I'm very grateful to be the latest caretaker of a great rarity in numismatics: a Flavian Amphitheatre/Colosseum sestertius. I acquired this piece at a considerable discount to my planned bid, despite several bidders on the floor/phone/online working against me. It's difficult to price a coin like this where each example is considerably different to others - I think the price heavily depends on who happens to be sitting in the room or who is aware of the auction. This particular type is understood to have been minted to commemorate the first ever games at the Colosseum and was handed out by the emperor Titus to the first spectators. As one of only six examples of this earliest die available to private collectors (with the remaining handful of pieces permanently in museums), this coin was a very unique opportunity for myself. There are no other surviving contemporary depictions of the Colosseum in any other medium as it stood when first built. Despite being excessively rare, it is listed in most books about the Colosseum/Rome/gladiators. The obverse die continued to be used after the death of Titus but the legends were changed - the later coins are more common than this original type but don't carry the historic weight I was looking for. Shown on the left is the huge, conical fountain named the Meta Sudans and on the right, the famous Baths of Titus. You can see tiers of spectators within and a central arch which represents the Imperial Box, all shown from a bird's-eye view, with small statues in each of the outer-facing arches. The reverse is of Titus on a curule chair, sitting on top of the globe, bringing peace with an olive branch by being victorious over their enemies (shown as captured arms). The Colosseum side is rendered in quite high relief. My pictures aren't perfect but it is simply stunning how the engraver was able to depict the massive structure. Enjoy!
As I had posted in another thread, this coin and the Ides of March denarius are the two coins outside my current collecting focus that I most desire. Had I not stayed focused on my own collection's theme, we might have ended up in a bidding war over this coin. I'm glad you were able to obtain it at a price that seems a bargain compared to what it might have sold for. It's true that sometimes you happen to find a great coin that is overlooked at a certain auction, and it's rewarding to be able to take advantage of that good fortune. Congratulations! I'll allow myself a little envy over that particular coin.
Hmmm => they look very pretty together, yes? => Obviously Joe => that is one of the sweetest coins that I've ever seen (bravo) ... *sigh* => but I merely wanted to see my sweet ol' gryphon on the same thread!! Cheers, coin-brother!!
Spectacular specimen of course. Any coliseum sestertius is one of those special, nearly unobtainable coins every ancient collector dreams of, just like Port of Ostia and similar. Tremendous acquisition.
What can you still aspire to (numismatically) once you one of these. Does anybody know what is the extant population of Colosseum Sestertii.
There's always a next purchase. For me, my next significant purchases will be a few items off of my Greek wantlist and an EID MAR at some point. These are all longer term acquisitions but I'm trying to get the "big ones" out of the way earlier. Colosseum sestertii come from four major varieties. A recent census found 42 examples - the vast majority of which are in museums or very heavily worn. There are likely some more, but probably not many. Across all varieties, there are only five Colosseum dies, which is very few for a bronze issue considering they tend to not last as long as silver/gold dies. There are a few exceptional examples, in a nicer grade than mine, albeit with some problems (edge splits/cracks/corrosion). Mine weighs 26.90 grams which makes it one of the heaviest - some weigh a mere 19.44 grams and the average is around 24g.
Absolutely fascinating coin Joe. An amazing history behind the coin. Those pesky other bidders always driving up the price! Why can't they just understand that we should get it at the opening bid
They have a range like every coin, but most are $100K+, with some of the best being $500K+. Less expensive examples can be found, but will have considerable problems (crystallization being one of the more common issues). They are not rare as ancients go (~100 examples or so, depending on who you ask) but universally in demand because of their history as you pointed out, so the price is very high.
