopefully some people here haven't seen them. 

On 5/25/2022 at 2:12 AM, Paddy54 said:

I parted with this Groat as Lord M aka Rob found a fondness for it .

 

From the war of the roses peroid 

Is that Edward IV? I'm pretty bad with medieval coins but sure looks like him! Here's mine of Edward the fourth - sure a lot of it has corroded away but it still has a fun portrait so that's all I mind about! Got it at a car boot sale somehow. 

On 5/25/2022 at 1:25 PM, Furryfrog02 said:

S - That is NOT a donkey....it's a panther....oh how far the die engravers had fallen from the height of the Greek and Roman ages to the middle ages...

Haha! That's quite a funny panther 🤣

Totally agree with this - it would be extremely useful and help a lot of beginners to not lose interest. This idea of a more open forum is one I really support too - there are too many that don't encourage new members and beginners which could be quite a big problem.

I actually quite like it too - and I'm sure in time it will look even more lovely as it begins to darken! To be honest, I wouldn't mind too much about having the top coin either but we all have our own opinions and if you like it, that's what matters 🙂 

12 hours ago, TheTrachyEnjoyer said:

Byzantine coins have some awesome depictions of tiny architecture!!

Thessalonican:

Here the Arch Angel Michael is holding the city of Thessaloniki with Thessalonican emperor Theodore Ducas. The strike is a bit weak at the center which is typical for these but you can see two towers from the mini city rise to above shoulder length. 
 

An entire city is being held by a measly man! Talk about tiny architecture!

This trachy is otherwise is amazing shape!

 

Palaeologan:

Another example of this type I have is emperor Michael VIII holding the city of Constantinople while sitting on the imperial throne. Michael VIII recaptured the city and this was his way to show it off 😎 

The son of Michael VIII (Andronikos II) issued a similar (albeit) more crude type. Here the emperor is winged and facing left.

Andronikos also issued hyperpyra with the city of Constantinople on the obverse. The Virgin Mary stands in orans at the center, blessing the city walls. A recent dissertation I read made the case that these palaeologan wall obverses could actually represent the long walls of Nicaea, home of the empire in exile before its recapture of Constantinople. Since no legends exist to identify the walls, this very well could be the case! Tradition has them as the walls of Constantinople, however.

Woah - love these, really interesting. 

Wow lovely! So cute, love seeing stuff like this. 

Woah! Lovely writeup - and those game screenshots are pretty awesome! Here's my only Hadrian (coin dealer took rev pic upside down):

I took this little guy to Hadrian's villa in Tivoli which was fun.

WOAH! Awesome piece, and I love how it depicts this really moving story 😞- wonderful how many ancients help to bring myths and fables to life. 

Fun countermarks! I'm jealous 😆
Sadly, even though I have quite a number of coins, I have absolutely no countermarks! But I'm planning on getting a load of sigloi as I find them super appealing as a type, so hopefully I can pick some up if I do get them 🙂

So, a while ago I was lucky enough to go to Rome again! It was awesome, and I loved visiting some of the amazing sites. But here I thought I'd share 3 images I like (2 of coins in their natural habitat) and one comparison. 

We've got:
Commodus at the colosseum
Hadrian at his villa
Capitoline Wolf Statue And High Grade LRB Comparison 

If this is popular, I might post some more photos I took there! I have a lot more of the different sites, and I could also do some comparison ones too 

Share pictures taken with coins, coins linked to locations or sites, or simply some of the favourite ancient places you've visited!
 

Actually I guess I have a cat photo to contribute after all! And it's linked to Rome 😄 
Here's a stray cat I saw on the Palatine hill in Rome. Idk why I edited it to make it black and white - but it's the only photo I have of the cat. 

Loooooove that Croesus 1/6 stater! Such an awesome coin, and beats my oldest lion (Miletus Twelfth Stater) by quite an amount 🙂

That Septimius Severus is also super nice. 

On 5/26/2022 at 1:43 PM, Alegandron said:

Looking forward to this Forum evolving into the premiere Ancients chat site.

Me too! This forum has great potential, and I'm loving how it's beginning to look like - awesome members, and with many BIG ISSUES of CT fixed here🙂

8 hours ago, David Atherton said:

Another neat coin added to my sub collecting niche of Flavian Restoration coinage. Best of all, it was pretty cheap!

 

Drusus, Restored by Titus

Æ As, 9.40g

Rome mint, 80-81 AD

Obv: DRVSVS CAESAR TI AVG F DIVI AVG N; Head of Drusus, bare, l.

Rev: IMP T CAES DIVI VESP F AVG REST; S C in centre

RIC 437 (C3). BMC 286. BNC 298.

Acquired from Aegean, May 2022.

 

Titus struck an extensive restoration series of bronze coins of Flavian approved past emperors and imperial family members which reproduced the original coins in their entirety. While this veneration of past coinages was not a new idea (Vespasian copied past types on many reverses for the precious metal issues) it was quite an innovation to copy both the obverse and reverse of these past coinages. To do so likely had a dual purpose - one, to recoin types that were being recalled or falling out of circulation and to keep their memory alive, and secondly to link the Flavian house with those past revered personages. The meaning is quite clear on the reverse with Titus declaring he has restored (REST) this coin. Drusus was the son of the emperor Tiberius. This coin faithfully reproduces a similar type struck for him under his father.

 

Have a Drusus? I'd love to see it!

 

Thanks for looking!

 

 

Great piece! I don't have a Drusus but I'd love one someday. Although that day might be quite a while into the future when I can actually get one 😂

WOW love them! Your coins are all so wonderful 🙂
And welcome - it is super nice to have such great collectors like you join. 

Hi all! So, I just made a little article on my website about coins of the Triple Entente in WW1 and I was wondering if any of you have cool pieces you can share?
Here's my little article: https://www.ancientnumis.com/articles/effect-of-ww1-on-currency-triple-entente
 

I've added a little image of my 2 WW1 related British gold coins, but they're cropped a bit weirdly sorry.
So, yeah, post any World War One related coins you have and some stories surrounding them. I'm sure this could be really interesting!

So love the coin, and the simplicity of your drawing is actually very beautiful to me!