Featured Follow the coin theme GAME - ancient edition - post ‘em if you got ‘em

Genoese Caffa, Filippo Maria Visconti (AD 1421-1435), AR Asper. 0.77g, 15mm.
Obv: DV_M.D.:CAF; the arms of Genoa in a beaded oval of four arches, three dots to side and below of portal.
Rev: Small Jujid tamga with 1 dot - tamga of the ruling Mongol Khan. Circular Arabic legend, السلطان العادل محمد خان (The Just Ruler, Muhammad Khan).

Caffa was a Silk Road trading post on the northern shore of the Black Sea in Mongol territory controlled by Genoa.

Caffa is often described as the first European controlled city to be afflicted with the Black Death in AD 1346 - it is often cited as an early example of biological warfare. This account comes from Gabriele de’ Mussi who tells of the Mongol siege of Caffa in which they catapulted plague infected bodies into the city.

For a revised view on this story and the spread of the plague see Hanna Barker, "Laying the Corpses to Rest: Grain, Embargoes, and Yersinia pestis in the Black Sea, 1346–48", Speculum, The journal of the Medieval Academy of America, Volume 96, Number 1, January 2021, University of Chicago Press.

This coin was issue by Filippo Maria Visconti. The Visconti family took control of Genoa (and with it Caffa) for Milan.

Next: medieval and not European

 

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Jatavarman Sundara Pandya I
1251-1268 AD

Obv-Standing king with pellets and their royal symbol fish to the top right.
Rev- Sundara Pandya in Tamil, with a crescent above and a conch below.
1.4g

Next, how about American? at least someone here should own one of those Aztec axe money!

 

12 hours !



Euboia, Chalkis
AR Drachm, circa 338-308 BC
Obv.: Head of the nymph Chalkis right
Rev.: Eagle flying, carrying serpent; ΛA and trident right, X above
Ag, 3.53g, 15.4x16.4mm
Ref.: Picard, Chalcis, Emission 10
Ex BCD Collection
Ex William P. Wallace Collection

Next: Eagle and serpent

 

a nice coin with excellent provenance -these are rarely as pretty as yours. Here is another facing the opposite direction: I am still unsure how to orient the reverse - I follow Picard here, but it certainly seems an unnatural pose to me whether the bird is feasting on the snake on the ground or is mid-air flying, having grabbed it from the ground or water...

Euboia, Chalkis, circa 338-308 BC, AR Drachm (3.68g)
Obv: Head of the nymph Chalkis left
Rev: Eagle flying left, carrying serpent in talons; torch above
Ref: Picard Em. 1; BCD 118; SNG Copenhagen -.

Next: any Greek drachm

 

Seleucid Empire, Antiochus VI Dionysos (144-142 BC), AR drachm, 18 mm, 3.69 g.
Obv.: head of Antiochus VI diademed and radiate, right
Rev.: [BAΣIΛEΩΣ] / ANTIOXOY / EΠIΦANOYΣ / ΔIONYΣOY , naked Apollo seated left on omphalos, holding arrow and resting on bow. Between his feet : K ; in field to left grapes (exergue with date off flan).

NEXT: Axum ! (Shakira sang "This time for Africa !!!")

 

12 hrs
Intermediate owl tet, Pi style V

next, a coin that you’ve treated/cleaned to produce better details (better if your showed both before and after images).

 

Tiberius, Roman Empire
AR denarius
Obv: TI CAESAR DIVI AVG F AVGVSTVS, laureate head right
Rev: PONTIF MAXIM, Livia (as Pax) seated right, holding long scepter in her right hand and olive branch in her left; plain chair legs
Mint: Lugdunum
Date: 14-37 AD
Ref: RIC 26





Next: a coin that looked worse after cleaning or treating

 

Nope, but I have been looking!

 

Oh boy. Story of my collecting career.

but honestly that looks great. Was that a thiosulfate treatment I imagine?

 

Didn’t your Mother ever tell you: “If its infected, don’t pick at it!”

 

My philosophy has been, “if you pick it enough, either you or the itch will die. Either way it gets better”

 

Here's a great example of "when it's dead, it's dead"



NEXT: a bronze coin that actually cleaned up well

 

well, it's been 12 hours so I will be a little liberal in my read of your "Next". This coin cleaned up pretty well (although I didn't clean it). The "wreath" or "prize crown" is not something you see every day. This coin comes from Neocaesarea when Gregory of Neocaesarea or Saint Gregory the Miracle-Worker was consecrated as bishop (around AD 240 or shortly afterward).
Pontus, Neocaesarea, Gordian III, AD 238-244, Æ28, 14g, 28mm, dated POH (178) AD 241/2
Obv: ΑΥ Κ Μ ΑΝΤ ΓΟΡΔΙΑΝΟϹ ϹƐΒ, Obverse design laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Gordian III, right, seen from rear
Rev: ΚΟΙ ΠΟΝΤ ΜΗ ΝƐΟΚΑΙϹΑΡΙΑϹ, ƐΤ ΡΟΗ, wreath with A at its top
Ref: RPC Volume VII.2 ID 19604 (14 Specimens), Rec 57; Çizmeli 348

Neocaesarea was destroyed by earthquakes in AD 344 and is today Niksar Turkey.

Next: another coin with an interesting reverse

 

This takes the cake as far as interesting reverses go in my collection.

A recent pickup.

Trajan sestertius with Trajan addressing soldiers on the reverse. Photo by NAC

Next: another sestertius with an interesting reverse

 

Sestertius of Nero with reverse of Nero addressing troops with Praetorian prefect ( ? Tigellinus, the former fishmonger) by his side.

next... another adlocutio.

 

Commodus, sestertius. The rev. exergue is Fid(es) exerc(itus) but the type is an adlocutio.

NEXT : a reverse with more than 3 people.

 

Aemilia: Lucius Aemilius Lepidus Paullus;The reverse features a Togate figure of Lucius Aemilius Paullus standing left, touching trophy; to left standing right as captives, the King Perseus of Macedon and his two sons.

Next, humiliation.

 

next: parazonium

 

Obv. CONSTANTINVS IVN NOB C, Laureate bust to left, wearing ornate trabea, holding Victory on globe in right hand and parazonium in left. Rev. BEATA TRANQVILLITAS, Large globe on an altar inscribed VO/TIS/XX; three stars above, •STR• dot in exergue.
RIC VII Treveri 382


Next - same type of reverse

 

from Treveri (Trier) let's go to Lugdunum (Lyon)

Roman Imperial, Constantine II, as Caesar, Æ, Lugdunum (Lyon), AD 321-322
Obv: CONSTANTINVS IVN N C, radiate bust left, wearing Imperial mantle
Rev: BEATA TRANQVILLITAS, globe on altar inscribed VOT/IS/XX in three lines, three stars above; PLC in exergue

Next: more Constantine II