JAZ Numismatics

It's definitely an excellent example of the type!

Pretty cool to have one of only two examples of the left-facing bust. I wonder if right-facing busts were made by right-handed engravers and left-facing by left-handed. It would explain the scarcity of left-facing busts, as most people are right-handed. Or is that a silly idea?

Mmm...very nice coin! Sometimes mineral deposits detract from the aesthetic appeal of a coin. In this case, they add beautiful color and a look of great antiquity.

I make sure all of my coins have prices on them, and I have separate cases for Greek, Roman, Eastern, etc. I hate it when I have to ask a dealer for the price of a coin. I generally price my coins about 10% over what I want for them, which is generally 10% over the buy price, so a total markup of 20%. If a buyer asks for a discount, I take 10% off. Sometimes I sell coins at cost if they've been in my inventory for a while, collecting dust. Sometimes I give coins away for free. At my last show an old Marine (he had a USMC hat on) fished out a bunch of Lincoln Cents from my budget box, and I told him no charge for veterans today. Kids also get free coins. I don't really make any money, but I'm very popular, lol. (Is that a tactic?)

So let me get this straight: eating more than one potato chip is SUBMITTING TO SATAN? Ad execs are worse than lawyers, lol. (Sorry, Donna!)

Wonderful images and coins everyone! This is the perfect thread for my aurora-toned 50 centavos of Bolivia...

Great coin! I love it when overstrikes have such clear details of the host coin. Two of my favorite overstrikes are these so-called Proto-Nabataean coins. When the Ptolemies and Seleucids had finally dispersed from Arabia and its environs, there were a bunch of small bronze coins floating around, which the Nabataeans overstruck for their purposes with Athena and Nike. On this one you can see Athena looking up and Zeus looking down, and on the reverse, the eagle's head above Nike, claws below... 99.9999999% of these overstrikes occur on Ptolemaic bronzes, typically issues of Ptolemy III. But I did come across one struck over a Seleucid issue. Here you've got Athena and Antiochus IV (I think) on the obverse, and the reverse die had a chip that left part of his name un-struck. I've never seen another example of these types overstruck on a Seleucid coin...

Well the curator didn't say the piece was inauthentic. He shared your suspicions but couldn't confirm without seeing it in person. I know nothing about glass, but in my opinion it bears more research. Nice repair job though! By the way, if you're ever in upstate New York, the Corning Glass Museum is well worth the visit. We took the kids up there on a road trip once, back in the day. (I do NOT miss driving 5 hours with 4 kids in the car!) The exhibit of Roman glass was particularly interesting to me.

You were just looking for an excuse to post a picture of all those coins weren't you? 😍 But I think your question has too many complex variables to be answered accurately. For one, I think you're comparing the fiat values of Roman currency in the 1st century to the bullion values of the metals today. Remember that when silver coins were circulating in the modern world, their fiat value was considerably higher than their bullion value. Once the bullion values started approaching the face values and coins were hoarded rather than spent, governments worldwide transitioned to base metals. Likewise, the fiat value of the Roman coins had to be considerably higher than their bullion values. Another incalculable problem is the question of the cost of mining metals. It's much easier to mine and refine metals with modern technology than it was in the ancient world. On the other hand, ancient mining and refining was done by slaves which would have greatly reduced labor costs - you only need to keep slaves alive and well enough to function. It's definitely a case of apples and oranges.

Looking forward to this very much!

I think it's like one of those little stars your piano teacher put on your music when you played a piece really well.

He's moved on to collecting state quarters by now.

Those are beautiful images of Petra. I hope to visit someday myself. And your example of the Aretas IV bronze is quite good - full, round flan, well-centered, complete inscription. You can't do much better. Unfortunately, Celtic records are almost non existent, so we just don't know. There were occasional prominent leaders like Boudica, and certain graves of royal women have been discovered, but almost all information about Celtic social structure comes second-hand from the Greeks and Romans, who of course considered them barbarians. The Nabataeans were nice enough to leave us plenty of papyri, monumental inscriptions, and coins, although they did not write down any of their history. There was no Nabataean Homer. Like many other ancient cultures, they likely had a strong oral tradition of story-tellers that traveled from one city to another, reciting their myths and genealogies. That's a really great example of a difficult type. These coins are not properly considered Nabataean, but rather Damascene city issues - a Nabataean king just happened to rule the city for a short time. The design follows the city issues of previous Seleucid kings. I'm going to compose a separate thread about the issues of Aretas III in Damascus, but for now I'll post a similar coin by the earlier ruler Antiochos VII, only because my coin of Aretas III isn't as nice as yours. SELEUCID KINGDOM Antiochus XII Dionysos, 87/6-84/3 BC. AE21m 8.27g; Damascus Mint. Obv.: Diademed head of Antiochos XII right. Rev.: Tyche standing left, holding palm and cornucopia. Ref.: HGC 9, 1331

No sails, but this is my all-time favorite coin with galley... C. Fonteius. 114-113 BC. AR Denarius (20mm, 4.0 gm). Janiform head of Fons or Fontus; D left, mark of value right, six pellets below / Ornate war galley sailing left, cosisting of three rowers and pilot. Crawford 290/1; Sydenham 555; Fonteia 1

It's a Roman Provincial issue of Nicaea in Bithynia. They were struck during the late Severan Dynasty through Gordian III. The spacing of the letters on the reverse suggests Gordian III. I can't tell anything from the obverse. See this coin for a comparison... https://www.coinarchives.com/a/lotviewer.php?LotID=2377835&AucID=5845&Lot=1201&Val=f042c034b3432cbdc5fa967d672fae7f