I have some great news: my wife and I are buying a house. I also have some bad news: we have to move from our current place to get there. I hate moving. At any rate, during the process of cleaning up and packing my work desk and library I came across some coins of types I no longer collect. Some of these coins are partially attributed and in envelopes but there are also two bags of coins I found soaking in water from my uncleaned coin days. Some appear to be identifiable, others may be slugs but could potentially use more cleaning. Regardless, I'm willing to send them free of charge to a better home or at least one where they won't be forgotten behind a computer monitor for 3 years again. The rules: You must be someone who has already has at least some interest in ancient coins. To show that, show two of your favorite coins from your collection and say why you like them. A quick sentence or two is perfectly fine You must have posted in the ancients forum on CoinTalk sometime before July 2018 Continental US only. If a regular forum poster in the US volunteers to handle forwarding these coins to a winner in another country I'm willing to do that however because of all the other stuff associated with moving, closing, etc I'd rather not handle that myself. The winner will be randomly selected from all eligible entries Friday, July 6th at 10:00 PM Mountain Time Here's a shot of the coins themselves: Best of luck to all who enter!
Congratulations! My condolences! Here are some helpful moving tips. Classy "move" @red_spork ! Good luck to the entrants!
@red_spork This is not an entry just an acknowledgement of a very generous act. Good luck with the move.
When I first started collecting ancient coins about a year ago I was not sure exactly what my focus was going to be. One of my favorite aspect of collecting ancient coins was the age of the coin and all of the history behind those coins. It gets me excited to think about a coins history and who may have owned it in its long history. Last year when I first started posting in the ancient forum I had some help from other members to help me figure out how I wanted to collect. During that time period I learned about myself that I really like the flan the coins are minted on. Specifically odd things about the flan. I realized that I liked thick flans, really thin flans, odd shaped flans, big heavy flans and the final characteristic that caused my heart to flutter was a cracked flan. I also learned that for me unless it is a coin type I recognize, I will struggle to attribute such a piece which is definitely a week spot I have on the dark side of my collecting habits. These two coins that are my favorite in my collection are coins that were given to me by other forum members and they also helped me realize the specific niche I would find myself in. The first coin is this AE Drachm from Macedonia. Ruler was Kassander time period 305-298 B.C. This particular coin is actually my favorite coin in my entire collection and was a gift from @Deacon Ray . I like this coin because it has a very pretty design that makes my heart flutter every time I see the coin, which also has an added bonus that the details are so sharp. I'm also quite fond of the thick flan that it has as seen in this picture. My second favorite coin was gifted to me by @Theodosius . The coin is Aurelian and I'm sad to say that is all I know about it at the moment off the top of my head. This particular coin I'm in love with is a favorite becuase because it is what I call a perfect strike. It has easy to see and feel details (yes I love it when you can feel the details, with gloves of course. Don't do what I did it can wear down the devices). The flan is nicely shaped and good thickness. And the best part of the whole coin is the cracked flan! I absolutely love the cracked flan and it definitely bumped this coin to my second favorite in my collection. I also like the nice even patina that it has aquired over the years and.really give it that feel good look to it. It was hard to choose these two coins becuase I love every coin in my collection no matter what size, how it looks or even the damage a coin may have. If any one has a questions please feel free to ask. I'm sorry for the really long post. Thanks for reading!
Congrats on the new home.!! Entry. I don't have too many ancient coins yet so picking 2 of my favorites is kinda easy. Both of these coins were purchased from CT member @Valentinian This first coin of Elagabalus is by far my favorite due to its condition and the controversial "Horn" Elegabalus...218-222 AD Silver Denarius Minted: 221 AD Obv: IMP ANTONINVS PIVS AVG, Draped bust right, laureate, horned Rev: PM TR P IIII COS III P P, Emperor standing left sacrificing out of patera over lighted altar, holding branch in right hand, star in left field. ex: Warren Esty Ric 46 Sear 7536 This next one is one of my favorites due to it's portrait, toning, and the fact that it can be traced back to a collection in Montana. Valerian I AR Antoninianus 253-255 AD Minted in Rome 22mm 3.68g Obverse: IMP C P LIC VALERIANVS AVG, radiate, drape bust right Reverse: FIDES MILITVM, Fides standing left holding 2 standards. Ex: Warren Esty Collection. RIC 89 SEAR 9938 The condition of both of these coins impresses me every time I look at them. After all these years it is hard to imagine them surviving looking this well. Thanks for the contest and good luck with your move. Mont.
I relized that the picture of the first coin is kind of hard to see so here is one with better lighting. Thank you for the opportunity @red_spork !
Hopeful it's an easy move and you like you neighbors. If not, good fences... I've been intrigued by the ladies of ancient Rome since first setting eyes on some of their beautiful faces and wild hairstyles. Here is one of my favs: SABINA Dupondius, 136 CE Mint: Rome 26.3 mm, 10,2 g. Rarity : R1 Obverse legend : SABINA AVGVSTA - HADRIANI AVG PP, Obverse: Diadémé bust and drape of Sabina on the right, hair raised, artistically capped. RIC.--BMC/RE.1900 I love elephants. I love Julius Caesar. I had to wait sometime to acquire this coin, making it all the sweeter to own. And it's one of, maybe my only, coins with a provenance: Julius Caesar 49-48 BCE AR denarius (18 mm, 3.43 g,2 h).Military mint traveling with Caesar. CAESAR in exergue, elephant advancing right, trampling on horned serpent / Simpulum, sprinkler, axe (surmounted by a dog's head), and priest's hat. Crawford 443/1; HCRI 9; Sydenham 1006; RSC49. Banker's mark on obverse, porous. Near fine. The Expatriate Collection Expatriate comes from the Latin roots ex-, ""away from,"" and patria, ""one's native country."" The Expatriate Collection was formed by an American who has lived abroad for nearly fourteen years in Japan, Europe, Canada, and the Middle East. His collection was formed almost exclusively while living outside the United States. Again, Best of luck during the move and thanks!
Around the time I started my ancient collection, I began to become fascinated with learning about the Byzantine Empire. My first Byzantine was this, a nice anonymous follis. This image is from my early coin photography days. I need to reshoot it. My second and current favorite Byzantine coin is this guy, a year 15 Justinian. It’s also my avatar. @NLL How’s this for a cracked flan?
In US coinage, the 1700's is considered ancient, so when I started thinking about REAL ancient coins, they blew my mind. Two iconic ancients I have managed to collect examples of (and I still love them) - Had these two in my carry-on luggage on a flight recently and it cost me extra time while the TSA agents were Ooo'ing and Ahhh'ing over them.
This giveaway would be a great starting point for anyone interested in ancient coins and also an important exercise for learning the skill of identifying and (why not) appraising ancient coins. Congratulations for your new place and your generosity!
I agree. If I win I am looking forward to trying to attribute them. Thanks again for the chance at em @red_spork
Congrats on the home @red_spork!! And this is such a nice thing to do with the coins you forgot and found!