With many members showing off their fine catches in 2020, I thought I'd go a different route and show some of the coins I would really like to add to my collection in 2021. My taste is for the higher end, usually more costly specimens, but I am also rather tight with my funds and usually bid low. This results in my not winning many coins that I would like to own, and some of the coins on my list have been targets for years. So here is my list along with an invitation to all to post some of those issues you dream about some day possessing. Ionia, uncertain mint EL Hemihekte - 1/12 Stater. Lydo-Milesian standard, Striated type. Circa 650-600 BC. Flattened striated surface / Incuse square punch. Weidauer 9; Traité I 13; Rosen 268; SNG Kayhan I 681; SNG von Aulock 7766. I like this coin because it is one of the first coins ever struck. The early electrum coins with striations seem to carry a premium, and I like all of the denominations. The 1/12 stater is a little less costly than the 1/6 stater, so I have been seeking these out. ISLANDS OFF THRACE, Thasos. Circa 480-463 BC. Stater (Silver, 21 mm, 8.61 g). Nude ithyphallic satyr, with long beard and long hair, moving right in 'running-kneeling' position, holding a nymph in his arms, who raises her right hand in protest. Rev. Quadripartite incuse square. Le Rider, Thasiennes, 5. SNG Copenhagen 1010-1012. A beautiful piece, attractively toned and of vigorous style. Good very fine. KINGS OF MACEDON. Philip II, 359-336 BC. Tetradrachm (Silver, 24 mm, 14.29 g, 3 h), Amphipolis, 355-349/8 BC. Laureate head of Zeus to right. Rev. ΦΙΛΙΠ-ΠΟΥ Philip II, wearing kausia and chlamys, raising his right hand in salute and riding horse walking to left; below horse's raised foreleg, M. Le Rider 65 (D31/R56). SNG ANS 467. Toned, well-centered and of elegant style. Some minor surface roughness, otherwise, nearly extremely fine. The issues of this Philip II tetradrachm with the letter M between the front legs is usually fancier in style than some and demands a premium. Anyone know what the M means? Attica, Athens. Silver Tetradrachm (17.2g), 475-465 BC. Early transitional style. Head of Athena right, wearing crested Attic helmet, the crest box ornamented with chevron pattern. Reverse: AΘE, owl standing right with closed wings, head facing; olive sprig with two leaves, one berry and cresent moon behind; all within incuse square. HGC 4, 1594; Starr Group III. Uniform light grey tone. Toned. I really like the owls, have three of them, and would like to collect all of the Starr Group issues. I believe this is not a group III but a II. Vespasian. Æ Sestertius (25.45 g), AD 69-79. Judaea Capta type. Rome, AD 71. IMP CAES VESPASIAN AVG P M TR P P P COS II, laureate head of Vespasian right. Reverse: IVDAEA CAPTA, S C in exergue, palm tree; to left, bound captive standing right before pile of arms; to right, Judaea seated right in attitude of mourning. Hendin 1500; Hendin GBC 4, 775 (this coin illus.); RIC 159; BN 489-90; BMC 532-3. Some smoothing in the fields. Dark greenish-brown patina. I like this coin just because of the size and the history behind it. I would like a Titus issue as well. It's hard to find these large, higher grade, old sestertii without some tooling or smoothing, so I could live with a nice issue with some improvement imposed on it. The Triumvirs. Mark Antony. Autumn 32-spring 31 BC. AR Denarius (17mm, 3.59 g, 6h). Legionary issue. Patrae(?) mint. Praetorian galley right; ANT AVG above, III VIR • R • P • C below / Three signa decorated with wreaths and rostra; CHORTIS • SPECVLATORVM around above. Crawford 544/12; CRI 386; RSC 6; Sydenham 1214; RBW 1837. Lightly toned, small area of find patina/deposits on reverse. EF. Rare and excellent for issue. I have a Chortium Praetoriarum and would like to pair it up with this MA issue. Kingdom of Pergamon, Eumenes I AR Tetradrachm. Circa 263-241 BC. Laureate head of Philetairos right / Athena enthroned left, elbow resting on shield to right, crowning dynastic name to left; spear in background, grape bunch to outer left, A to inner left, bow to right. Westermark Group V; SNG Copenhagen 336; SNG France 1618. 16.93g, 32mm, 1h. Octavian as Augustus, 27 BC – 14 AD Denarius Caesaraugusta circa 19-18 BC, AR 20mm., 3.62g. Oak-wreathed head l. Rev. Eight-rayed comet with tail upwards. C 97. RIC 37b. This is another one that I like because of the history involved with the comet and the deification of Caesar. L. Sulla. AR Denarius, 81 BC. D/ Diademed head of Venus right. R/ Double cornucopiae tied with fillet; Q below. Cr. 375/2. B. (Cornelia) 33. AR. g. 4.49 mm. 18.00 R. An outstanding example of this rare and fascinating issue, extraordinarily overweight and perfectly struck in high relief. From masterly engraved dies and exceptional. EF/Good EF. I guess I just like Sulla. Tiberius & Germanicus Gemellus. AD 19-37/8 and 19-23/4, respectively. Æ Sestertius (35.5mm, 26.30 g, 6h). Rome mint. Struck under Tiberius, AD 22-23. Crossed cornucopias, each surmounted by the bareheaded bust of a boy facing one another; winged caduceus between / Legend around large S • C. RIC I 42 (Tiberius). Red-brown and green surfaces, some roughness. Fine. Another one I like just because of the history. Anonymous Cast Æ As. Rome, circa 225-217 BC. Laureate head of Janus / Prow left, I above. ICC 74; Crawford 35/1; Haeberlin pp. 25-36, 1-1168 pls. 10-15, 16, 1-4 and 94, 7. 258.1g, 65mm, 12h. Good Very Fine; cast in high relief. I like big, old, cast klunkers. PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Ptolemy I Soter. As satrap, 323-305/4 BC, or king, 305/4-282 BC. AR Tetradrachm (27.5mm, 15.12 g, 1h). Ptolemaic standard. In the name of Alexander III of Macedon. Alexandreia mint. Struck circa 306-300 BC. Diademed head of the deified Alexander right, wearing elephant skin headdress / Athena Alkidemos advancing right; to right, helmet, monogram, and eagle standing right on thunderbolt. CPE 69; Svoronos 162; Zervos Issue 28, dies 506/a; SNG Copenhagen 29. Toned, patches of find patina, light cleaning marks, a couple scratches under tone on reverse. VF. I'd prefer the earlier, heavier issue at 17+ grams, but I'd settle for this one. SICULO-PUNIC, mint of the camp, (c.320-310 B.C.), silver tetradrachm, (17.14 g), obv. wreathed head of Persephone to left, wearing triple pendant earring and necklace, four dolphins swimming around, rev. horse's head to left, palm tree behind, Punic legend, "MMHNT" below, (S.6434, Boston 497 [same obverse die], SNG Lockett 1053 [same obverse die], Jenkins SNR 56 [Series 3b] 171 [dies, O50/R152]). Attractive old light cabinet irridescent toning, extremely fine, of fine artistic style, very scarce. To me the Siculo-Punic coins are some of the most beautiful ever struck. The coin is way out of my league, but one can hope. And this is probably a good one to end my 2021 wish list on. Post some of your hopefuls and let's see what keeps you awake at night.
You and I seem to have very similar tastes in coins. However, your coins are in much better condition than mine. Very nice. All of them!
All those are types most of us would 'like' to own but I consider it more prtactical to learn to want what is remotely possible. Using my theory, I can show three.
Dreaming of coins is a nice way to spend you time And that list of yours has plenty of dream coins indeed. I'd like to play it a bit more realistic. I have specific targets that are in principle within my reach. But as Dougsmit says it correctly, it comes down to a trade off between quality and my budget. Another thing I like to do and would like to do more, is browse member's galleries, this forum, and auction offerings and get inspired. Behind some coins are parts of history that I did not know of, and a certain coin not on my wishlist offers the possibility to learn that history.
Here are my dream coins for 2021: posthumously issued coins of Diva Faustina I and Diva Faustina II with the elephant carpentum reverse type:
