finally got a juila d

well, it was about darn time. i picked this up off of a forum member who offered me the coin the day i was supposed to get back on the wagon. mrs chrsmat71 let me buy it even though i was over my limit already. thanks mrs chrsmat71 and thanks forum member.



Julia Domna
193-217AD
AR denarius

obv: bare headed bust right, draped
rev: Juno standing left, holding patera and sceptre, at feet, left, a peacock

20 mm
3.1g
RIC 559
rome mint

if you want to post your favorite julia d coin, i'd like to see them!

 

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Very nice and congrats!



Julia Domna Denarius. 2.7g, 18.28mm

OBV: IVLIA AVGVSTA, Draped bust right.

REV: HILARITAS, Hilaritas standing left with long palm resting on ground & holding cornucopiae.

REF: RSC 72. RIC 556. s1839

 

Lovely coin! Don't have a Julia D yet but she's on the want list and one like yours would make me plenty happy.

 

A nice start to what could easily become a J D obsession.

How about this one that I am fairly sure I haven't shared here.

Julia Domna denarius
Obv:– IVLIA AVGVSTA, Draped bust facing right
Rev:– VENVS VICTRIX, Venus standing left, holding helmet and palm, resting elbow on column with cuirass right, Cupid holding shield at feet
Minted in Rome
References:– RIC -. RSC -. BMCRE -.

This reverse type not mentioned in any of the major references

 

Very nice denarius, Chris! The portrait seems to be more in keeping with the marble busts that portray her likeness - evidently she had a small chin, but she wasn't completely chinless. I also like the detail on the peacock - there's not much point in owning this type unless you've got a full peacock.

 

There is variation in the depiction of peacocks too...

Julia Domna denarius
Obv:– IVLIA AVGVSTA, draped bust right
Rev:– IVNO REGINA, Juno, veiled, standing left, holding patera and sceptre; at feet left, peacock
Minted in Rome. A.D. 196-211
Reference:– RIC IV 560

 

I'll show a special Domna to no one but me. I'm not exactly sure when I got it but I had it in the Fall of 1964 when I took a photo of my coins and it was not brand new then so I am sure it was 1963 or shortly before. I kept it when I sold most of my coins because the dealer buying it did not see it as special. I believe that I see a face (Commodus) under the obverse looking up to the right top making it an overstrike and also my first 'Technical' coin. The style is early Rome mint Domna. Does she look a little older and a bit like Manlia Scantilla? The reverse is the common Venus from the rear type. I was happy to have it when I was in high school and that has not changed. The coin is on my 9 1/2 favorites page (one of six Domnas there).

 

Awesome catch chrsmat! Here's my only Domna:

Obv: IVLIA AVGVSTA
Rev: FELICITAS

 

thanks all, and nice julias!

yeah...i'm going to have to get another one.

 

Nice ... that's a sweet new JD addition (congrats) ...

Yup, ya gotta love that sweet Mrs chrsmat, eh? (well done, young lady!)

Here is my only JD example ...

Julia Domna. Augusta, AR Antoninianus
Rome mint
AD 193-217
Struck under Caracalla AD 215-217
Diameter: 23 mm
Weight: 5.76 grams
Obverse: Draped bust right, wearing stephane, set on crescent
Reverse: LVNA LVCIFERA, Luna, with fold of drapery floating around and above head, driving biga of horses left
Reference: RIC IV 379a (Caracalla); RSC 106a

 

Very nice Chris. Wish I could show some of mine, especially my "doin the butt" denarius. Your new coin is really nice, but I can't believe its your first JD. Congrats.

 

Ya know, you guys amaze me. When I look at ancients, it seems that each is unique. How in the world do you tell if they're real or not?

 

I spent many years buying low end coins and slowly working my way up. I spent loads of time drooling over the websites of trusted dealers familiarising myself with the correct style. After being burnt a couple of times with fakes I then set out to learn as much about them as possible becoming an admin on a large fakes database in the process. I have read and own hundreds of books on ancients and continue to try and expand my knowledge especially into areas I know little about. I research before buying in new collecting areas.

 

Ancient coins are probably more like handwriting than they are like modern coins. They are all different but there is a style or pattern of similarities more than exact matches. After dealing with a series for a while we tend to recognize 'the look'. Of course, there is the second problem of fakes being made by casting from molds made from original coins. That requires becoming familiar with tell-tale signs of casts.

All this is why we always suggest buying coins from trusted dealers who are not only honest but able to look at coins and weed out at least most of the bad ones. After a while, we all start to think we can do it ourselves and start risking purchases from less certain sources (eBay, flea markets, other collectors, coin stores run by people who don't know ancients etc.) but we still recommend you use the trusted expert when buying something outside your comfort zone in terms of price or type of coin. For example, I have collected denarii of Septimius Severus for a long time and have handled thousands of them. These, I buy pretty much independently. However, if I were to decide I needed a gold coin of the Byzantine period, I would buy it from someone known to me as a good source.

After all that: Ancients are not a good hobby for those who are completely unwilling to accept a little doubt or a little risk. There are a few coins that are in a bit of doubt with experts divided on their status. Experts have been know to be shown to be wrong enough times that people with no stomach for the situation might be better to collect something else (What? - I have no idea!).

 

Thanks for the info. My problem is not that I'm afraid of getting an occasional fake (although I wouldn't like it), but rather that I fear that I may never get a real one. I am getting pretty good at late 18th century stuff. I guess I'll just slowly work my way back, maybe one century at a time. Maybe in twenty years, I'll be where you guys are. Can you recommend a good beginning text?

 

No. There is no text that will protect. The best path is as detailed above, especially the line:
"I spent loads of time drooling over the websites of trusted dealers familiarising myself with the correct style."

Buy from trusted dealers. Let those who think they know more than the crooks buy the fakes.

I know I promote my non-commercial web pages too frequently but my page on fakes is on topic and illustrated with fakes worth knowing:
http://www.forumancientcoins.com/dougsmith/fake.html

 

The benefit of working with trusted dealers is that the good ones have lifetime guarantees. You can buy a coin, post it here once you receive it, and ask for the collective opinion from the forum if wanted. Or, send it to someone like David Sear or NGC for further opinions.

If it comes back as fake, you can return it for a full refund.

 

While I absolutely love the lifetime guarantee concept, the real hope is that we never need to use one. That is why we value both honesty and knowledge. That is why we are willing to pay a good dealer more for a coin than we will pay the lesser group of sellers even if they are 100% honest.

 

There are also interesting coins of Julia Domna in the Roman provincial series. For example:

29 mm. Struck at Prusa ad Olympum, Bithynia (NW Turkey, on the Asian side, slightly inland, almost directly south of Constantinople)
Ex Henry Clay Lindgren but not in his published books.
Julia Domna bust right: IOVΛIA ΔOMNA CEB ("Julia Domna Augusta")
Hekate right with two torches, a goddess of the underworld (and torches light her way).
ΠPOYC AEΩN ("of Prusa")

 

Thanks for the feedback. I have some navel contemplation to do.