Would anyone happen to have any more info behind this packaging? Who could have issued it? What northern Italian dam excavation it may be referring to? Didn't find anything related online. The packaging itself looks decades-old (the plastic + staples look like they could be newer, as in added later?). I only got it banking on the possibility that since it looks to be a kind of chunky AE4 it could be a scarce/rare 5th-6th cent. nummus and the fact that it was cheap. So, any ideas? (No photos of the back nor better photos of the coin. These are the seller's photos.) (now looking at the above close up shot of the coin on a monitor it is looking more like the two emperors standing holding orb reverse unfortunately, but I'm still hoping it is a rare type)
Could be but we won't know for sure until I have it in hand. Even if it does turn out to be something common I would still like to know more about the packaging, perhaps find out the exact dam site where the coin was found to give it some provenance.
Honestly, I think the packaging is no more than an older version of what we see today in terms of COA's by such-and-such numismatist that nobody's heard of, or those garage workshop slabs you find so many common, worn Constantine aes in. It's all a ploy to get you to spend some money on coins that are beyond recognition. I hope I'm wrong.
Just to be clear though, I didn't mean that as a reprimand. I've also gambled on a number of these kinds of auctions, sometimes winning, sometimes losing.
I have a rule of thumb: Never trust something sold as expertised by a Professional or Expert or by any title that does not have a name attached to it. People who are renown in their field don't need to tell you so I am not impressed when there is a name followed by some made up title. Similarly, I don't care for people who bill themselves in coin ads as "Dr. John Doe" when they are a doctor but not a PhD in the field pertinent to the subject. My dentist is a nice guy (never shot a lion) but knows nothing about coins....nothing!
i bet someone was selling these mail order in an old back of magazine classified add back in the day or at a flea market or something. i've purchased cheapies just to take a chance knowing full well they would probably be turds. here the most interesting packaging i've ever recieved coins in. small uncleaned lot, 10 coins. i should have left it unopened and hung it on the christmas tree.
I'll bet this is the strangest packaging any of us have ever seen... eBay "Each and every handcrafted soy candle contains an ancient coin from the past valued between $5.00 to $1,000.00 US. Coins age in range from the biblical times to the days of pirates. These Treasure candles can contain relics that have been buried for thousands of years and now ready to be discovered again by you. Valuable coins from ancient Rome, Greece, Byzantine, Ottoman Empire, Ancient Asia, Medieval Europe, and of course pirate treasure ( Spanish Colonial Coins ) are randomly placed in every handcrafted soy candle. Each coin is unique and loaded with rich history."
how about this one... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Roman-style...959141?hash=item235ec70ee5:g:7TsAAOSwl9BWNkqb
OK, just when I thought I had seen the oddest coin package! I wonder what coins they put in the 'Alien Abduction' candles?
Let me fix the seller's description: "Tacky Plastic pillar with 3 genuine ancient Roman coins from the Shanghai mint of the Roman Empire."