The Favorite Coin in My Collection

After the group talked @Greg Heinrich off the ledge earlier this week I started to think of which coin in my collection is the only piece I would keep if I could only keep just one. I considered a few different late Roman or early Byzantine types but always came back to this one; my unassuming Julius Nepos ae4 monogram.
By far the rarest of the late Roman monograms. I've only personally seen one other piece and I can't even find a single auction result for this type. I'll probably be buried with this one.

Maybe this has been done before but how about showing your single favorite piece.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Man, I have so many favorites, it'll take me a while to single out just one.

 

Tough choice man id have to say this one i think

 

Nice coin, surprised you didn't pick your Verina that I like.

Can't really pick 1 either. Most likely Orbiana or my Tiberius Tet.

 

My absolute favorite coin is neither ancient nor rare, but it gives me great pleasure to look at.

 

oh man, i tried to pick just one and couldn't i spent quite a bit of time going back and forth over my pictures, got it down to about 30...but that's it.

i did realize that i have many coin i could part with no problem however. i also recently realized i have several coins i can't part with even when i do want to get rid of them....no one else wants them!

 

My favourite for the moment



Vespasian, 69-79 A.D. AR Denarius, 3.16g. 21.41mm. Rome, 73 A.D.

Obv: IMP CAES VESP AVG CENS. Laureate head of Vespasian to right.

Rev: MAXIM PONTIF. Nemesis walking to right holding caduceus over snake.

C 385, RIC 544.

Ex: E. E. Clain-Stefanelli collection. Ex: Numismatica Ars Classica - Auction 92 Part 2, Lot 2133 May 24, 2016; Ex: Ed waddell

 

In my effort to remain true, I still declare the above #1 as explained in the link. Being mine for 53 years makes a difference.
http://www.forumancientcoins.com/dougsmith/f01.html

 

My current favorite:



Bruttium, Rhegium, AR Tetradrachm circa 415/410-387 BC
17.12 gm, 22.6 mm.
Obverse: Lion’s scalp facing
Reverse: Rhegion before laureate head of Apollo right, olive branch behind.
Herzfelder 102 (D60/R87) citing 5 specimens from this die combination, BMC Italy p.375, 25, Sear 501.

John

 

My favourite changes more often than I change my underwear ... almost every day!!



Hmmmm, today's favourite pair of underwear is .....

Constantius I AE Follis
Date: 301-303 AD
Diameter: 28.5 mm
Weight: 10.1 grams
Obverse: CONSTANTIVS NOB C - Laureate and cuirassed bust left, holding sceptre over left shoulder
Reverse: GENIO POPVLI ROMANI - Genius standing left, holding patera over altar and cornucopiæ; B right, PLC in ex. (Lugdunum mint)
Reference: RIC 167a
Other: Superb and bold portrait (Big and fat and all that!!)







A Roman?

Yup, me => today this is our favourite coin!

 

Too much information.

 

It's always hard to pick only one favorite, but I can't go past this Julius Caesar, 46-45 BC probably on celebrating the defeat of Pompey at Pharsalus 48 BC, the reverse especially so warlike Minerva advancing with spear and shield looking very aggressive.

 

I love all of mine but I really love this one. Supposedly a hoard of gold coins collected by a Paris bank in World War II and afterwards. Maybe on the sly from the Nazis.

 

This it one I always like to pick up and look at

 

My current favourite:
Chandragupta II, ca 380 AD, Gupta empire northern India.
King standing with bow and standard/ Lakshmi on lotus throne.
Reminds me of classical Indian architectural sculptures.

 

Most of my coins are favorites for one reason or another, but this tops the list:


SICILY, Syracuse. Agathokles tetradrachm

I have a lot of coins and sometimes I want to look at my favorites all in a row so I made two "favorites" galleries on my website: one for Greek and one for Roman. The lineups change from time to time and as usual I'm behind in adding coins to the site.

 

That ol' piece of crap?

 

Well, I changed my underwear this morning, so I guess I get to pick another favourite, eh?

Sweet Alexandrian AE Drachm (Taurus zodiac)
Antoninus Pius & Aphrodite (Venus) & Bull



=> $150 (yah I know, eh?) ... thanks for not bidding, TIF

 

I have been thinking about this for quite a while, and while I'm currently enamoured with my recent Elenour denier (and another coin which is still in the post...), I kept coming back to my first medieval coin.


French Feudal, Poitou
Richard I, r. 1169-1199
AR Denier, 17mm x 1 grams
Obv.: +RICARDUS REX, a plain cross patée at the ends, annulet in third quarter, within inner circle
Rev.: PIC / TAVIE / NSIS, written in three parallel lines
Ref.: SCBC 8008

(Man, I need to star rephotographing my coins... That obverse is out of focus...)

 

Thanks for the reminder that I need to do laundry. I'll post a recent favorite AKA the coin I like best of the ones bought this month. I'm a sucker for any of the incuse reverse coins whether Pythagoras had anything to do with them or not. This one is a 1/3 AR stater of Metapontum that looks odd because the reverse is severely doublestruck giving the grain a look not known to grains until genetic modification came into fashion.


Reminder: it will soon be time for each of us to do our ten favorites of 2016 post. Do you know which ones are yours? I don't.