7 Imperfect Coins

[Sulla80]

Hand struck, and weathered for thousands of years, most ancients have a lot of imperfections.  Here are a few favorites...

A Cn Lentulus with rough surface and some sort of smudging of the reverse die from the Roman Republic:

Off center and worn from Roman Syria:

A tetradrachm from Elymais with blotchy red patina and an off-center Arcadius with a flan with ragged edges from Rome

an off center and not exactly round Phrygian bronze with a hint of AE greek arrow heads in the background

a scratched and Victorious Sulla on a yellowed letter from 1863 with a stamp of Victor Emmanuel II

A coin from Tisna, Aiolis with a devilish pox.

Post your favorite imperfect coins....

Edited June 20, 2023 by Sulla80

[CPK]

Never posted this one before. It's got a large flat area but not too bad. The portrait is nice. This type, with the captives under a trophy instead of a vexillum, is a bit less common.

[Curtisimo]

All great coins @Sulla80. Fun post.

All of my coins are quite imperfect and I like it better that way. 🙂 

Here are a few with very noticeable imperfections that I still really enjoy.

Very worn:

Off center:

Cut in half:

Edited June 20, 2023 by Curtisimo

[Orange Julius]

This Julian comes to mind. It’s crusty in the most beautiful way.

Julian II AE4 of Arles. AD 360-363
DN FL CL IVLI-ANVS PF AVG, diademed, helmeted and cuirassed bust left, holding spear and shield / VOT X MVLT XX within wreath with eagle above. Mintmark PCONST. RIC VIII Arles 324.

[seth77]

Imperfections always mean affordability. These two were 100EUR together, Fedex factored in:

 

[Steppenfool]

5 minutes ago, seth77 said:

Imperfections always mean affordability. These two were 100EUR together, Fedex factored in:

 

 

 

That Constantius is very interesting. I wonder if the gouges (if intentional) were done at the same time as the holing. Somebody perhaps wanted to wear a disfigured Constantius? He did make a lot of enemies both inside and outside the Empire.

[seth77]

5 minutes ago, Steppenfool said:

That Constantius is very interesting. I wonder if the gouges (if intentional) were done at the same time as the holing. Somebody perhaps wanted to wear a disfigured Constantius? He did make a lot of enemies both inside and outside the Empire.

The scratches are very likely modern. The hole is typical of precious metal coinage that got to the Germanic foederati.

[kirispupis]

Pretty much all of my coins are imperfect. 🙂 So, rather than insert ~500 coins here, I'll just post one of my most recent pickups...

Akarnania Colonies of Corinth Echinos
ca. 345-300 BCE
AR Stater 7.70g. 21mm
Pegasos flying l.
Helmeted head of Athena r., wearing Corinthian helmet; fish hook and E behind.
BMC 1; HGC 4, 806

[Deinomenid]

I'm with Kirispupis in that I seem to accidentally specialize  in the  imperfect. However, I think a graded imperfect coin can be an advantage. So many  slab collectors recoil in  horror at them that they can go for less than  I think they are worth.  Here's a 1/5 that's one of my favourite coins that I'd seen in an old  NAC catalog and it came  up for sale in the dregs of a big sale.

Tarentum Nomos 7.93 g), ca. 450-440 B.C.

Obverse: Taras riding dolphin right, arms outstretched; cockle shell; Reverse: Oikistes (seller claim but far more likely a representation of the demos) seated left,  wiuth  distaff and scepter.

Number 36  in this 1925  sale.

https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/kundig_naville1925_06_15/0141/image,info

 

 

 

 

 

[expat]

Got this in a 10 coin lot. Originally would have been covered with a deep green patina, but had the life scrubbed out of it.

 

[JeandAcre]

Here's a recent favorite.  The contrast between the motifs and the ridiculously weak legends, along with the flan crack, is dramatic enough to be entertaining in its own right. 

Bishopric of Metz. Etienne de Bar, 1120-1162.  Maille /petit denier.

Obv.  [S STE]PH[A] Bust of St. Stephen holding palm branch in his right hand and book of Gospels in his left.

Rev. METE[...] Right hand blessing and holding crozier.  From Leu Numismatik, citing a regionally-focused reference that goes sailing over my head, along with provenance from Elsen and a ticket from an established academic collector (Max Blaschegg).

[DonnaML]

I very much like this coin, even though for the soldier on the right only a flat outline, without detail, is present:

Roman Republic, C. Sulpicius C.f. Galba, AR Serrate Denarius, 106 BCE, Rome Mint. Obv. Jugate heads of Dei Penates left, D•P•P [Dei Penates Publici]  beneath heads / Rev. Two soldiers facing each other, holding spears and pointing at sow lying down between them; S above; in exergue: C•SVL•ICI•C•F. [Indication of undertype on right of reverse, causing loss of detail.]  RSC I Sulpicia 1, Crawford 312/1, Sydenham 572, BMCRR Rome 1324, Sear RCV I 189 (ill.)  18.12 mm., 3.83 g. [See Sear RCV I at p. 108: “Crawford’s interpretation of this interesting type seems the most convincing: it refers to Aeneas’ [landing at and founding of] Lavinium (home of the Sulpicia gens) with the Penates, and the subsequent miracle of the great white sow [giving birth to 30 piglets], which foretold the founding of Alba Longa,” where the soil was more fertile, 30 years later.] (Purchased from Marc Breitsprecher, ex Madroosi Collection [Joe Blazick]).

[ambr0zie]

I have a lot of imperfect coins. They fit my budget and I kinda like weak strikes, strange flans, deposits or any other defects that (for me) do not alter too much the coin aspect, but remind me that this is a hundreds/thousands years old object.

Here is a coin type that I wanted for a long time as it is very important for me - "the lion daalder" thaler. 

27.1 g
1 Leeuwendaalder; Lily, knight facing left
Dutch Republic (Netherlands), Kampen, 1648
MO ARG CIV IM P BELG CAMPEN, knight standing behind shield facing left / CONFIDENS DNO NON MOVETVR 1648 (He who trusts in the Lord shall not waver), rampant lion to the left. Mint mark – lily - dividing year. KM# 42.2, Delmonte S# 862, Ver# 163.3

I say it is important because lion thalers were heavily used in Europe in 16th and 17th centuries. It is also the ancestor of all the currencies called "dollar" (the term comes from thaler, a very popular denomination in that period) AND the ancestor of my country's currency, "leu" (lion). The term lion comes from this coin. 

Although this might not look this way, my example is above average for the type. There are examples in splendid condition, perfectly struck and with exceptional details, but their prices are very high. Many lion thalers are (very) poorly struck and with small flans. On mine, the circulation is not the issue, the strike is weak - but not as weak as the average, from what I studied. 

[Sulla80]

On 6/20/2023 at 12:36 PM, kirispupis said:

Pretty much all of my coins are imperfect. 🙂

🙂 Great coins from all in this thread -@JeandAcre's petit dernier,  @CPK's pleasing Constantine, @kirispupis's latest,  @seth77's siliqua mauled by a shovel? @Deinomenid's Tarentian dolphin rider, @expat's Upper and Lower Pannoniae,  @Orange Julius showing great colour, and admittedly being a Roman republican at my core, I am drawn to @Curtisimo's Q. Cassius Longinus and @DonnaML's C. Sulpicius C.f. Galba. 

Edited June 26, 2023 by Sulla80

[Edessa]

Almost perfectly imperfect - at least for type.

Eastern Europe. Celtic imitations of Philip III of Macedon. Circa 2nd century BC. AR Tetradrachm (29mm, 14.76g, 12h). Obv: Devolved head of Herakles right, wearing lion skin. Rev: Devolved Zeus Nikephoros seated left; monogram in left field. Ref: Lanz 921-925; CCCBM I 193-198; Göbl, OTA 579/11-14; Flesche 744.

[Sulla80]

12 hours ago, Edessa said:

Almost perfectly imperfect - at least for type.

Eastern Europe. Celtic imitations of Philip III of Macedon. Circa 2nd century BC. AR Tetradrachm (29mm, 14.76g, 12h). Obv: Devolved head of Herakles right, wearing lion skin. Rev: Devolved Zeus Nikephoros seated left; monogram in left field. Ref: Lanz 921-925; CCCBM I 193-198; Göbl, OTA 579/11-14; Flesche 744.

Love the obverse portrait, @Edessa 🙂 as ancient collectors we are often seeking "perfectly imperfect for type" and chose to see the beauty in the imperfections. I like the concept that @dougsmit shared once of "wabi sabi".  I applied it, in my notes, to this coin of Elymais (same coin shown in the original post)....

https://www.sullacoins.com/post/wabi-sabi-embracing-imperfection

 

Edited June 26, 2023 by Sulla80

[expat]

Imperfection at production and coupled with circulation wear, this coin still rang all the right bells for me. Full obverse portrait, and a reverse that even though off centre, still has horses with all legs and heads, and Victory with wings visible.

 

[AETHER]

This corroded coin in style of Corithian from Akarnania, not sure of exact attribution,  mainly because it's under weight. (7.xg) Possibly Argos Amphilochikon, Akarnania, AR Stater. Ca 350-270 BC Pegasi/Argos 3 BMC 1-2. With off strike decapitation.  Definitely not perfect

 

 

Edited June 27, 2023 by AETHER

[Hrefn]

Louis the Pious AD 819-822

A silver Class 2 denier of Imperator Hludovicus, otherwise Louis the Pious, from the mint at Metallum now called Melle.  The coin looks to have been through the wars, but I was still delighted to get it as it is rather scarce.  Also, there are no flan cracks or chips, which are very common on Carolingian coins;  only what I would call “honest wear.” There are numerous examples of various immobilized types from this mint, but this is a lifetime issue, Depeyrot #609.  Only 53 examples known to Depeyrot.  

[Limes]

Your imperfect coins sure do look mighty fine, @Sulla80! As do many of the other coins shown here. When putting it like this, "Hand struck, and weathered for thousands of years" it's still amazes me that many ancient coins still look fantastic. And I'm not even thinking of the material of auctioneers like NAC. I'm currently revisiting episodes of Time Team, maybe some of you know it. It's a very entertaining show about British archeologists that do various digs/searches all over the country (and abroad), surfacing lost buildings, artefacts, and stories. I love their excitement when they find a small piece of Roman pottery, and even some worn coins. I can't help think how amazing it is, that there are so many coins in trade, in generally speaking good quality, available to even the collectors with a small budget. Anyway, what I'm trying to say, is that I wont deny that high quality coins are most appealing, it's also the coins with a flaw, or many more, tell a story, that they were one time used, spent, thrown away, and embody someones dreams, life, and even fears. So, long story short, I'd like to share this somewhat flawed (weak strike, worn, crack), but amazing coin (just look at that portrait, and there's even some silver left!) of Constantius, which, in combination with the story behind the well known find spot, makes for a perfect ancient coin (in my opinion)! 

Another thing I absolutely love, are coins showing buildings. Man, I love stone works 🙂 Fantastic are coins that show a monument that still stands today, or that once had a glittering bronzed roof and stood proudly of the Forum Romanum, or shows a building that we only know of because of that particular coin. I'm happy to add those types to my collection, although overall the competition for theses issues is murderous. And just like the monuments they show and either have completely disappeared, or are heavily worn, it fits that the coins shows some wear too. Two examples:

[Pellinore]

This one is comparable with @Hrefn's Louis the Pious. I was happy I could buy it, because Dorestad is the only known Carolingian mint in the country where I live. It has a large flan chip, but still. 

4508. Denier, 9th century. Dorestad. Lotharius or after. Obv. DOR/ES.TA/TVS in 3 lines. Rev. Short cross in circle +HLOTIARIVS IMP. 20 mm, 1.39 gr.

[dougsmit]

On 6/26/2023 at 10:01 AM, Sulla80 said:

I like the concept that @dougsmit shared once of "wabi sabi". 

https://www.forumancientcoins.com/dougsmith/wabisabi.html

Since I was mentioned in this thread:  While I have no problem at all collecting lower grade coins and have a few thousand of them (and none that are perfect), the concept I was trying to get across with that Wabi-Sabi post was that there are coins that have interest BECAUSE of their imperfections rather than just 'in spite of' them.  Nearly six years ago I made a YouTube video on the subject of faulty Greek coins.

In it I announced there would be a similar one on Roman coins but that turned out to be a lie.  I seem to be better at finding venues on coins that I am not interested in pursuing that those that I can handle.  I enjoyed the time 25 years ago I spent making my web pages but those are not fashionable today in the era of YouTube.   I wonder if I might set some sort of record for time elapsed between videos if I were to make it now.