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I'm not allowed to buy any more Roman coins...


kirispupis

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Recently, I haven't had much success in the Roman department, though I can only blame myself.

It started when I bought this Roman Republican coin that is clearly a fouree. Yes, the auction house should have labeled it such and they've agreed to take it back. However, the weight and image should have been obvious. That coin is now on its way back to Germany.

However, I then mucked things up by adding this coin. The attribution is what I believe it to be.

Tiberius_Restitution.jpg.483d7339ce46dce6cea747a64c3bc383.jpg

Tiberius
Restitution issue under Titus, Rome 80-81 CE
As Æ 27 mm, 10,63 g
Obv: TI CAESAR DIVI AVG F AVGVST IMP VIII. Bare head left.
Rev: IMP T CAES DIVI VESP F AVG REST. Large S C.
RIC² 432 (Titus)

 

The coin was sold as "Drusus (son of Tiberius)." There were two such coins in the auction, and I went for the second because I felt the condition was better. However, the first (I think) was actually Drusus, while this one is not. I noticed when I went to catalog the coin and the text didn't match at all. I'm not very knowledgeable about Roman coins, but I think it's a restitution issue for Tiberius and was issued much later by Titus.

I'm not going to send the coin back because a) the shipping wouldn't be worth it and b) this really is just my stupidity. A fouree at least requires some expertise to identify, while in this case all I had to do was read the lettering.

 It doesn't really fit in my collection because I only collect restitution issues in cases where that person didn't have coinage during his/her lifetime. I don't own a coin from Tiberius but this doesn't really count IMHO. When I first started this post, I hadn't figured out what to do with it, but I'm now leaning towards giving it to my cousin who's a lawyer. She's not into ancient coins but has wanted one, and she'll appreciate the story involving my lack of attention to detail and the somewhat convoluted story over who issued it.

However, for now I've ceased adding Roman coins because I obviously need to observe more caution when purchasing.

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I had some impulse bad buys before. Sometimes you buy a coin at auction thinking oh I'll get it because it's a good deal or it's mislabeled. Next thing you know you don't want it and it has no place in your collection. Like this Spanish Netherlands 3 Stuviers (not Roman) but I just think it's boring. It was cheap but I don't need it now I have to figure out how to sell it or otherwise it will sit in my drawer for an eternity. 

E607F88D-3C31-4F74-A765-E4E5E5540AF5.jpeg

528AF9BA-6BF8-4B59-93F6-A6B454DA63A1.jpeg

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29 minutes ago, Amarmur said:

I had some impulse bad buys before. Sometimes you buy a coin at auction thinking oh I'll get it because it's a good deal or it's mislabeled. Next thing you know you don't want it and it has no place in your collection.

I've done this too many times. And I suspect I've done it again - last night I bid on a coin that I probably shouldn't have, I think it might be a fake, but I'm not sure. If it's genuine it will be a great acquisition. Oh well, I didn't bid all that much.

Here's my own "why exactly did I buy that?" coin I won a little while ago in an auction. I bought it for the interesting reverse type, but since I've been trying to sell off superfluous coins this one will probably go soon:

TrajandenariusALIMITAL.jpg.d9155d44006baaa6398bdf1ade0a3348.jpg

TRAJAN, AD 98-117
AR Denarius (19.21mm, 3.09g, 6h)
Struck AD 113. Rome mint
Obverse: IMP TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS VI P P, laureate head of Trajan right, slight drapery on far shoulder
Reverse: SPQR OPTIMO PRINCIPI, Annona standing facing, head left, holding corn ears and cornucopiae; child standing left at feet, ALIM ITAL in exergue
References: OCRE II 243, RCV 3117.
Lightly toned with good detail.
"The alimenta was a scheme under which needy children were provided support through the investment in agriculture of funds donated by wealthy philanthropists (including the emperors Nerva and Trajan)."
- David R. Sear (Roman Coins and Their Values, Vol II, p.95)

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8 minutes ago, CPK said:

I've done this too many times. And I suspect I've done it again - last night I bid on a coin that I probably shouldn't have, I think it might be a fake, but I'm not sure. If it's genuine it will be a great acquisition. Oh well, I didn't bid all that much.

Here's my own "why exactly did I buy that?" coin I won a little while ago in an auction. I bought it for the interesting reverse type, but since I've been trying to sell off superfluous coins this one will probably go soon:

TrajandenariusALIMITAL.jpg.d9155d44006baaa6398bdf1ade0a3348.jpg

TRAJAN, AD 98-117
AR Denarius (19.21mm, 3.09g, 6h)
Struck AD 113. Rome mint
Obverse: IMP TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS VI P P, laureate head of Trajan right, slight drapery on far shoulder
Reverse: SPQR OPTIMO PRINCIPI, Annona standing facing, head left, holding corn ears and cornucopiae; child standing left at feet, ALIM ITAL in exergue
References: OCRE II 243, RCV 3117.
Lightly toned with good detail.
"The alimenta was a scheme under which needy children were provided support through the investment in agriculture of funds donated by wealthy philanthropists (including the emperors Nerva and Trajan)."
- David R. Sear (Roman Coins and Their Values, Vol II, p.95)

Trajan denarii sell well. So selling it won't be an issue unless it's fake (it looks genuine to me). I bought some Greek bronzes which aren't super liquid. Yes, cool to own but selling them isn't easy unless they are from a famous city state like Athens, Thebes, Syracuse. I semi-regret buying some Greek bronzes because they just don't fit anywhere for me right now and collecting every city state is absurd and nearly impossible. I have a few I need to get rid of and don't mind selling cheaply. Worst part of regret buys is buying something that's not liquid, difficult to sell, rare but ugly, super niche, and just isn't interesting enough to keep.

 

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I've actually been meaning to get around to that one since it's the only coin ever(?) struck for Drusus after his untimely death - let me know and I'm sure I could buy it off of you or we can work out a trade!

I already have the matching Germanicus from the set 🙂

GermanicusAEAsrestitutionbyTitus.jpg.b04caa5023610e54fed82660dddf2a8d.jpg

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18 minutes ago, Finn235 said:

I've actually been meaning to get around to that one since it's the only coin ever(?) struck for Drusus after his untimely death - let me know and I'm sure I could buy it off of you or we can work out a trade!

I already have the matching Germanicus from the set 🙂

Not the only one, I believe: I'm pretty sure that the one his father struck for him was also issued after his death.

Drusus Minor or the Younger, full name Drusus Julius Caesar (13 BCE-23 AD, son of Tiberius and Vipsiana), AE As, AD 23, Rome Mint, issued by Tiberius. Obv. Bare head left, DRVSVS CAESAR TI AVG F DIVI AVG N / Rev. PONTIF TRIBVN POTEST ITER around large S C [Senatus Consulto] in center. RIC I Tiberius 45 p. 97 (Rev. ed. 1984), Sear RCV I Drusus 1794 p. 354 (ill. p. 353), BMCRE I Tiberius 99 p. 134 (ill. Pl. 24.8), Cohen 2. 28 mm., 10.4 g.

image.png.ccb2b854574743fe68fdfde0fa771d06.png

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11 hours ago, Finn235 said:

I've actually been meaning to get around to that one since it's the only coin ever(?) struck for Drusus after his untimely death - let me know and I'm sure I could buy it off of you or we can work out a trade!

The problem is mine isn't Drusus - it's a restitution issue of Tiberius. I would have kept the coin if it were Drusus. 😞 

13 hours ago, Amarmur said:

 I semi-regret buying some Greek bronzes because they just don't fit anywhere for me right now and collecting every city state is absurd and nearly impossible. I have a few I need to get rid of and don't mind selling cheaply. Worst part of regret buys is buying something that's not liquid, difficult to sell, rare but ugly, super niche, and just isn't interesting enough to keep.

The core of my collection is actually Greek bronzes, so I would definitely be interested. Here are the cities I currently have. Note that I'm still working on the website, so the navigation isn't there, but this page should give an idea.

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IMO, if you are wanting a lifetime Drusus, one of the more interesting issues would be an issue from prior to 19 with Drusus and Germanicus as Caesars. They are fairly difficult to find from Germanicus' lifetime and tend to be pretty small - I paid a massive premium for mine because of the Germanicus portrait, but this AE16 issue of Sardes in Lydia isn't *too* rare and is pretty affordable - think $30-60 in very slightly lower grade. I've seen maybe 5-8 sold in the last 3 years since I bought mine.

GermanicusandDrususSardesLydia.jpg.f2778705e0c2900b003b03c66b9e9198.jpg

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