My Favorite 5 Additions for 2024

[Al Kowsky]

I've trimmed down my buying this year since selling & auctioning large lots from my collection. Coin collecting like cigarettes & good pot is a hard habit to break, so I couldn't resist adding these 4 coins & 1 medal 🙄.

BOEOTIA, Thebes, circa 395-388 BC (struck c. 368-338 BC). Kali Magistrate. AR Stater: 12.09 gm, 22 mm, 11 h. Obverse: Boeotian shield. Reverse: Amphora for storing wine. Hepworth 62; BCD Boiotia 554; HGC 4, 1334. Ex Eric P. Newman Collection; Ex Heritage Auction 3046, lot 31089, April 18, 2016; Ex Heritage Auction, July 14, 2021; Ex Josh Zachman Collection; Ex Rob Shinnick Collection.

BYZANTINE EMPIRE. Irene & Constantine VI, AD 780-797 (struck 792-797). AV Solidus: 4.47 gm, 6 h. Constantinople Mint. Obverse: Crowned facing bust of Irene, wearing loros, holding globus cruciger & cruciform scepter, there is a small die break in the right field near Irene's crown. Reverse: Crowned facing bust of Constantine VI, son of Irene, wearing chlamys, holding globus cruciger & akakia. SB 1594.

I looked a long time to find a quality solidus of this type, depicting mother & son because Irene had her son murdered in a most gruesome manner. She had her son's eyes poked out with a hot iron rod, & he died agonizingly several days later 😮. John Julius Norwich writes of Irene: "Scheming & duplicitous, consumed by a devouring ambition & an insatiable lust for power, she was to bring dissension & disaster to the Empire for a quarter of a century, & to leave a still darker stain on her reputation by one of the foulest murders that even Byzantine history has to record."

FRANCE, Royal. Charles V le Sage (the wise), 1364-1380. AV Franc a' pied: 3.77 gm, 28 mm, 8 h. Obverse: Charles V standing within a gothic arch, seme' of 7 les to left & right, holding sword with annulet pommel & main de justice. Reverse: Cross treflee, in center in center of cross, pellet within angled quadrilobe, les in first & fourth quarters, crown in second & third, all within angled quadrilobe, les in spandrels. Duplessy 360; Friedberg 284.

PERU, 1950, Lima Mint. AV 100 Soles: fineness .900, weight 46.8071 gm (42.1264 pure gold), 37 mm, mintage 1,176 pieces. Inscriptions in Latin. KM #231, Friedberg #78.

For the longest time these coins, struck from 1950-1970, were considered just bullion, however, in the last decade they have been recognized as highly collectable with a value far exceeding their bullion value. The mintage figures are no indication of their rarity since many of the coins ended up in the melting pot as gold surged in value since they were minted. There is no doubt in my mind that the obverse design of these coins was inspired by Christian Gobrecht's design for the American silver dollar of the 1830s, see photo below below ☺️. 

                 

SOM #111, 1985. Breaking the Bounds. Artist: Donald De Lue. AE: 74 X 74 mm (2.91 in), 24 mm thick (.94 in), weight 569 gm (18.3 oz troy). Struck by the Metallic Art Company, Danbury, Connecticut.  Mintage 750 pieces. Ex Dan Hansen Collection, December 9, 2002.

This medal is my favorite of the entire series struck for the Society of Medalists 😍.

Website members are welcome to comment or pick a favorite ☺️.

 

 

 

 

 

[Ryro]

Beautiful stater featuring the Boeotian shield!

Here's a few of its little brothers:

 

[Cordoba]

im a bit biased towards greek, but the boeotia stater is my favorite

[panzerman]

Al.....I have never indulged in the the latter two vices😎

But I do love the virtues in life🤩

Rich/ yummy German cuisine

coins of course

classic corvettes

As for my favorite/ it would be the Byzantine Solidus Irene/ second the stunning Goldbrecht 1839 Dollar. Congratulations on your  top "5"

John

 

 

[Al Kowsky]

7 hours ago, panzerman said:

Al.....I have never indulged in the the latter two vices😎

But I do love the virtues in life🤩

Rich/ yummy German cuisine

coins of course

classic corvettes

As for my favorite/ it would be the Byzantine Solidus Irene/ second the stunning Goldbrecht 1839 Dollar. Congratulations on your  top "5"

John

 

 

Johann, I wish I could claim ownership of the Gobrecht silver dollar, but it's an old photo from my files ☹️. On today's market it would fetch well over 50 K 😮.

[Qcumbor]

Nice group of coins. The Beotian stater is my favorite, followed by the Charles V franc à pied and the Perù 100 soles.

Q

[panzerman]

5 hours ago, Al Kowsky said:

Johann, I wish I could claim ownership of the Gobrecht silver dollar, but it's an old photo from my files ☹️. On today's market it would fetch well over 50 K 😮.

I would bet my boots, that you have many coins in your collection.....that are way rarer then the Golbrecht 1839 Dollar.

But that was the nicest design! US coins are a tad overpriced/ overhyped compared to World coinage.  

[DonnaML]

The beautiful Boeotian shield!

[Rand]

Similarly, I like the Boeotian shield. None have survived (as far as I know), but the uniformity of the shields, as seen in these coins, contributed to the emergence of the Macedonian phalanx and, indirectly, to the world of the Hellenistic coins we enjoy today.

[AncientJoe]

The Boeotian is my favorite as well, congrats!

[Al Kowsky]

2 hours ago, panzerman said:

I would bet my boots, that you have many coins in your collection.....that are way rarer then the Golbrecht 1839 Dollar.

But that was the nicest design! US coins are a tad overpriced/ overhyped compared to World coinage.  

Johann, Yes, I do have a number of coins much rarer than that Gobrecht silver dollar, however, as I'm sure you know rarity doesn't always translate to high value 😉.

[Hrefn]

As a Byzantine collector, the Irene solidus is a type on my want list, especially because it ties into my little Carolingian subcollection.  A marriage between Irene and Charlemagne was briefly considered, which would have united the East Roman and the Holy Roman empires.  Considering Irene’s character, I think Constantine dodged a bullet when those discussions failed.  

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I'm voting for the Irene solidus.  Very nice!

[Al Kowsky]

2 hours ago, Hrefn said:

As a Byzantine collector, the Irene solidus is a type on my want list, especially because it ties into my little Carolingian subcollection.  A marriage between Irene and Charlemagne was briefly considered, which would have united the East Roman and the Holy Roman empires.  Considering Irene’s character, I think Constantine dodged a bullet when those discussions failed.  

Pope Leo squashed the idea of the marriage when he declared Charlemagne emperor of the Holy Roman Empire 😏.