Now that's what I call a Victory (it almost turned into a tragedy)!

In most cases, frustration leads to rush decisions that most people regret down the line. Occasionally though, it can provide the extra strength required to make a move that we otherwise would hesitate to perform. The purchase of the coin I am about to present to you is the later case. A few days ago I was participating with gusto and determination in the last Roma auction. I had decided in advance to take an aggressive stance and walk out with my intended targets, even if it meant that I would stretch my coin budget to its limit. A coin that wasn't a target of mine, but nevertheless was interesting enough to notice, was lot 640, a Side tetradrachm of the type with the huge advancing Nike on the reverse. That coin sported an impressive Athena helmet on the obverse, and at that point had a £500 bid on it. I said to myself nice coin, I should get one of those when I get the chance. To cut a long story short, my targeted bids failed in a spectacular fashion. I thought it was going to be a last second battle, but I had been maxed out on all my bids with hours to spare. I thought to myself that if the competition stays as strong as this, I should perhaps drop coins and start collecting butterflies (says without a hint of knowledge of the butterfly auction scene. Maybe the butterfly collectors are thinking about switching to coins instead).

Engulfed with disappointment, I went through the auction results the next day to stare in disbelief at the prices realised. When I reached lot 640, I saw that it hammered for £2000. Very strong price, considering that the reverse had not in my opinion the wow factor . Out of curiosity and with no plan in mind, I browsed through vcoins and mashops to see if there was a decent example available for sale. I wasn't really going after one, I just wanted to get an idea of the retail prices out there. And then I saw her standing there... It was love at first sight. A proud and cocky Nike advancing to the left without a care in the world. I could almost hear her whispering to me 'Just Do It!'. The obverse was the usual Athena in a Corinthian helmet in good detail and style. On the reverse the legends were clear and the cherry on the top was actually a big pomegranate. Nature's silliest fruit, I never cared much for those really.. But the undisputed highlight of the coin was that fabulous Nike. One detail left that I hadn't checked yet was the price. I was surprised to see that it wasn't as bad as I expected, but still more than I ever have spent on a coin if you exclude my Athenian tet. On any other day I would have said, 'nah, still too much', but on that day the frustration from last night's auction took over and before I knew it my credit card had taken a hit that it will take a while to recover from. Well, here it is. It arrived today and in hand it is even more impressive as it was on the picture:



What do you think? I think that it is a very nice example for the type. It comes with a provenance too. An auction result from 2008. That was a surprise really and it made me feel much better about my over-spending. Somebody back then obviously liked the coin so much that it hammered for 2600 Swiss Francs. That is 3 times more than I paid for it now in 2021. It is a prime example that when it comes to coins the prices can go down as well as up.

You may wonder now what is the 'tragedy' bit I mentioned in the thread title. Well, the coin did arrive today, but the actual delivery date was supposed to be days ago. On the expected date I checked the tracking information expecting to see it having arrived at Heathrow, but to my bemusement it said that it was in Indianapolis Indiana. I live in London UK, and the coin was shipped from a European country. There was no logical explanation whatsoever on why it should be in the States. It stayed there for a couple of days and then it started moving... This time to Memphis Tennessee. My coin was touring the US... Maybe my Nike is a Dolly Parton fan. Maybe it wanted to see the world before it ends up in my cabinet. After days of panicked emails to the sender and the shipper, and a potential stomach ulcer from the stress, it finally arrived.. Happy ending, Yippeeeee.... I guess it had to happen to me too, I just joined the bonkers coin shipping experience club.

A few words now about the historical aspects of the coin. Surprisingly, we don't know that much. Or at least I couldn't find much. It is from Pamphylia, a Greek colony on the Asia Minor coast, but one that is definitely off the beaten track (between Lycia and Cilicia). Even though small in size, it was a cosmopolitan place. It was a mixture of Greek colonists, Hitite remnants, and Cilicians. Later colonists could not understand the Greek spoken there as it had evolved into an amalgamation of the various dialects. 'Pamphylia' actually means 'place of all tribes'. Some of the most important settlements were Aspendos and Side which many of us know had a very rich coin minting tradition. The area spend much of its time under Persian administration, but after Alexander's conquest and by the time of this coin, it was under Seleukid domination. There must have been some degree of autonomy though as evident from the coinage that bears magistrate names. The one of this coin is ΔΕΙΝΟ...something, alas we don't really know, unless someone here has found a source with more information. Side specifically was a major trading centre that enjoyed great prosperity due to its strategic harbour and advanced infrastructure. Seleukid rule came to an end in 190 BC, when the Rodians allied with the Romans defeated Antiochos the Great, leading to it being replaced by an Attalid rule from Pergamon. Side however maintained its autonomy and prosperity. It is worth noting that 'Side' means pomegranate which explains their common appearance on coinage going back into the archaic times. I am not sure why there is such a prominent Nike on the reverse, a design that lasted for centuries. Perhaps some of you know. Please share any sources you are aware of.

I hope you enjoyed this presentation (I apologise if much of it is actually a rant). Please share your Pamphylian coins, coins With Nike on them, coins that went on a world tour like this one did, or anything else that you think is relevant.

 

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Honestly that’s a great coin but Hilarious how it ended up in America of all places??

 

Well, "London" and "Indiana" each has two "n's," and can easily be confused if one isn't careful.

PS. It's a gorgeous coin!

 

I have always been impressed with the tetradrachms from this mint during this time. This type appears to have a long history of being minted starting circa 205 BC and ending perhaps as late as circa 35 BC. The later issues are usually rather crude. However the initial issues with the magistrates CT and DEI N (There are variations of this name) seem to have been created by a relatively competent artist. The obverses are usually very good, though I find the image of Nike to be a bit stiff.
Though a contemporary of the Pamphylian tetradrachms minted in the name and types of Alexander the Great these coins do not share the broad diameters of that coinage. This is curious.
On a personal note I bought this coin in 2002 from an eBay dealer who had a lot of them. At the time I thought that this coin had the best obverse die of all the ones I saw being offered at that time. I did pay quite a bit more than what was the norm for these coins something like $600 during a period of time when these coins were usually hammering down for around $300.
On a second personal note' In late October 2017 I bought a coin in a Swiss auction. They sent it a week later everything right My name, address, postal code but instead of Canada they put USA. I thought okay the postal code should clue them in Wrong went to New York City bounced around all the five boroughs went to Connecticut. Came back bounced around again went back to Switzerland back to New York City Bounced around some more and finally went back to Switzerland and then in February headed to me. About mid February I finally did get it.
Side Ar tetradrachm 205-175 BC Obv. Head of Athena right in Corinthian style helmet. Rv. Nike advancing left holding wreath. Sear GCV 5433 var 16.78 grms 30 mm

 

Brilliant coup, @Only a Poor Old Man. You're doubly fortunate that it survived the USPS. I tracked a coin once that visited two neighboring cities, to either side of mine, not once, but twice. As if it was circling the airport, requesting permission to land.

 

Congrats Poor Old Man, a fine example of the type.

Here's mine:

 

@Only a Poor Old Man.....What a beautiful looking coin!!
Great story too...Glad it reached home....
Here's a couple of Vics...
Marius and Trebonianus Gallus...

 

The Eras of Pamphylia and the Seleucid Invasions of Asia Minor

Amyntas, Side and the Pamphylian Plain

Both by Andrew Meadows on academia.edu

 

Once in my collection....
Pamphylia Side Tetradrachm c36 BC ?
Obs: Athena right in crested Corinthian helmet
Rev: Nike advancing left holding filleted wreath
ΚΛΕΥΧ magistrate over both fields
Left field: Pomegranate symbol of Side
16.22gm 30mm SOLD

 

Great coin @Only a Poor Old Man ! Congrats.

 

It's a very nice type and yours of particularly nice style since Nike is usually rather crude. Your coin has a slightly older provenance to a Gorny auction in 2002:
https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=97263

It might have an even older provenance as it looks toned in the Gorny photo.

 

I don't have any of those, but now I want one. Excellent

Q

 

Congratulations on your purchase.
You've managed to turn sour grapes into a sweet pomegranate!

That is indeed a lovely Nike. And I can totally see her softly whispering to you: 'buy me, buy me'. I think I would have fallen for her pick-up line as well...
(my only disappointment: your taste in fruits. Pomegranates are delicious! Sweet purple juice and crunchy seeds with just a hint of bitterness, lovely)! Gorgeous coin.

No pomegranates here (yet). Only thing I can think that is remotely relevant is an uncia from Brundisum with not one, but two Nikes crowning. Must have been a busy day.
It's crude perhaps and definitely corroded, yet I couldn't resist it...

 

Wow, that is quite a trip. It causes me stress just reading about it!

That is brilliant, this is the kind of info I was looking for

Excellent news! Usually I have not much luck finding early provenances for my coins, but for this one I have a 2008 and now a 2002 one. Maybe I should try it in Ex Numis and see what else I can get. It was estimated for 150 euros in the Gorny & Mosch one, I wonder what it hammered for..

 

Great coin, and enjoyable, if postally bewildering, story.

I was born and raised in Indiana. I have visited London. Believe me, there are no similarities. Even the language is different.

Go Hoosiers. I know there are others out there.... @dougsmit ?

 

Gorgeous coin, @Only a Poor Old Man!

I only have one from Side in Pamphylia, purchased at a brick and mortar shop in the 1990s:


Cornelia Salonina, AD 253-268.
Roman provincial Æ decassarion, 18.56 g, 28.8 mm, 12 h.
Pamphylia, Side AD 260-268.
Obv: ΚΟΡΝΗΛΙΑ CΑΛΩΝΙΝΑ CЄΒΑ, diademed and draped bust, r., I (=10) before
Rev: CΙΔΗΤΩΝ ΝЄΩΚΟΡΩΝ, Apollo standing, facing, head l., holding patera and resting on scepter surmounted by flower(?)
Refs: Lindgren III 669; SNG von Aulock 4861 (same obv. die); SNG PFPS 872; BMC --; Sear GIC 4676 var.

 

The experience was a bit of a wake up call. I wondered what on earth am I doing spending so much money on coins that I have never seen in person before they arrive and are at such risk until they get to me. It definitely leaved a bad taste to my mouth during this week and I was so moody that i avoided even looking at coins or checking Coin-Talk. Having the coin in my hands has restored my faith to a degree, but I will be trying to manage this habit going forward (I have said that before, haven't I?)

 

Another current thread on a Gallienus ten unit piece caused me to post my Salonina but it is more at place here. Apologies to those who saw it twice. They are not die matched. While I agree that the type is called Apollo in the literature, I would be interested in hearing how this ID came to be. I do not claim to have a proper ID but the attire and winged feet do not make me think of Apollo.

This is why I have stopped buying coins (and even started selling a few). I have always preferred seeing the coins I buy at coin shows where I can be blamed for the mistakes I made rather than holding it against a far away seller. I have not bought a coin yet this year but, in truth, I have enough old ones that I should stop buying unless the new addition is a 'white whale' or what the pro-sports people call a 'franchise player'. Some of us collect as an obsession with the chase as important as the catch. Those can sell coins after a short time since the 'new coin smell' has worn off. Others of us make familial relationships with the coins we buy that may be a bit beyond 'rational' and feel separation pain until we decide that we have too many coins that are too similar and can let go of the ones that just do not thrill us as much on the long term as we once thought they would. That does not mean there is something wrong with those coins but just that the don't speak our language quite like the coin we keep. That explains how I am driven to sell off even a few coins that I know I will never replace. If you stay in the hobby long enough you will probably experience a few cycles where you sell things and later buy others. Usually there is a percentage of regrets in both directions - Why did I buy THAT? - Why did I let that one go? Concerns over poor delivery makes the hobby less fun for those of us who are into the coins rather than into the chase and capture aspect. At the moment I am awaiting Spring flowers for me to photograph rather than new coins unless the Covid trends causes shows to resume in my area.

My favorite Side coins are from the Greek period. The c.300 BC tetradrachm has added appeal (to me) with the Seleucid anchor countermark.


I have always been of the opinion that bronzes are collectable, too, even when the marketplace favors the big silver. This AE15 dates from the same era as my tet and has the added bonus of spelling out the city name


The earlier obol (375-333 BC) offers a very personable lion. I like lions.

 

I like these coins - with and without anchor countermarks. Yours an excellent example, @Only a Poor Old Man, and the tale of its journey is surprising. Here's mine:

Pamphylia, Side, circa 155-36 BC, AR Tetradrachm (15.91g, 12h). Kleuch-, magistrate.
Obv: Head of Athena right, wearing crested Corinthian helmet
Rev: Nike advancing left, holding wreath; pomegranate in left field, KΛE-YX across field
Ref: SNG France 696; SNG Copenhagen 400; SNG von Aulock 4797
Writeup: Between the Seleucid and Attalid Kingdom

 

My very first coin was bought in a brick and mortar shop, even while Coronavirus was a big thing in China. So was my second one. But soon after that, the first lockdown happened and had to switch to the internet. As I have now become a slightly more experienced collector it would normally make sense to keep shopping online, but with prices being so strong brick and mortar shops don't seem so pricy any more. I bet they are eating their hats that they were not allowed to trade for so long. There is affordable stock waiting to be found, and no matter how good resolution an image has, it can't beat holding the coin in hand. I was dangling 4 Athenian tets before I chose the one that is now mine. Another aspect of coin collecting that I still haven't experienced is coin shows and clubs. London should be able to give plenty opportunities when things get back to normal.

I took these earlier today while on a stroll through Regents Park. Spring is my favourite season with a notable exception being a Japanese autumn.





I almost forgot I had this coin. And it is actually quite relevant to the thread, as it is pretty much a small bronze version of my new coin. It was struck by the Cilicians, the next door neighbours of the Pamphylians. Very similar looking on both sides apart from the very busy legends on the reverse. I wonder if the Pamphylians raised an eyebrow!