Post a coin that caught your eye and made you buy it even though it's not in your collecting area

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by H8_modern, Oct 8, 2016.

  1. H8_modern

    H8_modern Attracted to small round-ish art

    I knew nothing about this coin when I bought it. Didn't even know there were letters on it.

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    Italian States - Milan
    Denaro Scodellato
    Henry III - V
    1039-1125
    +Imperator around HE RIC N
    MEDIO LANV around cross

    Let's see what you bought just because it hit you right.
     
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  3. cpm9ball

    cpm9ball CANNOT RE-MEMBER

    Chris_ANA_1969LGsilver_MS69o2r3.jpg

    This is a medal rather than a coin. It was designed for the 1969 ANA National Convention by Frank Gasparro and the obverse is his interpretation of Libertas Americana.

    When I spotted this set on eBay in 2005, I knew that I had to have one. Unfortunately, my bid of $150 lost by $2.50. As it turned out, another set was listed within a week, and this time I decided to place a very strong bid of $250 to ensure that I would win. When the auction ended, I was the winner for $51. Well, what do you know!

    It was part of a 3-medal set that included this 38mm silver medal, a 38mm bronze medal and a 19mm bronze medal. I also learned that the 3-medal sets were produced for the national conventions for the years 1969-1982 only. It took me several years to find the remaining sets, and it is the only set that NGC has ever graded.

    The photos are courtesy of Bob Campbell.

    Chris
     
  4. DUNK 2

    DUNK 2 Well-Known Member

  5. stevex6

    stevex6 Random Mayhem

    Anhalt-Bernburg, Alexius Friedrich Christian,
    AR 1/3 Taler
    1796-1834 AD
    Bear on Wall & three line legend (date and value)

    1800 Century.jpg

    .... because it has a cool bear on it ...

    :oops:
     
  6. Mat

    Mat Ancient Coincoholic

    Great coin, H8.

    Definitely not my area, but I just liked it and for the price. Looked like a little tablet.


    [​IMG]
    ISLAMIC, IFRIQIYA, HAFSIDS, AH 700/ 1300 A.D.
    Square AR Dirham
    O: Arabic legend in Nashki script لا اله الا الله الامر كله لله لا قوة الا بالله (There is no Lord except Allah; The command is all up to Allah; There is no power except through Allah)
    R: Arabic legend in Nashki script الله ربنا محمد رسولنا المهدي امامنا (Allah is our Lord; Muhammad is our Messenger; al-Mahdi is our Imam)
    1.33g
    15x14mm
    Hohertz 74; Album 514
     
  7. DUNK 2

    DUNK 2 Well-Known Member

    @stevex6

    Very nice coin and avatar. O' Canada!!
     
    stevex6 likes this.
  8. cpm9ball

    cpm9ball CANNOT RE-MEMBER

    If you use a little imagination, you can visualize the king's (ugly) nose on the left-hand side and the queen's (petite) nose on the right-hand side. They look like they are about to kiss!

    Chris
     
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  9. TIF

    TIF Always learning.

    A timely post because just yesterday I bought something completely out of my collecting realm.

    There are a few local jewelry stores selling very nice coins in a variety of settings. When in the neighborhood I always stop in to see what they have and to lament the loss of so many high-end coins to jewelry. They usually have a few unset coins, left unset because they aren't attractive.

    I saw this object a few visits ago and it was still there. They had no idea what it was. It was inexpensive and I thought it might be a fun puzzle.

    It's 16.5 gm and 20 x 22 mm (thickness 8 mm at one end, 3.5 at the opposite end). It looks like lead and is heavy for its size so I assume it is a lead seal or bulla. Eastern script is utterly incomprehensible to me at this point in time but I'm guessing it is Islamic and not ancient?

    At least one of our CoinTalk members has posted links to websites which show how to read such script but I didn't bookmark them and so far have not succeeded in my search.

    @THCoins, @Pellinore, and other nonclassical enthusiasts, can you direct me to some resources? I'd like to give it a try before crying uncle and asking for the full identification.

    I don't know if I have the orientations correct. If not, please let me know and I'll re-do the picture. I shot the "obverse" in various rotations just in case :D

    UnknownIslamicLeadSeal.jpg
     
  10. Mat

    Mat Ancient Coincoholic

    Never saw that till you mentioned it, but it does look like that somewhat.
     
  11. old49er

    old49er Well-Known Member

    Cool thread, great stuff. This one caught my eye because of the date on it. and the knight and horse. 1566,2 denar. Zygmund 2 Augustus. Silver.64g. 14 mm. gum#595 Lithuania. Had to look up id myself I think I got it right?... 1566silvercoinobv.jpg 1566silvercoin rev.jpg
     
  12. John Anthony

    John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

    Coins of Tipu Sultan, king of Mysore at the end of the 18th century. He and his father stood at the forefront of Indian resistance to British imperialism, but at the same time they were ruthless despots - they certainly didn't oppress Indians, particularly Hindus, any less than the British. Here is a 1 paisa of the Patan mint and a gold fanam, also Patan. I have another paisa on the way from a dealer in Ahmedabad...

    tipu 2.jpg

    I even bought a few books...

    DSCN0959.JPG

    It wasn't that big of a stretch though - I've always been interested in modern hammered coinage in addition to ancients.
     
  13. Alegandron

    Alegandron "ΤΩΙ ΚΡΑΤΙΣΤΩΙ..." ΜΕΓΑΣ ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΣ, June 323 BCE

    PRESENTLY, I do not capture Celtic Coins (only have 3). But this has HISTORY.

    Celtic Britain Inceni Boudicca 61 CE 1-03g Celt Hd r Celtic horse galloping Scarce O-R.JPG
    CELTIC BRITAIN
    the Inceni
    Queen Boudicca, 61 AD.
    AR Unit (Quinarius size)
    1.03 g
    Obv: Celticized head right
    Rev: Celticized horse galloping right.
    Ref: vArs.794.
     
  14. FitzNigel

    FitzNigel Medievalist

    While I do have another Meander coin which fulfilled the purpose of owning a Bactrian coin, this other guy popped up relatively cheap at an auction, and I enjoyed the clear features of the elephant (and the bell! I was to know why he has a bell!)

    01-BA-Menander I-AE-SCH-01.jpg
    Kingdom of Bactria
    Menander I Soter, r. c. 165/55-130 B.C.
    AE Square Chalkos, 13.13 x 13.34 mm x 2.3 grams
    Obv.: BASILEWS SWTHR MENANDROU around Elephant head right with trunk raised, wearing bell around neck
    Rev.: Kharosthi around Club of Herakles; monogram to left, A to right
    Ref.: Bopearachchi 28E, HGC 12, 197

    Love the Milan coin! I had actually been looking at sow thing similar, but grabbed a different coin which is en-route now...
     
  15. chrsmat71

    chrsmat71 I LIKE TURTLES!

    it's strange for me to have a modern coin on my list, but i really wanted a "baby king" coin...

    [​IMG]
     
  16. dougsmit

    dougsmit Member

    Generally, if it is a coin, it is in my collecting interest area but I have very few modern coins so they are the closest I have for this thread. Most of my US coins date back to when I was what they call a YN but I bought this half dime a couple years ago because I had never owned a half dime. It is nothing special, not high grade and not slabbed.
    us05bb1853a.jpg

    Most recent of my old but not ancient whim purchases was this Henry III mostly because I did not have a long cross penny and it had legible legends. What are the dots on the cheeks? I have not seen portraits of Henry showing freckles or smallpox scars that would need to be placed on coins.
    [​IMG]
     
  17. John Anthony

    John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

    Following the OP coin, here is a denaro of the Genova Republic, 1139-1339...

    denaro 6.jpg
     
  18. John Anthony

    John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

    Lovely images! "If it's a coin, it's in my collecting interest." That sums it up for me as well. It's interesting to see where other collectors draw the line. We have members who own probably close to a hundred LRB's, yet they will tell you they do not collect LRB's! :wacky:
     
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  19. Parthicus

    Parthicus Well-Known Member

    @FitzNigel: Why does the elephant have a bell? So you can hear it sneaking up on you, of course.
    @TIF: Your coin looks like it's in the correct orientation, but my Arabic decipherment skills are pretty poor. Usually I buy my Islamic coins pre-identified (most often from Steve Album, who literally wrote the book on Islamic coinage.) A very useful book that I've mentioned before is "Arabic Coins and How to Read Them" by Richard Plant.

    Here's my contribution to the thread:
    Massachusetts.jpg
    Massachusetts, 1 cent, 1788.
    Under the US Constitution in 1789, the individual states were prohibited from striking coinage (Article I, Section 10). Under the prior Articles of Confederation, however, far more power was left with the individual states, and several did issue their own coins. I like the realistic depiction of the Native American on the obverse, while that plump, short-winged eagle on the reverse just cracks me up. A very cool and historical coin, even though it is less than a quarter millennium old :woot:.
     
  20. John Anthony

    John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

    How about a Ga-den tangka of Tibet?

    tangka 6.jpg

    The Ga-den tangka date from c.1850 and these were struck till 1948. Thirteen major varieties in design have been catalogued. In all, there are at least 37 known minor varieties, but possibly 50 or more that could be noted. The obverse of the coins show the eight auspicious symbols (Tibetan: bkra shis rtags brgad) of Tibetan Buddhism: umbrella of sovereignty, two golden fish of good fortune, amphora of ambrosia, lotus, conch shell, emblem of endless rebirth, banner of victory and wheel of empire. These are usually arrayed around a central lotus. Their actual order and specific designs varied over time. The two sides of the coin have the same orientation. Starting from the top, the legend in Tibetan on the reverse says: dga'-ldan pho-brang-phyod-las-rnam-rgyal (The Palace of Ga-den is victorious in all directions). The legend is written in such a way as to fit into eight circles. These are actually derived from an earlier style in which the characters were inside lotus petals. - wiki
     
  21. Orfew

    Orfew Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus

    This coin is the latest imperial coin I have. I saw it and liked it so I bought it. It certainly does not fit into my collecting focus.

    Diadumenian small.jpeg
     
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