Salomons Cat Top 10 of 2023

[Salomons Cat]

Over the past year, my Roman silver coin collection has seen remarkable growth, making it arguably the most prolific year in terms of acquisitions that I may ever experience. My journey with Roman coins began two decades ago, starting with a humble and modest assortment. However, it was only in the past year that I started acquiring high value coins and participating in auctions.

Below, I present my top 10 acquisitions from the past year, arranged in chronological order.

 

Postumius Albinus, 81 BC.
This coin shows the first documented personification of Hispania.
 

Julius Caesar, 42 BC.
Ex James Knox collection. But this coin also has another special provenance as a part of the ‘Mayflower collection’. The name refers to the Mayflower Hotel where Herbert Sukenik lived in 2004. He was intellectually brilliant, embittered, lonely and refused to leave the Mayflower Hotel when investors planned to take it down to make place for something else. He only agreed to move out after they purchased a park-view apartment for him at $2 million and additionally compensated him with $17 million. Numerous online newspaper articles about Sukenik imply that his resistance was probably not even financially motivated; he neither needed the money nor intended to share it. Most likely, he just wanted to maximize inconvenience for anyone who was involved. Sukenik passed away in 2011, and his coin collection was subsequently auctioned by Heritage Auctions in 2012.
 

Nero, AD 65.
This tetradrachm shows my favorite portrait of Nero.
 

Vespasian, AD 69-79.
A very complete Judaea capta denarius.
 

Titus as Caesar, AD 72-73.
This Judaea Capta denarius, struck in Antioch, exhibits the typical Antioch style with a thick and small flan and featuring a high relief. 
 

Julia Titi, AD 80-81.
David Atherton notes that her denarii were not minted in large quantities, suggesting that RIC's frequency rating of 'C2' (very common) could be an overestimation. From my experience, this was the only denarius of hers in such condition I came across in the past year within my budget. Fortunately, I was able to purchase it.
 

Nerva, AD 96.
The reverse “concordia exercitum” can be interpreted as a wish for harmony and common interest between the emperor and the army.
It is not known if Nerva himself participated in Domitians assassination. Despite being assassinated, Domitian had been extremely popular with the army. The Praetorian Guards mutinied under their commander, Casperius Aelianus, in October 97 and they demanded that Nerva hand over Domitian's assassins. Nerva was forced to comply and he was so shaken by this that he decided to adopt a strong, military heir. He chose Marcus Ulpius Traianus (Trajan), a highly successful commander and also the governor of Upper Germany. Trajan's promotion was extremely popular with the Rhine legions. 
 

Hadrian, AD 134-138.
Hadrian spent half of his 21-year reign on the road, visiting almost every province of the vast empire. In Egypt, Hadrian’s beloved young companion Antinoüs, drowned in the Nile under mysterious circumstances during the emperor’s visit in 130. NILUS, the personification of the river is shown on the reverse. Ex CNG 1989.
 

Commodus, AD 191-192.
This coin features a clear and high relief, which is quite uncommon for this type. Additionally, it boasts a beautiful golden toning. Ex Jeremy from NumisForums.
I also managed to acquire another exceptional denarius of Commodus as Hercules from Prieure de Sions shop, which has been showcased here before. Both coins are among the finest specimens documented on acsearch. Notably, a Commodus Hercules coin is ranked #83 in HJB’s 100 Greatest Ancient Coins.
 

Elagabalus, AD 218-219.
This coin is among the finest examples listed on acsearch. I was pleasantly surprised to secure it at a recent auction for an exceptionally reasonable price. A coin featuring Elagabalus and the Stone of Emesa ranks #76 in HJB’s 100 Greatest Ancient Coins. If anything could make it even more iconic, then it is certainly @TIF's brilliant post on cointalk from 2014, including her dramatic reenactment. Truly genius! 😃 A very late but sincere "Thank you" from my side.
I love this coin. Ex Jay Smith Collection of coins of Elagabalus.

I’m very curious about which ones are your favorites.

[Prieure de Sion]

It was impossible to decide on these great coins, I had to choose 8 pieces... 

[Rand]

Amaizing coins. You have a great collection just over last hear alone.

 

My favourites are JC, Titus and Elagabalus. Happy 2024 collecting!

[JayAg47]

Great coins with lots of variety, I like the denarius of Julia Titi, Flavian issues of Judaea Capta, and Elagabalus' Stone of Emesa.

[lordmarcovan]

All wow.  I went with the following for my three poll votes:

Julius Caesar

Nero tetradrachm

Vespasian, Judaea capta

I see the Hadrian has not yet gotten any love in the poll, so let me throw that in as an honorable mention.  It is certainly deserving as well.

[Ursus]

Great list overall!

I think the Antiochene denarius of Titus deserves a special mention. That indeed is a fantastic coin.

[Al Kowsky]

My favorites are the Nero tet, the Elagabalus denarius, & the Hispania denarius 😍.

[ambr0zie]

A very difficult job to limit to 3 coins. My selections were - Commodus as Hercules - because these types are the most representative for Commodus and shows the level of grandomania he reached; the Nero tetradrachm for the portrait; and for me the champion is Julia Titi (yes, for the portrait!)

[Ryro]

Sensational year! I couldn't vote against your top two in the top three, butt Titi's bottom was tops for me😉

[Qcumbor]

Since Julia Titi is out of competition for obvious reasons (the only Lady in the series, Hispania not being an actual human living person 😄), I cast my votes for JC, Nero and Titus. A beautiful selection, I wouldn't disregard any of them

Q

[El Cazador]

Nice coins, but top for me are Nerva denarius and Hispan RR denarius 

Edited December 30, 2023 by El Cazador

[CPK]

You had a great year! That Julius Caesar portrait 🤩 and the fabulous "Judaea Capta" denarii - plus the Nero, Hadrian, and Nerva portraits - and the Commodus! I think they are all my favorites. 😄 Well done!

[Valentinian]

18 hours ago, Salomons Cat said:

I’m very curious about which ones are your favorites.

They are all wonderful coins. It is very hard to pick just a few. To select three I chose the Julius Caesar, Nero, and Commodus for being the most easy to explain and therefore worthy of showing to anyone--even those who do not collect. 

The others are also excellent--just a little more esoteric. 

[savitale]

Awesome coins! I voted for Julius Caesar, Julia Titi, and Elagabalus. But they are all great!

[David Atherton]

Despite the neat Flavian coins on your list, it's the two denarii of JC and Elagabalus that catches my eye. You had a very good year!

[Di Nomos]

All excellent, however my favourite is undoubtedly the coin of Julius Caesar. Commodus as Hercules my second pick. 

[Limes]

Fantastic coins! I voted for Caesar, the lovely Titus from Antioch and the more then interesting Elagabalus denarius. The latter happens to be in my collection too, and I really like the type. Have a great 2024!

[Salomons Cat]

Thank you all very much!!

It seems that Julius Caesar is leading. So far, 77% have agreed that he should be among the 3 top picks. 
I love this coin - I like the portrait, the shape, the interesting provenance. Although it's not a lifetime issue, it's a big achievement for me.
But I must say that I would have more trouble to find another Elagabalus with Stone of Emesa, a Commodus as Hercules, the Flavians or Nerva denarius in this condition. Really interesting that JC still won. I will never again underestimate the popularity of JC's denarii 😄

On 12/31/2023 at 5:45 AM, Valentinian said:

To select three I chose the Julius Caesar, Nero, and Commodus for being the most easy to explain and therefore worthy of showing to anyone--even those who do not collect. 

Makes totally sense. Picking a favorite is always a matter of perspective. When looking at it like this, then JC must be the winner.

On 12/30/2023 at 4:49 PM, Ryro said:

Sensational year! I couldn't vote against your top two in the top three, butt Titi's bottom was tops for me😉

Another perspective that I cannot argue against.

On 1/2/2024 at 10:26 PM, Limes said:

I voted for Caesar, the lovely Titus from Antioch and the more then interesting Elagabalus denarius. The latter happens to be in my collection too, and I really like the type. 

Yes, I remember it from the "Roman Coins in Reverse - a Chronological Gallery" thread. I was really jealous when I saw the 2 specimens there. At that time I couldn't imagine that I would soon own one, too. 

Edited January 8 by Salomons Cat

[JeandAcre]

Wow, this is a lot of indisputably top-drawer material to look at in one place.  Congratulations on a banner year!

I have to like the Postumius Albinus for the mention of Hispania, right there, big as life.  ...Now I'm wondering when the Romans even came up with the name, for the whole peninsula.  

The Julius Caesar is a type unknown to me, but it's intriguing for being posthumous, but still with a mint(/er's) signature that (from here) looks late Republican.  Right, I'm unfamiliar with this whole interval, through the Imperatorial era, but it's fun to see that the early /transitional phases had this level of continuity.  A fun juxtaposition.

And, Yep, the portrait of Nero is Brilliant, replete with what looks like a triple chin!  Not to mention his glower, evoking a certain former head of state.  For Nero, this is iconic.  I need it how, across the empire, celators could be as unflattering in their depictions as medieval chroniclers could be in their corresponding nicknames.

Speaking of portraits, honorable mentions have to go at least as far as the Vespasian Judea Capta and the crazy denarius of Commodus. 

Is the Vespasian a Roman issue?  People here who know a Whole Lot More than me have discussed how, especially in the case of Vespasian, some issues began with reworked dies from the (thank you, numerous) immediately prior reigns.  But I want to remember that as being more a provincial phenomenon.  The portrait here is looking more like Galba than Vespasian.  What am I missing?  ...What would be most fun to think is that it is an issue of Rome, but still recycling dies as far back as Galba.  For one, that would likely nail it as a particularly early IVDEA CAPTA issue.

And I need everything about the Commodus one.  The laughably revisionist reworking of Alexander III's lion headdress, and the no less sociopathic pitch of egomania in the reverse legend and motif.  ...Wow.  What a dude.  It's quietly amazing to think of how he took Nero's pathological narcissism ...into the Colisseum, instead of onto the stage.  Kind of amazing.

No, pick a period in history, and you'll run into people like this.  Never mind.  The coins are all fantastic. 

Edited January 8 by JeandAcre

[Steppenfool]

For me, the stone of Elagab will always win any list that it appears on. The coin is an amazing piece of historical evidence validating Dio’s ostensibly bizarre claims that Elagabalus tried to subvert the Roman Pantheon with a meteorite. The stone on your example is clear, the eagle can be ascertained and the legends including “ELAGABAL” are clear which would make this a grail coin for me!

From a purely aesthetic/stylistic point of view, the Nero wins for me! It really captures his arrogance and pomp. 

Edited January 9 by Steppenfool

[Salomons Cat]

Sorry for the late response!
I have a lot of work at the moment and a very tight schedule.

Thank you very much for your kind words, @JeandAcre and @Steppenfool! 

On 1/9/2024 at 12:49 AM, JeandAcre said:

Is the Vespasian a Roman issue?  People here who know a Whole Lot More than me have discussed how, especially in the case of Vespasian, some issues began with reworked dies from the (thank you, numerous) immediately prior reigns.  But I want to remember that as being more a provincial phenomenon.  The portrait here is looking more like Galba than Vespasian.  What am I missing?  ...What would be most fun to think is that it is an issue of Rome, but still recycling dies as far back as Galba.  For one, that would likely nail it as a particularly early IVDEA CAPTA issue.

Absolutely right!
This is a particularly early example from the Rome mint.
Vespasian, during his initial year as emperor, stayed in Egypt, only reaching Rome around the middle of 70 AD. The coin's engravers did not have a bust of Vespasian yet and they were evidently struggling with the portrait. There is a broad range of portrait types and styles from that period.
Regarding the portrait on my coin, I don't see a resemblance to Galba - the mandible isn't pronounced enough, and the nose isn't sufficiently elongated. It appears to me that the engravers actually attempted a depiction of Vespasian, but they only had a vague idea about what he might have looked like.

There's a reverse die match on a coin that CNG previously auctioned, dating the coin to around AD 69-early 70. My assumption is that my coin was minted slightly earlier than the CNG specimen (because of the more insecure portrait and because the reverse die seems a bit fresher). On the CNG specimen they got the nose quite well. But they blessed him with too much hair and with a funny haircut.

On 1/9/2024 at 3:30 PM, Steppenfool said:

For me, the stone of Elagab will always win any list that it appears on. The coin is an amazing piece of historical evidence validating Dio’s ostensibly bizarre claims that Elagabalus tried to subvert the Roman Pantheon with a meteorite. The stone on your example is clear, the eagle can be ascertained and the legends including “ELAGABAL” are clear which would make this a grail coin for me!

From a purely aesthetic/stylistic point of view, the Nero wins for me! It really captures his arrogance and pomp. 

The Elagabalus coin is indeed a grail coin for me.
By the way - I've shown this coin to many people who aren't coin collectors, and they were all fascinated by its story, showing a lot of interest. It's the first time that I got so much feedback for a coin from non-collectors. 
So if I had to choose a coin from my collection that I wanted to present to non-collectors to capture their interest, it would be that one. I wonder why there hasn't been a Hollywood movie about the entire story yet.

Edited January 14 by Salomons Cat