A Shot In The Dark Rarity

I took a chance with this coin. A fellow collector alerted me to a rare Domitian denarius that was part of a coin list a dealer had mailed to him. No pictures, just a description. I understand in the pre-internet age this was quite common. You had to trust the dealer's attribution and grade (or understand their faults and 'language'). Personally, it is a new experience purchasing a coin sight unseen. After a few emails back and forth with the dealer (settling price and shipping) the coin was mine. After it arrived a week later I was very glad I gambled and got this 'shot in the dark' coin.

Here it is.


Domitian
AR Denarius, 2.60g
Rome mint, 88 AD
RIC 597 (R2), BMC 133 var., RSC - (cf. 77a)
Obv: IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VIII; Head of Domitian, laureate, bearded, l.
Rev: COS XIIII LVD SAEC FEC; Herald adv. l., with wand and shield
Acquired from Michael Trenerry, August 2017.

An extremely rare example of the Saecular Games herald denarius with portrait head left. Probably the fifth recorded specimen. An obverse die match with the RIC plate coin. I have seen only two other examples in trade in the past dozen years or so.

Thanks Martin for alerting me to an important Domitian 'grail'!

 

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Good one David, congrats.

 

Congrats!

 

Good bet on your part David, and very kind of Martin to point it for you

Q

 

Wow very nice coin im jealous! Haha congrats.

 

Very nice coin! Bull's eye!

 

Congrats David!! Cool left-facing portrait....and I LOVE the 'Herald reverse'!!!!

 

Excellent score! A leap of faith that clearly paid off.

 

Wow David, you have great instincts for tracking down these rare denarii. Congrats.

 

Sometimes a gamble pays off. Congratulations David. I'm not sure I would take the chance as I'm not much of a gambler.

 

Awesome catch David! It's hard to believe there are still dealers that rely on mailing lists!

 

Nice find, a left portrait to boot.

 

checks out nicely congrats

 

Nice find, David! I had no idea there were still dealers sending out such price lists but it sounds like it can work out nicely.

 

Congrats! Very cool reverse!!

 

David does it again. Congratulations on the great find.

 

Wow, that's a fine coin David! Just love those Domitians, especially the rare ones. Good catch.

 

I was kind of surprised about that too. The name of the dealer is Michael Trenerry and he is super professional and courteous. I highly recommend him!

 

Can anyone tell us a little bit about davids shot in the dark. Seems like no one knows anything about his coin.

 

Bing talk to me