I have seen many ancient coins set in jewelry. I am... ok with it mostly, but the purposeful destruction of an ancient coin just seems plain wrong to me. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Authentic-...=item1cc6844d58:g:TUoAAOSwrZBcOBsH:rk:10:pf:0 I contacted the seller. Here is the exchange: Dear seller, I am saddened to see this ancient coin cut to pieces. That item had survived for 1900 years before its demise. Is that remnant of a coin set it modern metal clay? Please stop destroying history. That coin that was once a time traveler. In what ever condition that coin was in before some cut it into pieces it had story to tell. That story in now lost. The Reply: Don't worry the story is not lost ...The coins were broken ...now the story lives on.
Hmmm... we collectors of ancients are known to collect even broken coins. I suppose the jewelry designer and seller believe that reply you received is a good stock answer to have at the ready. (But, between you and me, I don't believe any naturally occurring broken coins were used in that piece of jewelry - but, of course, I could be totally wrong about that). Edited to acknowledge TIF's post below. Hi TIF!!
He's a CT member but hasn't been around lately. Others have expressed their dismay to him about this practice of cutting down coins. Like you, I'm more or less okay with having common ancient coins carefully set in jewelry but am sad when I see them mutilated. If the coins were already broken, perhaps trimming them further isn't as horrible.
I'm hard-pressed to believe that only the facial section remained on this coin, and in the exact center proportion to be placed in a ring. What a shame.
There's always a silver lining: it seems like he bought as many or more fakes as authentic coins. Hopefully he's mutiliating fakes at a similar rate.
I just wanted to say that I that I think that jewelry is really nicely done. I'd wear one of those rings. I bet more coins are ruined by botched cleanings than by what this jeweler has done. Now I'll let you guys get back to agreeing with each other and slagging people in unison.
It would be easy enough to cast that square section, preserving the original coin. Looked like a relatively nice Trajan dupondius.
