The two coins posted below I recently won at auction. The tetradrachm of Philip II came from Roma E-Sale 82, & the Austrian thaler came from CNG Auction 489. Antioch-Syria, Philip II as Augustus, AD 249-249 (struck AD 249), Officina #3 (3 dots under bust). Billon Tetradrachm: 12.39 gm, 26 mm, 12 h. Last issue of Philip II. McAlee 1064c, Very Rare. Prieur 492, 5 coins cited. I had been on the hunt for a long time for a choice example of a last issue Tet of Philip II, until this coin surfaced at Roma Numismatics Ltd. Most issues of Philip II are easy to find except the last issue that identifies the officinas 1-4 with the number of dots beneath the bust. McAlee considers all four coins as Very Rare. This issue was minted shortly before the young prince, age 12, was probably killed in battle with his father, Philip I, in September of 249. Admittedly I was shocked when I opened the small box from Roma , see photo below. The coin has a highly reflective silvery luster unlike any I've seen on a Tet of Philip II. My first thought was the coin had been brushed or burnished until I examined it under 20X magnification. No evidence of polishing was visible on the coin, & the incrustations on the obverse support this. So why the unusual surface ? McAlee estimates the silver content of Antioch Tets of AD 249 to be 16.58% silver, so why does this coin look so much better than that ? The only explanation I can think of is the coin flan had been plated or chemically treated to remove copper from the surface before striking, yet I have never read of the Antioch Mint doing this. Another mystery to unravel.... The next coin more properly belongs in the World Coin forum, but I think the coin is old enough to be appreciated in the Ancient Coin forum too . I sold all my European thalers & silver dollar size coins over the years but still admire large silver coins. This handsome Austrian thaler screamed BUY ME when I saw it, so I added it to my collection . AUSTRIA, Holy Roman Empire, 1564-1595. Ferdinand II, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, Count of Tyrol. Obverse: Ferdinand crowned & armored, holding a scepter over his shoulder & hand on a sword hilt. Reverse: Austrian coat of arms surrounded by the Order of the Golden Fleece. AR Thaler: 28.20 gm, 40 mm, 12 h. Hall Mint. Davenport 8094. This thaler is a high-grade lustrous coin, perfectly centered & made from fresh dies. It is also an early Baroque Period machine made coin that replaced hand-struck coins from the Gothic Period. Experiments for making machine made coinage began in Italy by the end of the 15th century. By the middle of the 16th century German & Austrian mints had perfected methods for making these coins. These coins were no longer struck by hammer blows, but were made on screw presses that squeezed the die impression on the flan. The screw presses were run by man or animal power until Mathew Boulton & James Watt applied steam engines to coin striking machines in the 18th century. The style & aesthetics of early machine made coinage also changed. No longer were high relief portraits possible like those seen on Greek & Roman coins. Instead low relief images were made by die engravers, sometimes displaying minute details & great virtuosity. Another pleasant change to early Baroque machine made coinage was the elimination of the complex & confusing lettering of the Gothic style . Instead clean & simple Roman style lettering was used, making the inscriptions much easier to read . Painting of Ferdinand II, circa 1557, by Francisco Terzi, Kunsthistorishes Museum, Vienna, Austria. If any CT members have similar coins or something interesting to add feel free to post them on this thread .
Both lovely coins. Nice additions! While I do not have any coinage of Ferdinand II, I do have this mezzo ducato of Naples, 1554-1556, IBR, of Philip II, another Hapsburg. Ricco 3 14.7 grams My Emperor Philip II is not a tetradrachm, but an AE 27 of Samosata, Commagene, 247-249 AD. This coin is notable for having the swimming river god on the reverse, at the foot of Tyche, instead of the normal Pegasus. This coin was lot 935 of Roma E-Sale 72 BMC 62 15.11 grams
PHILIP II (As Caesar) Tetradrachm, Antioch, 244 11.48 g - 26.5 mm Prieur 333 M AP IOVΛI ΦIΛIΠΠOC KЄCAP ΔHMAPX ЄΞOYCIAC - SC This tetradrachm, rather "white", also seems to have a lot of silver on the surface.
robinjojo, I love that mezzo ducato from Naples . I wonder if that coin is still a hand struck example or a machine made coin on an irregular flan ?
Alwin, That's a beautiful Tet of Philip II ! It's a mint state razor-sharp strike that would be impossible to improve .
The Naples mezzon ducato is a hammer-struck coin. Spain continued to produce hammer-struck coins, with some exceptions, well into the 18th century. Here's a scudo that's a little later, 1565-1571. 29.7 grams
robinjojo, That's a nice hefty thaler size silver coin ! It's interesting that a number of European countries resisted the move to machine made coinage, or in the case of Elizabethan England, machinery for making the new coinage was tried out for 10 years & suddenly they reverted to the old hammer struck method because the guild of moneyers was afraid of losing their jobs . A great example of unions impeding progress for the sake of their own preservation .
Two magnificent coins, @Al Kowsky! Here are a couple of common Tetradrachms of Philip I and Philip II: Philip I Billon Tetradrachm, 247 AD [Year 3], Syria, Seleucis and Pieria, Antioch Mint. Obv. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from rear, ΑΥΤΟΚ Κ Μ ΙΟΥΛΙ ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟϹ ϹƐΒ / Rev. Eagle standing right, wings spread with left wing behind leg, head right and holding wreath in beak, ΔΗΜΑΡΧ ƐΞΟΥϹΙΑϹ ΥΠΑ ΤΟ Γ [= Year 3]; in exergue in two lines: ΑΝΤΙΟΧΙΑ/ S C. RPC [Roman Provincial Coinage] Vol. VIII Online 29005 [temporary ID number] (see https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/type/29005 ); Prieur 368, McAlee 908 (Series 4, Group (b), Type 2). 26.5 mm., 10.40 g., 7 h. Philip II, billon Tetradrachm, 248-249 AD, Syria, Seleucis and Pieria, Antioch Mint. Obv. Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind, AYTOK K M IOΥΛI ΦIΛIΠΠOC CEB / Rev. Eagle standing facing, head right, wings spread, holding wreath in its beak, ΔHMAΡX EΞ OYCIAC YΠATO Δ [4th consulship]; ANTIOXIA / S C in two lines below eagle. Prieur 474 [Michel and Karin Prieur, Syro-Phoenician Tetradrachms (London, 2000)]; BMC 20 Syria 560 [Warwick Wroth, A Catalog of the Greek Coins in the British Museum, Vol. 20, Galatia, Cappadocia, and Syria (London, 1899) at p. 218]; McAlee 1042 [Richard McAlee, The Coins of Roman Antioch (2007)]; RPC VIII No. 29020 (https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/type/29020). 27.15 mm., 14.00 g. Ex. CNG Electronic Auction 466, April 22, 2020, part of Lot 728. And here are my two earliest silver thalers, both purchased back in the 1980s, and both milled rather than hammered: Saxe-Altenburg, AR Broad Thaler 1624, Four Dukes (the sons of Friedrich Wilhelm I). Obv. Johann Philipp /Rev. his three brothers, Friedrich, Johann Wilhelm, & Friedrich Wilhelm II. Davenport 7371. Saxony (Albertine Line), AR Broad Thaler 1626, Johann Georg I, Elector of Saxony. Davenport 7601.
Hi Al The Spanish continued to produce hammered coinage, especially in the colonies for practical reasons. Die presses were expensive as were the dies they required. Given the enormous amount of silver being produced in Potosi, Bolivia and in Mexico, producing hammered coinage was cheap and expedient. Much of the hazardous work, such as the refining process involving the mixing of ore and mercury and extracting ore in the mines, was done by indigenous natives forced into service. Under these primitive, brutal conditions crudely made dies and haphazardly made flans often resulted in muddled and incomplete strikes. From the view of the Spanish, these coins, or ingots, sufficed as long as they had some mark on one or both sides denoting that the coin was made with the official sanction of the Spanish Crown. Here's one of those coins, from Potosi, dated 1770, assayer V. KM 45 26.9 grams
Beautiful tetradrachm @Al Kowsky (and nice thaler too, but not being into these, my judgment is only that of a candid) My three last Philipp I & II tets acquisitions. Not as lustrous as your's or @Alwin's but nice portraits IMO nevertheless Philippe Ier l'arabe (25/02/244-09/249) - Tetradrachme de billon de l'atelier d'Antioche, 244 ΑΥΤΟΚ Κ Μ ΙΟΥΛ ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟC CЄΒ, Buste radié et cuirassé à gauche vu par l'arrière ΔΗΜΑΡΧ ΕΞΟΥCΙΑC, Aigle de face, les ailes déployées, la tête a gauche, tenant une couronne dans son bec et une palme dans ses serres. A l'exergue SC 27 mm, 12.42 g, 1 h Ref : Prieur # 313, McAlee # 893, BMC #512 Provenance : Leu web auction #14/1097 Philippe Ier l'arabe (25/02/244-09/249) - Tetradrachme de billon de l'atelier d'Antioche, 248-249 ΑΥΤΟΚ Κ Μ ΙΟΥΛΙ ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟC CЄΒ, Buste radié et cuirassé à gauche vu par l'avant ΔΗΜΑΡΧ ЄΞΟΥCΙΑC ΥΠΑ ΤΟ Δ, Aigle à gauche, les ailes déployées, tenant une couronne dans son bec. A l'exergue ΑΝΤΙΟΧΙΑ / S C 26 mm, 11.35 g, 7 h Ref : Prieur # 431, McAlee # 954c Provenance : Leu web auction #14/1103 Philippe II (07 ou 08/247-09/249) - Tetradrachme de billon de l'atelier d'Antioche, 247 ΑΥΤΟΚ Κ Μ ΙΟΥΛΙ ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟC CЄΒ, Buste lauré, drapé et cuirassé à gauche, vu par l'avant ΔΗΜΑΡΧ ЄΞΟΥCΙΑC ΥΠΑ ΤΟ Γ , Aigle à gauche, les ailes déployées, tenant dans son bec une couronne. A l'exergue ANTIOXIA / [SC] 26 mm, 11.61 g, 7 h Ref : Prieur # 405, McAlee #1039 Provenance : Leu web auction #14/1109 Q
Donna, The portrait on your Philip I Tet is extraordinary ! The veracity & sensitivity of the engraving rivals the finest work of the Rome Mint. Both thalers are very handsome coins too . I have to chuckle when ever I see a 4 brothers thaler . The élite members of the Holy Roman Empire proudly displayed their waring natures on their coinage . The endless series of wars that plagued European history should give us pause for reflection....
robinjojo, You make some interesting points in your post . The English, Spanish, Portuguese, & French all vied for control of the "New World", & it looks like the Spanish were the big winners in regards to wealth accumulation . Of course all this booty was gained off the backs of enslaved indigenous people. The Spanish exploitation of silver production added so much silver to the world supply that it created a world monetary crisis that took centuries to stabilize . I'm glad you posted one of the famous "cob" coins . These crude little things were so easy to clip that they were soon traded by weight. Finding a well struck cob with complete images that hasn't been clipped is a real challenge & an expensive proposition .
Q, All 3 of your posted Tets are very handsome coins ! Left facing portraits always grab my attention . Your Tet of Philip II, Prieur 405 is a Very Rare coin & far superior to the examples pictured by McAlee & Prieur . I sent a handsome left facing Tet of Philip I to Severus Alexander for inclusion in the next AMCC auction, McAlee 919a, see photo below. Also included in that auction is another example of McAlee 1064c, not nearly as nice as the example I just acquired & posted , see photo below.
Thanks, @Al Kowsky. Has anyone else noticed the large numbers of Philip I tets from Antioch available recently? I've been seeing them all the time in the last few months on VCoins, MA-Shops, and a Facebook group I belong to. It makes me wonder if a new hoard might have appeared on the market. In any event, of all the ones I saw when I looked, I picked the one I bought because I liked the portrait the best, despite the small scratch on his lower lip. I'm glad you agree with my choice!
Donna, I haven't heard of any large hoards of Philip I Tets that have reached the marketplace lately, but then I'm not "in the know" about these things anyway. I have no reason to suspect a large hoard has been dumped on the market & I'm constantly looking for coins of that family. With metal detectorists constantly at work I'm sure sizable hoards will come to surface. Choice high grade coins like the one posted by Alwin are bringing shocking prices at auction recently.
Even common ones in nice condition like mine are more expensive than they used to be, even though there's certainly no supply shortage -- I used to see them for around $100 or less, but that's hard to find now.
@Al Kowsky @DonnaML Amazing Talers you have! Here's my Wilder Mann Taler from Braunschweig. My avatar is from this coin. And my first greek coin, a hemidrachm from Maroneia
Agricantus, I love your Wild Man thaler ! The hairy fellow is uprooting a tree to show-off his strength . I wonder if the American "Big Foot" myth was started by German immigrants ....
