I'm leaving for a while...

Hey folks,

Tomorrow I am officially joining the US Navy, and will be starting Officer Candidate School in Rhode Island.

I will not have any computer access for at least 9 weeks, much to my chagrin.

If all goes well, I will be commissioned as an Ensign in the Oceanography field in mid-April.

To celebrate, please post your best nautical-themed coins!

Here's some of my favorites, the popular FTR Galley series of Constans!


Barbarous AE24. Compare to the one below, you can see how the celator made some major mistakes - he places two long sticks under the emperor's left hand, where there should have been one standard, and one clothing strap of some sort. The standard itself is almost nonexistent, and the galley is also pretty gone. Very interesting to see which parts of the reverse were retained well - namely, the in-hand victory and the rudder-wielding Victory.
I always wondered how degenerate these coins could have gotten if they were allowed to; exempli gratia the Eastern "attendants and fire altar" coins that devolved to almost nothing remotely close to the original Sasanian prototype.


Oddly smaller AE21 official prototype


And a really elegant AE24 example. I actually always wondered if this one was fake, it seemed too perfect. This reverse has emperor holding a phoenix instead of a Victory. The details are amazing, especially the galley with some rather fine work on the fore and aft portions. The emperor's armor getup is gorgeous, and standard is rather nicely detailed.

 

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Wow. Good luck to you.

 

P.S. : Here are NGC photos, of my sea turtle coin, before I removed it from the NGC slab.


Aegina AR Stater. 510 BC To 490 BC. Sear 1851. Diameter = 19 mm. Weight = 12.3 grams. Obverse Sea Turtle. Reverse Incuse Punch. Countermarks.

 

Good luck. It should be quite easy to find coins fitting the nautical theme since designs featuring ships and sea creatures were so prevalent on Greco-Roman coinage.



Mark Antony Legionary Ar denarius, 32-31 BC. Military mint moving with Antony. ANT AVG[III] VI R.R.P.C, praetorian galley to r., rev., Aquila between two signa; LEG XXI across fields (RSC 58). 3.5g, diameter 18mm

Ex. CJ Martin



AR Denarius 20mm. 3.95g. Spanish Mint Diademed bust of Genius of the Roman People draped r., sceptre on shoulder; G.P.R. above. Terrestrial globe between rudder and sceptre; EX-S.C. to either side; In ex.: CN.LEN.Q RSC I Cornelia 54; Craw. 393/1a Good VF. Toned with attractive contrast and some remaining lustre. Nice high relief.

Ex. Civitas Galleries



THRACE, Apollonia Pontika. Mid-late 4th century BC. AR Drachm (3.06 gm; 15 mm). Facing gorgoneion / Anchor; A and crayfish under each fluke. SNG BM Black Sea 167; SNG Copenhagen 459. Well struck on a nice broad flan. Nicely centered. Choice EF. Toned.

Ex. Pars Coins



AR Denarius 19mm. 3.40g. Rome Mint 79 A.D. Laureate head, r. IMP TITVS CAES VESPASIAN AVG P M Radiate figure standing on rostral column decorated with ships' rams. TR P VIIII IMP XV COS VII P P RIC II 16a; RSC II 289 Good VF. Scarce. Lightly toned with bright lustre. A few tiny light marks.

Ex. Civitas Galleries



Roman Republic, Anonymous, 217 - 215 BC AE Quartuncia, Semilibral Standard, Rome Mint, 16mm, 3.36 grams Obverse: Helmeted head of Roma right. Reverse: Prow of galley right, ROMA above. Crawford 38/8 // RBW 103 // Sydenham 88

Ex. Ken Dorney



Vitellius, AR denarius, Civil War Issue AR 18mm/3.1gm Rome mint c. 69 AD Con/ Slightly off-struck to left, otherwise, Very Fine. Obv/ [A VITELLIVS] GERM IMP AVG TR P; laureate head right Rev/ XV VIR SACR FAC; Tripod-lebes with dolphin laying right above and raven standing right below Ref/ RIC Vol One, 109, RSC111, BCM39

Ex. Noble Roman Coins



90 BC - Roman Republic. L. Calpurnius Piso Frugi Æ AS / FRVGI Attribution: Crawford 340/4; Calpurnia 18; Sydenham 677 Date: 90 BC Obverse: Head of Janus Reverse: Prow right, FRVGI below Size: 26.25mm Weight: 9.72 grams Description: nearing VF

Ex. Marc Breitsprecher

 

If I play my cards right, maybe I can join the the elite Dolphin Cavalry Corps!

 

Arados, AE 14 mm, 2nd c. BC, reverse: ram of galley - on the right: ram of Roman or Punic galley sunk at the Battle of the Aegates Islands (10 March 241 BC).

Now, let's dance !!! ♩♬

 

I always liked those dramatic galley coins. Will have to pick one of those up with that nice shiny officer pay...

 

Best of luck @hotwheelsearl !

Here are some of my nautical themed coins

 

@hotwheelsearl.
Although not an ancient, here's one sailing your way.
2000 Republika E Shqiperise Albanian 20 Lek (Aluminum/Bronze) KM # 78




Hooyah !

 

earl, Best of luck on your new venture . Breaking away from coins & the internet for this period of time is a good thing . Hopefully you will get a good assignment after OCS. Pictured below is a centenionalis with an appropriate reverse composition. The emperor is standing in a galley holding a globe with Victory atop & a labarum in the other hand. The galley is being steered by Victory seated in the stern.

 

I'm ancient, my exonumia isn't.
Z

​

 

...joining the navy?!?...earl, i thought you were around my age...and wouldn't be joinin' much other than AARP.....haha...well good luck to you sir and here's a Hadrian Galley for your flotilla

 

Good Luck! 21 years US Army retired! Sorry no nautical coins

 

I don't think I have anything nautical. Congrats on going for a commission. I was an E5 Electronics Technician for 9 years total.

 

Fair winds and following seas.

 

I don't have any nautical coins, but I do have 12 years of active duty military experience (four years USMC and eight years Army), most of it as an NCO, so I'm loaded with advice for any brand new shiny officer:

Don't let the salutes and the yes sirs go to your head...listen and learn from your senior enlisted, who have been getting their hands dirty for years doing the job that you'll only have learned about in a classroom...ask questions...ask more questions...stay humble - not soft, but humble...work for respect that's earned, rather than the forced respect that your rank will bring.

Above all else, enjoy your time seeing new places, new cultures, new people! Wherever you go in the world, find the time to explore! And thank you for your upcoming service.

 

Good luck. I've been retired for over 20 years from the army and I still miss the life and comradery.

NERO
AR Billon Tetradrachm
OBVERSE: ΝΕΦΡΑ ΚΛΑΒ ΚΑΗς ΣΕΜΠ, Radiate head left, wearing aegis; L IΓ to left below chin (Reginal year 13)
REVERSE: ΣΕΒΑΣΤΗ ΦΌΡΟς, Galley sailing right, dolphins below
Struck at Alexandria, Egypt, 66/7 AD
12.5g, 23mm
Emmett 121

 

God bless you and keep you safe. Thank you for your service to our country. Thank you for sharing your expertise on CT. Thank you for being a friend to CT members. Peace & Blessings, my friend, Kenneth

 

Fair winds and following seas (future) shipmate
I spent almost 4 years at NAVSTA Newport both as a student and an instructor.

Once you are able to get out in town, you should check out Brick Alley Pub downtown. Great food. Also where I took (the future) Mrs Frog on our first date

Keep warm. Newport this time of year is a wee bit chilly. Looking forward to seeing you when you return.



Oh and a bit of advice from a soon-to-be-retired Sailor - Listen to your people. Especially your NCOs. Just because they don't have shiny bars on their shoulders doesn't mean they should be dismissed. I've seen that mindset all too often in the fleet.
Your NCOs have been there and done all the things you just read about at OCS. Learn from them.

 

Best of luck to you @hotwheelsearl!