I've wanted a Augustus Geta for a very long time and one appeared that basically said "Im the One" and with luck I got it and for a very fair price. So this is a big want that I can scratch off my list. I tried to take pics with my iphone but its too toned so I will just use the seller photos, which are excellent anyways. Silver Denarius O: IMP CAES P SEPT GETA PIVS AVG, Laureate head right R: PONTIF TR P COS II, Geta on horseback riding left, spearing enemy beneath. Rome. A.D. 209 2.7gm BMC p. 359 17. RIC 68 (Rated Rare), RSC 13
Nice one, with cool toning! I'm passivly looking for a nice/fair priced one as well. I like the portrait on yours alot.
Nice coin,congrats on the find! I know nothing about ancients, were coins like this struck hot or cold?
This coin has many things to recommend it but the surfaces and toning make me believe it was fully cleaned once and either artificially or naturally retoned. When I first collected US coins as a kid, I don't recall seeing many rainbow toned silver dollars. Now they are a fad of the market. Perhaps that has something to do with them being 50 years older now. I expect them to become gray in another fifty years so I'm not sure I see long term profit in paying extra for the colorful ones. Ancients with this color must be cleaned and retoning since 'natural' color for ancients would be dark gray or black. Time will tell and the young among you will be able to check and see if I was right. In private correspondance with mat on this coin, I was not impressed with its surfaces because the cleaning seemed a little harsh for my tastes. I may have been too hard on the coin considering the almost complete lack of wear and the fact that the reverse type is special. We all have pet peeves and I am hard on coins that look harshly cleaned even after they retone to a point of being pretty. This is a nice coin.
That is a great coin, you did good with this one. Beautiful portrait of Geta, and a very cool reverse type, one I have always admired. As far as the toning, whether artificial or not, the coin itself is a beauty.... I know some people fancy that rainbow toning on coins like doug said, a bit of a fad in the market, but not seen all too often on Ancients. But yes, a special reverse indeed doug, it is very heroic, and this particular one has great detail on the horse and captive. And it does seem to have very little wear, a truly great bearded bust as well.... I really like it, and in talking with Mat before his purchase, I told him that if he wasn't going to bid on it, then I surely would. Luckily he bid on it, and won it, great job mat! Another sweet coin for you collection.... looks like you must have the whole Severan Dynasty on coins now.... or at least the main four, Septimius Severus, Julia Domna, Caracalla and Geta.
I agree, really nice style on the coin, especially the reverse. Great pickup. Doug, I agree with you, and I think what you say about seeing the silver dollars fifty years ago is the key. These coins have now been sitting around for fifty years in cheap, sulfur impregnated holders. I used to buy sets put into these holders in the sixties and having to dip half of them to make them salable the toning was too dark or splotchy. I believe this is the source of all of these rainbow toned coins nowadays, at least a significant portion. I would open up a set and typically the ones near the edge of the folder were ugly, but the ones towards the center were very pretty rainbow toned.
