The following coin is being offered at auction with a starting bid of $1500: I have an example of this same coin I purchased a few years back for less than $100: NERO CLAUDIUS DRUSUS AE Sestertius OBVERSE: NERO CLAVDIVS DRVSVS GERMANICVS IMP - Bare head left REVERSE: TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TRP IMP Exe: SC - Claudius seated left, holding branch; weapons on floor Rome 41BC-2 AD 28.6g, 36mm RIC 93 Now I know its obvious my example is in lower condition; however, the difference in price is astounding. I question the starting price. Comments??
I don't know enough about ancients to contribute with knowledge, but I will ask this; is it a condition rarity thing, perhaps, not many surviving examples of high grade?
I would agree with @-monolith- @Bing It looks tooled to me too. I guess the starting price is aimed at "investors" and not "collectors". Yours is the real deal and the other might attract unwanted scrutiny in the future. Your's won't.
A very good point. A starting bid is exactly that, the number behind that might be zero. I have three ancients in my watchlist at GC because I like the look of them and wanted to see what they go for. They keep coming back up for me because nobody has hit the starting bid yet. All three have been put into, I think, four auctions now.
Here is the seller's description: NERO CLAUDIUS DRUSUS, Sest., Bust l./TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG PM TRP IMP, Ruler std l, on pile of weapons, RIC (Claudius) 93; Choice AEF, nrly centered, full lgnds, good olive green patina, very carefully smoothed, not obvious; fine style portrait with strong detail. Free of faults. Seller does admit it's been smoothed. He also states that other examples like a GVF brought $5650, NAC 5/13; EF $66,305, NAC 5/23. Regardless, these price's seem ridiculous to me
Tooled and ugly and not worth a tenth of the price. I hope this is eBay since I don’t believe any reputable European or American auction house would sell this fraud of a coin.
No, not Ebay. But a auction site I have used often in the past, and normally I've been very happy with my purchases. I'm just reluctant to name the house.
Neither would I; however, I was trying to draw attention to the extraordinary price. I do not think our collections have grown value at this absurd pace (authenticity not withstanding).
I don't remember how much I paid for this one but, as an old miser, I'm pretty sure it wasn't much. I liked it because it was relatively affordable and the Latin legend was complete. But it is too large for the squares of my trays. I was forced to have a special tray for the largest coins regrouping a Ptolemaic bronze, this Nero Drusus sestertius, a large provincial bronze of Severus Alexander and two folles of Justinian...
That... can't be right??? Maybe someone fell asleep with their phone open & accidentally bid? Repeatedly? I've done it. It also appears that it began in a state similar to, if not worse than, yours. Went to town with the Dremel, huh? Didn't leave it in the Jax long enough either. They really won't admit that it's tooled?
