Athenian Owl Tetradrachms

FAC is very trustworthy. You can also get some good deals on their free auctions.

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

I have purchased several coins from FORVM. They are a good seller, one of the better retail dealers IMHO.

 

Thanks a lot guys. I ordered from them once before but wasn't sure what others thought. I have my second order on the way. Will post it when it arrives.

 

I have bought several coins from FAC including the most expensive coin I have ever bought. They are excellent. They have great stock and their service is great. I have always been very happy with my purchases. The coins I receive always look better in hand than the photos on the site.

 

I don't think the style is good enough on any but maybe the last one for them to be a cast.

I think you mean "classical," not "archaic." Archaic is something like this (from CNG, not my coin):


Sold for $9750, BTW. These things are both rare and pricey.

 

Some other trusted dealers are our own John Anthony and Ken Dorney, both of whom post here frequently. I got this great owl from John recently:


Attica, Athens
AR tetradrachm, 25 mm, 17grams, 3h
449-404 BC
Obverse: Helmeted head of Athena right, archaic eye.
Reverse: AOE; Owl right, tail as a single prong.
Cf. SNG Copenhagen 1621

John

 

I like the archaic ones. But a bit out of my price range...

 

woah woah woah gorgeous owl there Theosodius. Nice user name BTW. I will keep an eye out for those kind members~~~

 

delete

 

delete

 

delete

 

delete

 

delete

 

I am no expert on these, but I did read somewhere that it is difficult to get both the crest of the helmet and the nose. If you have a choice, always get the nose on the flan. If you take your time, you should find a good example within your budget.

 

@MerlinAurelius, I think you would benefit from some reading before choosing one of these coins.

Here's a good overview: http://athenianowlcoins.reidgold.com/

Once you've decided on a general era/style (archaic, classical, intermediate style, new style, imitation, and subcategories of some of these), you might want to study archives to get a feel for price for each of these general types (bearing in mind relative condition). In general, the archaic and classical are more expensive than the intermediate style and new style coins and seem to be more desirable.

A very useful database is CNG's archives. Also very handy, although requiring a paid subscription to see hammer prices, is ACsearch. Vcoins is a good place to shop for fixed price coins. Keep in mind that you'll generally pay more for the convenience of buying it now when purchasing from a fixed price seller. Many of them purchase their inventory in the same auctions in which non-dealer collectors participate.

Speaking of those auctions, Numisbids and Sixbid are auction aggregators and are a good place to search for upcoming auction coins of interest.

Also, keep in mind that posting currently for sale coins here on a public forum can be risky. You might bring it to the attention of someone else who is in the market for the type. It is best to refrain from posting upcoming auction coins because other CoinTalk members might be planning a bid and might not appreciate the attention. The flip side is that if someone posts a for-auction coin and a different member wins it, it might look like the winner "stole" it from the poster, even if the winner had been planning a bid before the poster showed it.

 

delete

 

Another thing-- these very popular coins are widely faked despite their incredible abundance.

It's good to check any potential purchases against similar coins in fakes databases.

http://www.forumancientcoins.com/fakes/search.php
http://www.forgerynetwork.com/default.aspx

 

Forum is one of the most trustworthy dealers around.

 

When you ask the board to give an opinion on price, in general what we do is go to the databases I cited above and compare your potential purchase to similar coins.

Sometimes a member will be more familiar with a given type of coin and may be able to render an instant (and relatively informed) opinion but if you are new to the board you won't know whose opinion is "relatively informed" and who is just guessing . Therefore, it's best to check those archives yourself.

 

@MerlinAurelius listen to TIF, she has good advice. I wouldn't spend $500 for a drachm. Also consider, would you be happy with test cuts. Some think that they give extra authenticity. I chose one that had no test cuts. Take your time and don't rush into buying, there are thousands of these coins out there.