Ebay lot shenanigans - "Do you see what I see?"

One of my favorite things about collecting ancients is that there are seemingly bargains to be had in every auction, and from time to time you might be the only person to recognize them as such.

I have mostly "graduated" from scouring hundreds of listings per day on ebay - mostly junk 3rd/4th century Roman bronzes - but from time to time I do go back to scout for diamonds in the rough.

By chance (or my "spidey sense") I found - and won - this lot today



Lots of goodies to be sure, but I bid because I spotted one unassuming coin that is likely worth as much as the rest of the lot combined.

So let's play - Do you see what I see?

Also, feel free to post any unattributed lot finds that turned out exceptionally well for you!

 

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I can see an Axum coin. Wonder what the reverse shows. Gold inlay?

 

I don't know if this is the spotted sleeper. I believe it is one of the common ones with gold inlay often missing on lesser examples like mine.


I see a couple others that elevate this group above junk status in my opinion so one coin being worth as much as the rest may remain in question until we see the other sides.

 

No idea, but I want to hang around and find out.

 

Something interesting at the top...

 

Depending on what it looks like when unburied, the Tarraco bronze in the back might be nice. And the Aurelian tetradrachm looks pleasant as do a few other coins.

Barry Murphy

 

I like the thread since we all see value very differently. I can see a number of things which are potentially interesting, but some may consider useless junk.

 

I think I see a lion's head on the little AR at left. Perhaps a hemidrachm from Chersonesos? Think I may see a Gondophares from Pathankot...looks quite nice, but likely not of great monetary value.

 

Do I see an Augustus/ Agrippa dupondius (Gaul, Nemausus) hiding at the back there? Those are a sought after type with some value

 

No, it isnt (the portrait is facing the wrong way).

 

That’s the tarraco I was talking about.

Barry Murphy

 

Right you are..

 

You guys got it - the main draw of the lot was the little Axum coin near the center, although after a closer look, I think it might be worth more like 1/3 of the lot rather than 1/2. We'll have to see if there is any gold inlay left when it arrives!

Some of the other good coins, mostly identified already:
Spain Tarraco AE with Augustus / Gaius & Lucius (worn but still and upgrade for the G&L provincial I have)
At least one Durotriges BI stater
Gallic potion
A really nice Constantius II, I'll assume FTR
Chersonesos hemidrachm (not valuable though unless the lion is better centered)
A nice Aurelian tetradrachm
A nice Gondophares AE drachm
Two terminal Mauryan or early Sunga AE karshapanas (not valuable but hard to find)

I'll have to see about the rest of the coins, but they mostly seem to be more common Greek or Roman provincials.

 

Philip II bronze reverse showing on the top of the pile. Possibly an Alex the Great bronze at 1:00.

 

If you don't like that poor lion, I'll give it a good home...

 

That looks like a great heap - I was watching it, but didn't bid.

This seller has been running a lot of lots like this on eBay - I've won one, the others go out of my price range. Just the countermarks in some of them have been very, very tempting. Some very unusual material in these. One that closed yesterday had an Aelius sestertius (?) in the pile.

I keep watching and hoping.

 

Lot arrived today - to say I'm pleased would be an understatement!

Still working on all the ID's, but lots of really cool stuff ranging from Classical Greece to medieval Islam.

As promised, the Axumite coin first

Looks to be Aphilas with Ousanas(?), ca. 300 AD
Should be AR? About 13mm, 0.74g
Bust right, topped by crescent, AΦIΛA BACIΛI
Smaller bust within circle, originally gilt, (From 6:00) IAΦIΛAC B- ACIΛEYC


Given the thoroughly mixed nature of this lot, I wonder if this is actually AR, just uncleaned? If so, any ideas how I should go about trying to clean it up? These are quite valuable coins, especially if there is any gold inlay on the reverse portrait.

 

Gulp...I'm a cleaning freak and would approach this one with extreme caution. Distilled water might be the first approach, swirling and changing daily for a couple of weeks and then perhaps a touch with a soft toothbrush.

 

If it's silver step 1 is getting all the dirt off. It should be much easier than cleaning bronze and should clean up with distilled water and a toothbrush or toothpick. Once you get all the dirt off, if you want it cleaner and still think it's silver and assuming it's good(high purity) silver, I'd recommend electrolytic reduction by making a mild citric acid solution, adding salt and folding the coin into some aluminum foil(you want to make a sort of packet), and submerging it for a few minutes at a time. Between soaks rinse it thoroughly, brush with the toothbrush to remove any crud that's ready to go, then repeat. Pay close attention to the metal as you may need to stop before it's completely clean if the metal is deteriorating.
You need to be absolutely sure it's silver before you start the electrolytic reduction. You won't have a bronze coin long if you do this to it.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. The type is, as far as I can tell, only known in silver. The only problem is, Axum coins are unique in that most of the early coins (even the bronze ones) have a tiny bit of gold hammered over some of the design elements. I dont think this is a $1500 coin, but if the gold is present and I can keep it intact, that would be the difference between a $50 coin and a $300 one. I might try a soak in distilled water followed by some gentle brushing on the obverse only to see how it cleans up.