I haven’t been posting much lately and am well behind on showing my acquisitions. Here are 3 new pickups, unrelated aside from the fact I haven’t shown them yet here. I hope you enjoy and comment. Pardon the shorthand descriptions I am posting from a smartphone (photos also taken with an iPhone 8) AV Histamenon of Basilius II 976-1025 Christ facing Basil and Constantine facing, with cross 4.42g 25mm Sear 1800, Ratto 1945 Ex Sternberg VI, 1976 lot 1032 Seleucid, Laodikeia Ad Mare Tetradrachm 65/64 BC Tyche right with turreted headdress Zeus seated left with Nike and sceptre 15.26g 28mm ANSMN 28, 1983. Dca-s 314 Extremely rare date I could not resist this coin with its sublime style and toning. Portraits of Tyche don’t get much better. Luck would have it that my bid held up! Egypt, Ptolemy I Tetradrachm 323-283 BC Alexander the Great right with elephant headdress Athena Alkidemos right with spear and shield 15.56g 28mm Sear 7750 Ex Nick Economopolous, ex Frank Robinson *I bought this coin today from a friend and fellow collector in my area. He was kind enough to let it go at a fair price - it’s just wonderful in hand with great contrast.
Very nice coins @Nvb. Nice photo's too, that iphone is not that bad! That Alexander coin is my favorite of the three.
Hi @Nvb, I love the Alexanders that were down-sized and re-issued as ~15.5 g coins. Yours is a really nice example. You can see signs of the old undertype on the reverse, between Athena's face and above the shield. It may be the (old) top of Alexander's head. Brooks Emmons wrote about these years ago in The Overstruck Coinage of Ptolemy I (ANS Museum Notes 6, 1954). She explains the fascinating story behind the adjusted weight standards that abruptly changed mid-issue. The PDF is available for free online with the rest of ANS pubs digitized content. I found it here ( https://archive.org/details/ANSMusNotes1954Vols6to8/page/n83 ). Of course it's also discussed in Lorber's Coins of the Ptolemaic Empire. This coin down-sizing was also recently discussed in a bit more depth in a thread started by @Nemo (https://www.cointalk.com/threads/ptolemy-i-overstruck-light-tetradrachm.336874/). - Broucheion
Lovely coins Nvb Your Basil II/ Constantine VIII AV Histamenon is gorgeous! That Seleucid Tetradrachm, very nice strike, details, glad your bid held John
Thanks @Broucheion for the informative links and commentary It’s wonderful to live in an age where so much quality numismatic literature is available online, provided one knows where to look. My example shows clear signs of clipping for weight reduction, as well as overstriking.
