This coin sat in the seller's store for many months. Listed at a fair price too. A couple of weeks ago I decided to give it a home. It's my first brockage, hopefully it won't be my last. Vespasian Brockage AR Denarius, 2.92g Rome mint, 69-70 AD RIC - . BMC - . RSC - . Obv: IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG; Head of Vespasian, laureate, r. Rev: Incuse of obverse Acquired from Aegean, December 2017. Based on style and obverse legend this brockage is from the Vespasian's first denarius issues at Rome. Someday I would love to find an obverse die match. Here is @dougsmit's excellent page on brockages. http://www.forumancientcoins.com/dougsmith/brock.html Post your unwanted coins!
Most brockages have the incuse image quite clear. Because it is incuse it is not very subject to wear, as opposed to the regular obverse sin relief which can show wear in the usual manner. I am having a hard time understanding this OP coin as a brockage (which is not to say I understand it any other way). Why does the OP image of the "reverse" not show a perfect incuse of an unworn obverse? Brockages do.
Nice catch David. Here is a coin that sat in the dealer's offering for months before I decided to buy it. I actually thought about this coin for several months before finally buying it. I do not know why I waited so long. I knew as soon as I saw it that I wanted it. Galba AR denarius, VF, Rome mint, ( 3.512g, 19.0mm, 180o), Nov 68 - Jan 69 A.D.; elegant style, light toning on nice surfaces, high-points flatly struck, Obv: IMP SER GALBACAESAR AVG, laureate head right; Rev: HISPANIA (counterclockwise starting on left), Hispania advancing left, draped, poppy and two stalks of grain in extended right hand, round shield and two transverse spears in left hand; RIC I 193 (R2), BMCRE I 16, RSC II 83, BnF III 89, Hunter I 1 var. (no CAESAR, Aug - Oct 68), SRCV I (2000) 2103 var. (same) Ex: the Jyrki Muona Collection; Ex: Forum Ancient Coins Purchased from Forum Ancient Coins August 30, 2016 Coin depicted in the Wildwinds.com database.
It's not fully struck up and in hand the reverse is clearly an incuse image of the obverse. Granted, the picture could be better, but I digress.
I have only one brockage, this Faustina Junior provincial bronze with rather rough surfaces. It doesn't photograph well at all:
I only have one 'brockage'---and a flawed example at that but since it was a 'legionary' type (and cheap) I wanted it If my remaining budget allowed, I would have sprung for that super cool example that was offered in the Stevex6 collection.
I don't have any "unwanted" coins in my collection. I actually really enjoy them all, as there are cool historical reasons that I captured them. I can toss out a couple Athena Owls (my first purchases), that I perceive were unwanted. However, as I researched the bankers marks, I found that they have a neat story! On the Athenian Owl, I understand that bankers were not afraid to chop or test the coin between the Owl's eyes. Kind of a dig at Athens. However, Greek bankers were reluctant to deface the Goddess Athena, being a powerful goddess. Mine are kind of cool with bankers chops all over Athena's faces, and not damaging the Owls. I am curious as to why. @dougsmit suggested that they may had traded well out of the Greek world, and either were ignorant of or not cared about Athena. Would love to know the mystery behind them... perhaps they were traded in Celtic areas, or accross the Persian Empire, etc... I can just see the Bankers punching these coins: "BAMM!!! You suck Athens!" "CHUNK!!! your goddess is not real!!!" or "WHACK!!! Who is this idiot on the coin? I just want to make sure it is a hunk of silver!"
