Favourite Coin(s) in Your Collection?

[David Atherton]

Recently I had the opportunity to acquire my ultimate dream coin, and it has now become my favourite piece in the collection. 

https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=184767

I was tickled when the HJB BBS 225 catalogue arrived last week featuring it on the cover!

 

Previously, this extremely rare Vespasian denarius acquired in 2016 was my favourite:

https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=127698

It is now #2.

All this has made me curious to know what other collectors regard as their favourite coins.

Please post your favourites! I would love to see them!

Edited November 15, 2023 by David Atherton

[JayAg47]

It's really hard to single out one coin as my favourite, but I consider the following coins to be my most beloved. 

Starting from modern, this sovereign minted in my city was my first major purchase.

This cob 8 reales was bought last year after waiting for the right specimen for a long time.

A Roman gold from the reign of Justinian the Great.

My first sestertius, after only handling denarius and small follis, handling a nice chunk of Roman bronze was so satisfying, especially the realistic portraiture of Vespasian.

Also one of my long time wish-list coin, a life-time tetradrachm of Alexander, and the bonus being the Babylon mint. 

This denarius of Augustus that I literally brought back from a piece of slag.

 

And last but not least, a coin I would actually claim to be my most favourite. A denarius of Julius Caesar. 

 

[Limes]

1 hour ago, David Atherton said:

Recently I had the opportunity to acquire my ultimate dream coin, and it has now become my favourite piece in the collection. 

https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=184767

I was tickled when the HJB BBS 225 catalogue arrived last week featuring it on the cover!

 

Previously, this extremely rare Vespasian denarius acquired in 2016 was my favourite.

https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=127698

It is now #2.

All this has made me curious to know what other collectors regard as their favourite coins.

Please post your favourites! I would love to see them!

I wanted to say 'your' Colosseum sestertius too David 😁 But the I read more carefully, and realised its about 'my' collection...

This question pops up every now and then, and it's fun thinking over one's collection to see if the order has changed. Having spend a small decade collecting, I've noticed that this question remains difficult to answer. I do not have one absolute favorite, but I have some favorites. I've als noticed that some favorites shift as my collection advances, but some will always remain special to me (especially the first category, below). However, my absolute dreamcoin is not in my collection, and it is still out there. It's rare, but it does appear on the market every now and then. It's just too expensive for now. But I do hope that one day, I will get it, just like you got your absolute dreamcoin. 

So, category number 1. I'm emotionally attached to a couple of issues, because of the special, personal meaning they have for me. The first coin I bought after my mother pased away, or a coin a friend bought because I was feeling down, or the coin I got because of the birth of our children. I think these coins are my 'favorites' but perhaps because of different reasons if you know what I mean. From this category is this aureus, in celebration of the birth of our third child:

Next category: the coins that I got because they attracted me because of design, or place in history. They don't have an emotional meaning like the other ones. I think most of my coins fall within this category. Its difficult to pick a favorite, but a few that always jump out are a couple of Imperiatorial issues, early Imperials and some of the Severan dynasty. I'll go easy and post just a few. 

Imperatorial:

# 2 - sextus pompey, showing Scylla. A target ever since I first saw it in, I think, a NAC catalogue many years ago. I simply love this design. 

#1 the 'other dagger' issue of Brutus. Again, simply  loving the design and the simple 'BRVTVS' below in the ex. 

Imperial:
My #1 (perhaps still) is this issue I bought on a trip in Rome, some year ago. It still brings back good memories (maybe it should be in the first category...?), but I also think the coin is fantastic. 

Severans:
Quite a few interesting issues I have of this 'dynasty', in my opinion, such as the circus maximus reverse denarius, the stone of Emesa of Elegabalus, but I think my favorite issues, are the dynastic issues, especially showing the two boys together knowing what happened to Geta later down in history...

I'll stop now. 

 

 

[David Atherton]

In light of the fact that it may be difficult to choose just one (which is totally understandable!), I've slightly changed the title of the thread.

 

[ambr0zie]

With a coin like that, @David Atherton, there is no surprise it's leading in your overall top! Excellent coins @JayAg47 and @Limes too. 

It is impossible to name my favorite coin or to select a small list, but I will try. My collection consists of coins I like, coins I like a lot and coins I love. Usually the ones I love = coins I noticed many days or even weeks before the auction, knew about them or started reading a lot about the history behind them and in the end I won them. If this was also with a good price, well, even better! And if meaning was a victory dance and shouting to scare the neigghbours, well, BETTER!

I will start with the first coin I intended to buy individually (my first acquisition being 3 group lots that there were still on the road). At that time I had no idea that ancient coins reverses can be MUCH MORE detailed/imaginative than soldiers/deities and seeing a coin with a normal animal meant I needed to have it. 

20 mm, 2,43 g.
Titus, as Caesar under Vespasian. AR denarius. Rome. 77-78.
T CAESAR VESPASIANVS, head of Titus, laureate, right / IMP XIII, sow left, with three piglets.
RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 986.

I think this coin started my preference for animal reverses.

Related - before starting to collect ancient coins my numismatic dream was to own a Trajan coin. In the same auction I got this quadrans 

20 mm, 3,01 g.
Trajan 98-117 AD. Æ quadrans. Rome. 114-117.
IMP TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS VI P P, head of Trajan, laureate, right / S C, She-wolf walking right.
RIC II Trajan 693.

What is even more interesting and flattering about this coin is that Woytek 601 reports just three specimens, all from the same pair of dies, in Glasgow, Paris, and CNG 38, 1996, lot 975. So this appears to be the fourth known specimen, all from the same pair of dies.

Many other coins deserve mentioning here, in my opinion, but I will list another Titus. A reverse I am a big fan of, but the artistry in this example made me refresh the page with the auction 10 times a day for 2 weeks hoping it will not be out of my price range. 

17 mm, 2,53 g.
Titus 79-81 AD. AR denarius. Rome. 79 AD.
IMP TITVS CAES VESPASIAN AVG P M, head of Titus, laureate, right / TR P VIIII IMP XIIII COS VII P P, Venus standing right, resting on column, holding helmet and spear.
RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 34; Old RIC II Titus 9; RSC 268.

[CPK]

Fun thread! It's hard to decide, but I think these are my top three, starting with no. 3:

- NO. 3 -

TRAJAN "ITALIA REST" AS

TRAJAN, AD 98-117

AE As (27.59mm, 10.04g, 6h)

Struck AD 103-111

Rome mint

Obverse: IMP CAES NERVAE TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS V P P, laureate head of Trajan right, with paludament on left shoulder

Reverse: SPQR OPTIMO PRINCIPI, Trajan standing left holding eagle scepter, extending hand to Italy kneeling before with two children between; ITALIA REST in exergue

RIC -, BMCRE -, RCV -, C -, Woytek 367b (same dies), Strack 412. This coin published on Numista (369513). R4. Extremely rare, apparently the fourth specimen known.

**********

What makes this coin one of my favorites is mainly the extreme rarity of the type. Strack and Woytek are the only two references I know of which even mention the type, and both cite the same two specimens: one in Vienna and one in Munich. The only other specimen I have been able to find is a very worn coin on wildwinds.com.

My coin is a double-die match to the Vienna coin illustrated in Woytek, and likely a double-die match to the wildwinds coin too, although that coin is so worn it's impossible to be certain.

This coin also appears to share the reverse die with 6 of the 8 dupondius versions of this type known to Woytek.

There is a saying that there's nothing more common than a rare ancient coin. While there's definitely some truth to that, it's much more unusual to be able to acquire such a rarity among standard Roman Imperial issues - especially those from the early to middle Empire.

I have posted this about this coin and my ongoing research into the type here.

- NO. 2 -

LYSIMACHOS TETRADRACHM

LYSIMACHOS, 306-281 BC

AR Tetradrachm (28.30mm, 16.15g, 12h)

Struck 297 - 281 B.C

Alexandreia Troas mint

Obverse: Diademed head of the deified Alexander right, with the horn of Ammon

Reverse: BAΣIΛEΩΣ ΛYΣIMAXOY, Athena Nikephoros seated left, left arm resting on shield, transverse spear in background; cornucopia to inner left, Λ under throne

SNG Stockholm 845 (same dies)

A rare variant. Toned with scratches on reverse. Well centered portrait of Alexander in fine style.

**********

What need I say? A fantastic portrait of the one and only Alexander the Great. Though it is No. 2 on my list, it is without question my most "awe-inspiring" coin in hand: the large heavy silver, beautifully toned, struck in such high relief as to be practically round sculpture. Here is a thread about it.

- NO. 1 -

JULIUS CAESAR LIFETIME PORTRAIT DENARIUS

JULIUS CAESAR, 49-44 BC

AR Denarius (18.91mm, 3.53g, 12h)

Struck late February to early March, 44 BC

Rome mint

Obverse: CAESAR DICT PERPETVO, wreathed head of Julius Caesar right

Reverse: L·BVCA, fasces and winged caduceus in saltire; axe, clasped hands, and globe in three quarters

RRC 480/6, RCV 1409

Toned. A scarce, late-lifetime portrait denarius of Julius Caesar. Caesar received the title of Dictator Perpetuo (Dictator for Life) in February of 44 BC; this coin would have been struck mere weeks before his assassination on the Ides of March that same year.

**********

Like @David Atherton's Colosseum sestertius, this type has been a dream of mine to acquire since I began collecting (admittedly, not all that long ago.) Just recently the dream became a reality when I saw this worn but respectable specimen pop up for sale at a favorite dealer's for a good price. I made a thread about it here.

 

 

 

[David Atherton]

28 minutes ago, CPK said:

Fun thread! It's hard to decide, but I think these are my top three, starting with no. 3:

- NO. 3 -

TRAJAN "ITALIA REST" AS

TRAJAN, AD 98-117

AE As (27.59mm, 10.04g, 6h)

Struck AD 103-111

Rome mint

Obverse: IMP CAES NERVAE TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS V P P, laureate head of Trajan right, with paludament on left shoulder

Reverse: SPQR OPTIMO PRINCIPI, Trajan standing left holding eagle scepter, extending hand to Italy kneeling before with two children between; ITALIA REST in exergue

RIC -, BMCRE -, RCV -, C -, Woytek 367b (same dies), Strack 412. This coin published on Numista (369513). R4. Extremely rare, apparently the fourth specimen known.

**********

What makes this coin one of my favorites is mainly the extreme rarity of the type. Strack and Woytek are the only two references I know of which even mention the type, and both cite the same two specimens: one in Vienna and one in Munich. The only other specimen I have been able to find is a very worn coin on wildwinds.com.

My coin is a double-die match to the Vienna coin illustrated in Woytek, and likely a double-die match to the wildwinds coin too, although that coin is so worn it's impossible to be certain.

This coin also appears to share the reverse die with 6 of the 8 dupondius versions of this type known to Woytek.

There is a saying that there's nothing more common than a rare ancient coin. While there's definitely some truth to that, it's much more unusual to be able to acquire such a rarity among standard Roman Imperial issues - especially those from the early to middle Empire.

I have posted this about this coin and my ongoing research into the type here.

- NO. 2 -

LYSIMACHOS TETRADRACHM

LYSIMACHOS, 306-281 BC

AR Tetradrachm (28.30mm, 16.15g, 12h)

Struck 297 - 281 B.C

Alexandreia Troas mint

Obverse: Diademed head of the deified Alexander right, with the horn of Ammon

Reverse: BAΣIΛEΩΣ ΛYΣIMAXOY, Athena Nikephoros seated left, left arm resting on shield, transverse spear in background; cornucopia to inner left, Λ under throne

SNG Stockholm 845 (same dies)

A rare variant. Toned with scratches on reverse. Well centered portrait of Alexander in fine style.

**********

What need I say? A fantastic portrait of the one and only Alexander the Great. Though it is No. 2 on my list, it is without question my most "awe-inspiring" coin in hand: the large heavy silver, beautifully toned, struck in such high relief as to be practically round sculpture. Here is a thread about it.

- NO. 1 -

JULIUS CAESAR LIFETIME PORTRAIT DENARIUS

JULIUS CAESAR, 49-44 BC

AR Denarius (18.91mm, 3.53g, 12h)

Struck late February to early March, 44 BC

Rome mint

Obverse: CAESAR DICT PERPETVO, wreathed head of Julius Caesar right

Reverse: L·BVCA, fasces and winged caduceus in saltire; axe, clasped hands, and globe in three quarters

RRC 480/6, RCV 1409

Toned. A scarce, late-lifetime portrait denarius of Julius Caesar. Caesar received the title of Dictator Perpetuo (Dictator for Life) in February of 44 BC; this coin would have been struck mere weeks before his assassination on the Ides of March that same year.

**********

Like @David Atherton's Colosseum sestertius, this type has been a dream of mine to acquire since I began collecting (admittedly, not all that long ago.) Just recently the dream became a reality when I saw this worn but respectable specimen pop up for sale at a favorite dealer's for a good price. I made a thread about it here.

 

 

 

Thank you for posting your Top 3! I think you already know that the recent acquisition of your #1 helped inspire me to go after mine. The other two coins that round out your Top 3 are fantastic as well!

 

[David Atherton]

3 hours ago, Limes said:

I wanted to say 'your' Colosseum sestertius too David 😁 But the I read more carefully, and realised its about 'my' collection...

This question pops up every now and then, and it's fun thinking over one's collection to see if the order has changed. Having spend a small decade collecting, I've noticed that this question remains difficult to answer. I do not have one absolute favorite, but I have some favorites. I've als noticed that some favorites shift as my collection advances, but some will always remain special to me (especially the first category, below). However, my absolute dreamcoin is not in my collection, and it is still out there. It's rare, but it does appear on the market every now and then. It's just too expensive for now. But I do hope that one day, I will get it, just like you got your absolute dreamcoin. 

So, category number 1. I'm emotionally attached to a couple of issues, because of the special, personal meaning they have for me. The first coin I bought after my mother pased away, or a coin a friend bought because I was feeling down, or the coin I got because of the birth of our children. I think these coins are my 'favorites' but perhaps because of different reasons if you know what I mean. From this category is this aureus, in celebration of the birth of our third child:

Next category: the coins that I got because they attracted me because of design, or place in history. They don't have an emotional meaning like the other ones. I think most of my coins fall within this category. Its difficult to pick a favorite, but a few that always jump out are a couple of Imperiatorial issues, early Imperials and some of the Severan dynasty. I'll go easy and post just a few. 

Imperatorial:

# 2 - sextus pompey, showing Scylla. A target ever since I first saw it in, I think, a NAC catalogue many years ago. I simply love this design. 

#1 the 'other dagger' issue of Brutus. Again, simply  loving the design and the simple 'BRVTVS' below in the ex. 

Imperial:
My #1 (perhaps still) is this issue I bought on a trip in Rome, some year ago. It still brings back good memories (maybe it should be in the first category...?), but I also think the coin is fantastic. 

Severans:
Quite a few interesting issues I have of this 'dynasty', in my opinion, such as the circus maximus reverse denarius, the stone of Emesa of Elegabalus, but I think my favorite issues, are the dynastic issues, especially showing the two boys together knowing what happened to Geta later down in history...

I'll stop now. 

 

 

 

1 hour ago, ambr0zie said:

With a coin like that, @David Atherton, there is no surprise it's leading in your overall top! Excellent coins @JayAg47 and @Limes too. 

It is impossible to name my favorite coin or to select a small list, but I will try. My collection consists of coins I like, coins I like a lot and coins I love. Usually the ones I love = coins I noticed many days or even weeks before the auction, knew about them or started reading a lot about the history behind them and in the end I won them. If this was also with a good price, well, even better! And if meaning was a victory dance and shouting to scare the neigghbours, well, BETTER!

I will start with the first coin I intended to buy individually (my first acquisition being 3 group lots that there were still on the road). At that time I had no idea that ancient coins reverses can be MUCH MORE detailed/imaginative than soldiers/deities and seeing a coin with a normal animal meant I needed to have it. 

20 mm, 2,43 g.
Titus, as Caesar under Vespasian. AR denarius. Rome. 77-78.
T CAESAR VESPASIANVS, head of Titus, laureate, right / IMP XIII, sow left, with three piglets.
RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 986.

I think this coin started my preference for animal reverses.

Related - before starting to collect ancient coins my numismatic dream was to own a Trajan coin. In the same auction I got this quadrans 

20 mm, 3,01 g.
Trajan 98-117 AD. Æ quadrans. Rome. 114-117.
IMP TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS VI P P, head of Trajan, laureate, right / S C, She-wolf walking right.
RIC II Trajan 693.

What is even more interesting and flattering about this coin is that Woytek 601 reports just three specimens, all from the same pair of dies, in Glasgow, Paris, and CNG 38, 1996, lot 975. So this appears to be the fourth known specimen, all from the same pair of dies.

Many other coins deserve mentioning here, in my opinion, but I will list another Titus. A reverse I am a big fan of, but the artistry in this example made me refresh the page with the auction 10 times a day for 2 weeks hoping it will not be out of my price range. 

17 mm, 2,53 g.
Titus 79-81 AD. AR denarius. Rome. 79 AD.
IMP TITVS CAES VESPASIAN AVG P M, head of Titus, laureate, right / TR P VIIII IMP XIIII COS VII P P, Venus standing right, resting on column, holding helmet and spear.
RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 34; Old RIC II Titus 9; RSC 268.

I must say, @JayAg47 @Limes @ambr0zie  I'm very heartened to see so many Flavians make the cut!

Edited November 15, 2023 by David Atherton

[akeady]

This is my favourite coin.   I'd seen it on Spink's website and they had it at a fair so I ran out, got some cash and bought it 🙂

State, City:	Sicily, Syracuse
Coin:	Silver Tetradrachm - Quadriga left, charioteer crowned by Nike flying right ΣΥΡΑ... - Arethusa left, 4 dolphins around
Wt./Size/Axis:	0.00g / - / -
References:	Tudeer 82 SNG ANS 290
Provenances:	Spink
Acquisition:	London Coin Fair 10-Nov-2007

The photos don't do it justice - too blurred or bad lighting.

Interesting to see favourites!

ATB,
Aidan.

Edited November 15, 2023 by akeady

[Al Kowsky]

5 hours ago, David Atherton said:

Recently I had the opportunity to acquire my ultimate dream coin, and it has now become my favourite piece in the collection. 

https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=184767

I was tickled when the HJB BBS 225 catalogue arrived last week featuring it on the cover!

 

Previously, this extremely rare Vespasian denarius acquired in 2016 was my favourite:

https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=127698

It is now #2.

All this has made me curious to know what other collectors regard as their favourite coins.

Please post your favourites! I would love to see them!

I received a copy of HJB Bid or Buy Sale 225 about a week ago too ☺️. I noticed the price on the Colosseum sestertius was $9,000, a hefty price for an ancient coin, however, knowing that a high-grade example would sell for $250,000 or more, I can see why you snagged the coin 🤩.

[Prieure de Sion]

That is very difficult - I would love to own all Roman coins once - or rather - hold them in my hands. I find it difficult to pick out one or two particular coins. In my case, the coins change often - also for professional reasons. Nevertheless, I have something like "coins with which I have an even stronger relationship". 

Here are my own top 3 favorite coins - with which I have an even stronger "relationship" - and with which I have particularly fallen in love.

 

 

Imperator Caesar Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus Augustus; Reign: Marcus Aurelius; Mint: Tripolis ad Maeandrum, Lydia; Date: 177/180 AD; Nominal: Bronze Medallion; Material: AE; Diameter: 37mm; Weight: 23.53g; Reference: RPC IV.2 17452 (this coin); Rare: Specimens 1 (0 in the core collections); Special: Only known example, RPC Online Plate coin; Obverse: Bare-headed bust of Commodus (youthful) wearing cuirass and paludamentum, right, seen from centre; Inscription: ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙϹ Λ ΑΥΡ ΚοΜΟΔΟϹ; Translation: Autokrator Kaisaros Lucios Aurelios Komodos; Translation: Imperator Caesar Lucius Aurelius Commodus; Reverse: Dionysus (youthful) standing, facing, head, right, placing hand on top of his head, being supported by Satyr; to left, panther jumping, left; Inscription: ΤΡΙΠΟΛΕΙΤΩΝ; Translation: Tripoleiton; Translation: City and People of Tripolis (ad Maeandrum).

 

Vipsania Agrippina (or Agrippina Senior, Agrippina Maior, Agrippina the Elder), Mother of Gaius Caligula; Reign: Claudius; Mint: Rome; Date: 42/42 AD; Nominal: Sestertius; Material: AE Bronze; Diameter: 37.61mm; Weight: 29.33g; Reference: RIC I (second edition) Claudius 102; Obverse: Bust of Agrippina the Elder, bare-headed, draped, right, hair in long plait; Inscription: AGRIPPINA M F GERMANICI CAESARIS; Translation: Agrippina Marci Filia Germanici Caesaris; Translation: Agrippina, daughter of Marcus [Agrippa], [spouse] of Caesar Germanicus; Reverse: Legend surrounding S C; Inscription: TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM P M TR P IMP P P; Translation: Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate, Imperator, Pater Patriae; Translation: Tiberius Claudius Caesar, Augustus, conqueror of the Germans, high priest, holder of tribunician power, Imperator, father of the nation. 

 

 

 
Gaius Caesar Augustus Germanicus Caligula; Sestertius of the Roman Imperial Period 37/38 AD; Material: AE Bronze; Diameter: 36mm; Weight: 27.46g; Mint: Rome; Reference: RIC I (second edition) Gaius/Caligula 37; Obverse: Head of Caligula, laureate, left. The Inscription reads: C CAESAR AVG GERMANICVS PON M TR POT for Caius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate (Gaius Caesar, Augustus, conqueror of the Germans, high priest, holder of tribunician power); Reverse: Legend in four lines in oak-wreath. The Inscription reads: S P Q R P P OB CIVES SERVATOS for Senatus Populusque Romanus Patri Patriae, Ob Cives Servatos (The senate and the Roman people to the father of the nation, the saviour of the citizens).

 

[Al Kowsky]

Like so many members who posted on this thread have more than one favorite, I feel the same way. On the other hand, if someone put a gun to my head & said pick only one favorite  it would be the coin pictured below. 

I believe my coin was the first of this type to be slabbed by NGC, & they were reluctant to attribute the coin to Theodoric. I won this coin at CNG 106, lot 862, & they cast doubt about the coin being issued by Theodoric, despite having this very same coin selling at CNG Triton VI, lot 1186, as issued by Theodoric 😲. The basis for attributing this coin to Theodoric by NFA was the research by Guy Lacam, who cited the unusual exergue of CONOR instead of CONOB. After my coin was slabbed, NGC has attributed a number of Zeno solidi with the CONOR exergue to Theodoric. Pictured below are 3 of these solidi.

In light of these new attributions I feel the original attribution by NFA was correct ☺️.

[Ancient Coin Hunter]

Great Commodus coin there!

I don't really have a favorite as there are many that I really like. For the moment I'd say this one because of its heft and size being over 40mm and 76 grams

Ptolemy IV AE Drachm. Really a pretty nice hockey puck!

 

[Salomons Cat]

I like coins that have nice portraits and a reverse that tells a special story. And I like it when a certain kind of motive is specific for a period or for an emperor, like Judaea capta for the Flavians, the travel series for Hadrian or Hercules for Commodus.
Although, in some cases a very expressive portrait is enough to fascinate me.
 

This coin shows the first documented personification of Hispania. Apart from that, I find it aesthetically very pleasing... 
Postumius Albinus. AR Denarius serratus, 81 BC.

This portrait! The quadruple chin!
Nero tetradrachm, Antioch, AD 65. RPC I 4191; McAlee 266; Prieur 91.

Judaea capta denarii are somehow always special to me. Although they are not especially rare I just find them fascinating. I find this coin quite nice in hand, but neither me nor F.S.Robinson are able to take very good photos.
Vespasian denarius, Rome mint, RIC 2. 

I just really like the portrait.
Vespasian denarius, Rome, 70 AD, RIC 29.

Titus as Caesar. Another judaea capta coin.
Denarius from the Antioch mint, AD 72-73. BMC 518. Cohen 392. RIC 1562. RPC II 1934. 

I'm very glad that I found this Julia Titi for a price that I could afford.
Julia Titi denarius, Rome mint, AD 80-81. 

I find the reverse of this coin fascinating. It's very difficult to find a better one of this type. On the reverse, a dacian is kneeling to the feet of Pax and extending his hands. Like the judaea capta issues, the motive should show what happened to the enemies of Rome.
Trajan denarius, Rome mint. Struck circa AD 106-107. RIC II 189; Woytek 220f; RSC 418.

One of the first denarii of Hadrian, where he announces that he was adopted. 
Hadrian denarius, Antioch, 117 AD. RIC 2959.

I really like coins from the travel series and I don't think that it's easy to find one with such a nice obverse and reverse. 
Hadrian denarius, Rome, ca. 130-133 AD. RIC 1494.

My second coin from the travel series. I wonder if Hadrian believed that Nilus might take better care of Antinous if he worshipped both. Hadrian founded a cult around Antinous, so I believe that he certainly seeked consolation in religion after Antinous' death. But I'm not sure if he found it. 
RIC 310. Ex CNG Auction VIII 1989

Young commodus, at a time when there was still some hope that education could have shaped him into a reasonable person.
Usually, I do not care much about rarity. For me, it's just an inconvenient circumstance that many coins that I like are also a bit rare and therefore more expensive... This here is an exception because it is very rare and was not as expensive as I would have expected.
Commodus denarius, Rome, 175-176 AD. RIC -; BMC -; Cohen -. MIR 342-14/15 (no example recorded). Apparently unpublished with this bust type. Ex Leu 07/2022, Adrian Lang collection.

I have a very weak spot for Commodus Hercules denarii... I own 3 of them. This here was my first one. I like the nice color, the good condition and the bold and clear relief (very untypical for this type).
Commodus denarius, Rome, 191-192 AD. RIC 253. Ex Jeremy numisforums

There are of course more coins in my collection that I like a lot. This here is just a selection. It was really difficult to stop at 12 coins...

Edited November 15, 2023 by Salomons Cat

[Finn235]

It's difficult to pick just a few favorites when you have a couple thousand coins!

A handful of mine -

First up, a pair of dream coins that I dreamed of owning when I was a kid, well before I realized that they would actually be within my grasp someday.

Athens "Early mass" type AR tetradrachm, owl's head cocked slightly to right, but without the distinct tail feathers found on the Starr group tets. 450s BC

 

And the other most famous ancient - Alexander the Great. Lifetime tetradrachm from Tarsos, 327-323 BC. I purchased this one specifically for the portrait, and this was the first coin I ever broke the $500 barrier for

 

Next, a more obscure issue that I found unattributed in a job lot, and had a merry time hunting down. Kyme, Aiolis AR diobol or "trihemiobol". It is contemporaneous to the much more common hemiobols, but exceptionally rare. At the time I attributed it, it was unique, but I think 3 or 4 more have surfaced since. It is by far the best known specimen.

 

Moving on to Roman coins, in a similar vein I bought this coin of Lucius Caesar misattributed as Augustus and bought it before I realized that it was unpublished. Someone stole my thunder and published it on RPC Online before I had a chance to, but my coin is still the "plate coin" as the finest known:

https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/1/5478A

 

Next, a more pedestrian Caracalla denarius of a very common type and struck with a very worn reverse die. The portraiture, however, is one of the best that I have seen on Roman coins of any era - the attention paid to the facial details makes the emperor seem so much more real and alive - sporting his trademark snarl

 

And finally, my avatar coin, an inexpensive proto-Gadhaiya that was my own personal tipping point that brought me down the Indo Sassanian rabbit hole - I'm still nowhere close to finding the bottom!

Series 1.3.1 is still my favorite for aesthetic reasons - it is charmingly simple but elegantly executed, and no two coins are ever quite alike. It is one of the few series for which I have never been able to find two die-linked coins.

[Alegandron]

@David AthertonWow! and huge congrats on your ICON of a coin!  Super capture!

This is a tough one.  I make virtually every one of my coins my favorite...

Here is one:

Edited November 15, 2023 by Alegandron

[Greekcoin21]

My present favorite coin is Kings of Paphlagonia, Pylaimenes III Euergetes circa 108-89BC. SNG BM 1555. 

[CPK]

10 hours ago, David Atherton said:

Thank you for posting your Top 3! I think you already know that the recent acquisition of your #1 helped inspire me to go after mine. The other two coins that round out your Top 3 are fantastic as well!

 

Thanks! I feel honored to have been part of that inspiration. 🙂 

[Alegandron]

Sorry for being a smart-A in my prior post, but I do love Ginger Snaps. 

I really enjoy collecting critical junctures in Human History, enabling me to explore cool coin niches… had Rome lost this war both Politically (they lost) and Militarily (they won), Rome may not had arisen as a SuperPower… always debatable.  However, this war created the only Non-Roman Denarii… they are very hard to get, and are really cool to me.

I collect other tough Ancient Coin Niches that I really enjoy equally as much as these…

MARSIC CONFEDERATION (Social War 90-88 BCE)

Marsic Confederation
Denarius 89 BCE
Obv: Italia
Rev: Italia seated shields, -victory crowning, In Ex: retro B
Corfinium Mint
Campana 105 HN Italy 412a
Sear 228 RARE



Marsic Confederation / Italian Allies
Social War 90-88 BCE
AR Denarius
19x17.9mm, 3.7g
Anonymous Issue, Corfinium Mint
Obv: Italia head, l, ITALIA behind
Rev: Oath-taking scene with eight warriors, four on each side, pointing their swords towards a sacrificial pig, which is held by an attendant kneeling at the foot of a standard. - Binding the Marsi, Picentines, Paeligni, Marrucini, Vestini, Frentani, Samnites, and Hirpini Tribes into the Marsic Confederation against Rome during the Social War
Comment: The reverse is based on the gold Stater and Half-Stater from the Second Punic War, and the Ti Viturius denarius...
Sear 227 SYD 621 SCARCE



Marsic Confederation
AR Denarius
Bovianum(?) mint, 89 BCE.
3.93g, 20mm, 3h
Obv: Laureate head of Italia left, VITELIA = ITALIA in Oscan script
Rev: Soldier standing facing, head right, foot on uncertain object, holding inverted spear and sword, recumbent bull to right facing; retrograde B in exergue.
Ref: Campana 122 (same dies); HN Italy 407
Ex: Eucharius Collection.
Ex: Roma Auction 11, Lot 607

Edited November 16, 2023 by Alegandron

[Qcumbor]

Fantastic favourites folks. 

For numismatic/historical/artistry reasons I have many favourites from which choosing one would be challenging. Reason why my favourite has always been, for emotional reasons, the one you all know

Commodus, Sestertius - Rome mint, 192 CE
L AEL AVREL CO---MM AVG P FEL, Laureate head of Commodus right
HERCVLI ROMANO AVG, Hercules facing, head left, holding club and lion's skin, resting on trophy. SC in field
21,01 gr
Ref : RCV #5752, Cohen #203, BMC # 314. RIC # 640.

This is the very first roman coin I have ever possessed, gift from my grand father who found it digging a trench at Verdun battle during WWI

Q

Edited November 16, 2023 by Qcumbor

[sand]

This is an interesting topic. It's interesting to see, what each person chose, as his/her favorite coins, in his/her collection. I'm a generalist. I collect ancient coins, medieval coins, and modern coins, from all areas of the world. Here's my favorite coin, in my collection. It's also my most expensive coin, in my collection. I won it, at a Sedwick auction. It was minted during the Age Of Exploration, in the New World, approximately 100 years after Columbus discovered America.

Spain. Philip II. Silver 8 Reales "Piece Of Eight". Minted 1589 AD To 1591 AD. Potosi Mint (In What Is Now Bolivia). Assayer RL. Maximum Diameter 37.7 mm. Weight 27.20 grams. Paoletti 97. Sedwick P13. KM 5.1.

Here's my 2nd favorite coin, in my collection. I finally got this coin, after 3 years of searching and waiting, for the right coin at the right price.

Athens. AR Tetradrachm. Minted 449 BC To 413 BC. Sear 2526. Maximum Diameter 24.8 mm. Weight 17.15 grams. Obverse : Head Of Athena Wearing Helmet Facing Right. Reverse : Owl Standing, Olive Twig And Crescent On Left, Alpha Theta Epsilon On Right, All Within Incuse Square. Test Cut.

Here's my 3rd favorite coin, in my collection. It was minted, at the height of the Byzantine Empire.

Byzantine Empire. Justinian I The Great. AE 40 Nummi Follis. Regnal Year 12. 538 AD To 539 AD. Nicomedia Mint. Sear 201. DO 116b.1. Maximum Diameter 44.0 mm. Weight 21.73 grams. Obverse : Justinian I Bust Facing Front. Reverse : Large M Mint "NIK" Officina B Under Large M.

Edited November 16, 2023 by sand

[Prieure de Sion]

57 minutes ago, sand said:

Byzantine Empire. Justinian I The Great. AE 40 Nummi Follis. Regnal Year 12. 538 AD To 539 AD. Nicomedia Mint. Sear 201. DO 116b.1. Maximum Diameter 44.0 mm. Weight 21.73 grams. Obverse : Justinian I Bust Facing Front. Reverse : Large M Mint "NIK" Officina B Under Large M.

😍 ... wonderful beauty! 

[expat]

A very ecclectic display of choices so far. Fascinating to see what examples people have made regarding their favourites.

For modern it is this dual denomination Austrian gold

Years     1870-1892
Value     8 Florins = 20 Francs
Currency     Austro-Hungarian gulden (decimalized, 1857-1892)
Composition     Gold (.900)
Weight     6.4516 g
Diameter     21 mm

Obverse

Laureate head of Emperor Franz Joseph I, wearing a moustache and dense sideburns going down to the neck. Around this bust the inscription "Franz Joseph I by the grace of God, emperor and king".Automatically translated

Reverse

Austrian imperial symbol, namely a crowned double-headed eagle with its mouth open, tongues outwards, wings spread, stamped with a shield surrounded by the collar of the Golden Fleece. He holds a sword in his right hand and a crown in his left. In the arc of a circle an inscription "Empire of Austria"; the motto is written in Francs and in florin "8 Fl - 20 Fr". At the very bottom in the middle of the coin, the year of issue.

For Medieval it is Jaime I

JAIME I. (1213-1276 AD). Spanish States
Obverse: ARAGON., bust of King Jaime, crowned and draped, left.
Reverse: IACOBVS REX., cross of Caravaca, (Patriarchal Cross).
1 Denier (1/240th Libra), Billon.
1.09g. 18mm. Jaca mint, (1085-1340), Spain. CRU # 318.

Ancient coinage is much more difficult to make 1 choice. Currently it is this coin of Augustas which was minted in Spain.

AUGUSTUS. Æ. As. (Caesaraugusta, (Tarraconensis) Zaragoza, Spain)
Magistrates: Gnaeus Domitius Ampianus, Gaius Vettius Lancianus
Obverse: IMP. AVGVSTVS. TRIB. POTS. XX., laureate head of Augustus to the right.
Reverse: CAES. AVGVS (clockwise from 10-1). CN. DOM. AMP. C. VET. LANC (anti clockwise from 8-2). Priest ploughing with pair of oxen to the right. Below II (with horizontal line above) VIR. (*)
RPC volume I, #320
Leaded bronze,12.85g. 31mm. Reference: Vives 148–10, GMI 328, Beltrán 16, NAH 982, AB. 327.

[Phil Anthos]

These are a few of my favorites...

1. Velia didrachm; I love this one, the first coin I ever paid more than $20 for. The Athena is gorgeous, but I really love the lion and the way the off center strike makes him look like he's backed into a corner, hungry and desperate. Scarey!

2. Syracuse, reign of Hiketas; this coin was a gift from a very dear friend who understood the special meaning Persephone had for my wife. That understanding makes this a coin particularly endearing to me, and the fact that it is one of the most beautiful examples of this type I have ever seen doesn't hurt either.

3. Herakleia drachm; facing heads really appeal to me, and this one is quite lovely, imo. 'Nuff said. 

4. Taras didrachm; this pre-Pyrrhic 'heavy' didrachm is one of the nicest in my collection, and the martial theme typifies this era of Tarentine history, a time of continual war with the local tribes. Also a period of some of the finest artistic interpretations ever from the Taras mint. 

5. Athens tetradrachm; what can I say? THE iconic ancient coin, nicely engraved and free of test cuts. I think every collection needs one, and this one came to me on sale at a reasonable price. How could I resist?

~ Peter 

Edited November 16, 2023 by Phil Anthos

[happy_collector]

I love coins with good portraits, and those with interesting mythic themes. Here are the 4 favorites in my collection:

1. Faustina Junior Aureus. I really like the young Faustina Junior portrait. 
2. Syracuse Tetradrachm. Agathocles. A wonderful portrait of Kore on the obverse.
3. Hadrianopolis, Thrace. Geta AE. Herakles fighting Lernaean Hydra is a very cool mythic theme to me. 
4. Gortyna, Crete Stater. Another great mythic theme on Europa.