"UNPUBLISHED" Criteria for using this description

[Topcat7]

I have a coin that an Auction House describes as "Unpublished" and I am prepared to accept that. (That Auction House has recorded two examples and my coin is a 'third'.)

However, I was wondering if the group could inform me as to what criteria should be met in order that a coin might have the title "Unpublished" applied to it, and who applies it, please?

[DLTcoins]

"Unpublished" implies an exhaustive search including obscure academic journals. It is over-used in my opinion, often improperly. Better phrases are "unlisted in standard references", "missing from major collections", "apparently unpublished", etc.

[DonnaML]

45 minutes ago, DLTcoins said:

"Unpublished" implies an exhaustive search including obscure academic journals. It is over-used in my opinion, often improperly. Better phrases are "unlisted in standard references", "missing from major collections", "apparently unpublished", etc.

Does a previous listing and illustration of a type in an auction catalog count as "publication"?

Edited April 6, 2023 by DonnaML

[Broucheion]

Hi @DonnaML,

Previous sales listings are not the same as listing in a catalog or research paper but good researchers do note them. That’s because they can be more difficult to track down to consult compared to “standard references”. As @DLTcoins stated “Better phrases are "unlisted in standard references", "missing from major collections", "apparently unpublished", etc.”

- Broucheion 

[NewStyleKing]

Unpublished is not referenced, by any means anywhere..by my reckoning!  Although you can be forgiven for really obscure publications...eg Gregor Mendel and his peas ! ( the Monk who discovered mendelian inheritance who published in obscure Czech language papers references only noticed some decades later.)

Edited April 6, 2023 by NewStyleKing

[kapphnwn]

I believe that the criteria is in many cases rather loose. This is true particularity in some areas of Greek coins as well as the Roman Provincial series where the standard works simply do not exist or are not readily available. Some collections such as BCD (Greek) or even RBW  (Roman Republic) can actually be superior to that of published standard works which can be outdated. However unpublished can be overused. Many coins can be simply be a variant to a well known and relatively common type. As an example 

Trajan Ae Sestertius 115-116 AD Obv Bust right laureate and draped. Rv Fortuna seated left holding rudder and cornucopia 27.71 grms 33 mm Photo by W. HansenA

At the time I purchased this coin back in 2004 the coin was a variant of RIC 652. RIC 652 had the S C placed in the exergue below the legend FORT RED. This coin had the SC placed in the field. This is the situation that existed until the publication of Woytek's book on the coinage of Trajan where it received the designation of 542v2 and my coin was referenced as an example.