New purchases! A couple of 1st century Sestertii - what's not to love about these big chunky coins??

[Octavius]

 Congratulations on two handsome coins!

Here in a same design of Titus, but from a Balkan mint...

[GERMANICVS]

That is a very nice sestertius of Titus, love the portrait. Congrats on a nice addition.  Same as you @CPK, I love the heftiness (if that is an actual word?) and the look of those big bronzes.

Even though I focused mainly on 1st and 2nd century bronzes, I was never able to add a sestertius of Titus that I liked, and could afford!  You did quite well with that one.

In the spirit of sharing, these are some of the 1st century Sestertii in my collection.

 

 

 

 

[CPK]

5 hours ago, GERMANICVS said:

That is a very nice sestertius of Titus, love the portrait. Congrats on a nice addition.  Same as you @CPK, I love the heftiness (if that is an actual word?) and the look of those big bronzes.

Even though I focused mainly on 1st and 2nd century bronzes, I was never able to add a sestertius of Titus that I liked, and could afford!  You did quite well with that one.

In the spirit of sharing, these are some of the 1st century Sestertii in my collection.

 

 

 

 

Lovely collection! 🤩

[KenDorney]

Large bronzes are the best!  As I collect them I have too many to show off, but here is a pic of some new things I havent worked up just yet.  The Drusus sestertius has developed some bronze disease, so that will have to be conserved.  The Claudius at the top was from a Triton auction.  Very rare but to me rather boring.

Edited October 20, 2023 by KenDorney

[CPK]

7 hours ago, KenDorney said:

Large bronzes are the best!  As I collect them I have too many to show off, but here is a pic of some new things I havent worked up just yet.  The Drusus sestertius has developed some bronze disease, so that will have to be conserved.  The Claudius at the top was from a Triton auction.  Very rare but to me rather boring.

The definition of eye candy! Is that another Balkan Claudius on the left, second down from the top? I can see a little divot there, in the middle.

Fabulous coins, all around!

[KenDorney]

On 10/20/2023 at 3:55 PM, CPK said:

The definition of eye candy! Is that another Balkan Claudius on the left, second down from the top? I can see a little divot there, in the middle.

Fabulous coins, all around!

I'd have to dig the coins out again, and I have not entered them into my database, so I am not sure its Balkan or not.

[idesofmarch01]

As this thread illustrates, first and second century sestertii especially seem to be well-centered and well-engraved, and it's usually possible to find a second century sestertius in reasonably good condition at an affordable price.  They're fun to hold and imagine their use in commerce, since the sestertius was the denomination in which most costs were reckoned.

For those who are wary of collecting AEs due to possible smoothing: My personal experience and observation is that essentially 100% of collectible Roman AEs have been at least somewhat smoothed to remove the debris and detritus that accumulated on their surfaces after they ceased circulating.  During their life, circulation wear would have kept their surfaces smooth and free from debris, but post-circulation any debris (usually dirt) that contacted the coin's surface eventually would have adhered to the fields and devices in a semi-permanent way.  Removing this debris during the coin's cleaning isn't tooling or re-engraving, since no edges are being sharpened nor are details being enhanced -- the coin is simply being returned to its condition when it ceased circulating.

Of course, over-zealous and over-aggressive smoothing can remove some of the coin's original surface and patina, either inadvertently or intentionally, giving the coin a somewhat artificial look.  The real difficulty with evaluating AEs is detecting and avoiding actual tooling and re-engraving, which can be difficult if not impossible from just a picture.  Buying from a reputable dealer with a return policy for tooled coins is a good start.  The best approach is to have a knowledgeable expert examine the coin in-hand prior to purchase, but this is impractical for most collectors.  Post-purchase examination by an expert or even NGC is a reasonable alternative, but obviously will add to the cost.

Despite the pitfalls of purchasing these large AEs, I would encourage any interested collector to take the plunge.  As you can see from the coins posted in this thread, these can be very rewarding coins to own.

[Limes]

On 10/15/2023 at 9:31 PM, Limes said:

Thanks! When I have the time I'll take a group shot of all my sestertii (just 21). Think that will be fun, and to see the diameter go down from 36 mm to 27 mm! 

Finally found the time. Here is the bunch together. The largest of the lot is the sestertius of Claudius, the smallest a sestertius of Septimius Severus. The issue of Posthumus is not the smallest, even though it is my latest issue. Perhaps this has to do with the sestertius of Septimius Severus being one of the earlierst issues? Or perhaps because the issue of Posthumus had some effort put into size due to it being a double sestertius? My earliest issue, is the one by Caligula top left. But thats not a good indicator for the seize of the early bronzes. At 31 mm, its been filed (?) quite extensively around the edges (and obverse and reverse too). 

[CPK]

1 hour ago, Limes said:

Finally found the time. Here is the bunch together. The largest of the lot is the sestertius of Claudius, the smallest a sestertius of Septimius Severus. The issue of Posthumus is not the smallest, even though it is my latest issue. Perhaps this has to do with the sestertius of Septimius Severus being one of the earlierst issues? Or perhaps because the issue of Posthumus had some effort put into size due to it being a double sestertius? My earliest issue, is the one by Caligula top left. But thats not a good indicator for the seize of the early bronzes. At 31 mm, its been filed (?) quite extensively around the edges (and obverse and reverse too). 

Wow! 🤩 So many beautiful coins there - and a fantastic variety of interesting reverse types too!

[Herodotus]

I love big bronzes, I can't deny...

Nero Claudius Drusus. (Died 9 BC). Æ Sestertius. Rome mint. 36mm, 28.05g.
Struck under Claudius, (AD 42-54).
O: NERO CLAVDIVS DRVSVS GERMANICVS IMP; Bare head left; 
R: TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TR P IMP P P; Claudius seated left on curule chair, holding branch and scroll; below, weapons and armor on either side of globe.
RIC I 109 (Claudius)