Yesterday I sat thru the Greek and Roman Provincial Coinage sections of the auction and was impressed with what I saw. As usual many of the coins sold for way over estimate , but there were plenty of bargains for those patient enough to wait . Below are some of the coins that caught my eye . I've got a few bids in Part II of the auction so I'll be watching again with interest . Calabria, Tarentum, circa 281-276 BC, AV Stater, 8.28 gm. Sold for $78,000.00 ! Carthage, circa 350-320 BC, AV Stater, 9.17 gm, 18 mm. Sold for $14,400.00. NGC Choice AU*, Strike 5/5, Surface 4/5 Macedon, Mende, circa 510-480 BC, Fourree Tetradrachm, 13.49 gm, 25 mm. Estimate $750.00, Sale price $7,200.00. Notice the huge dong this jackass is sporting . This is the oldest fourree Tet I've seen. Kings of Lydia, Kroisos, circa 564-539 BC, AV Stater, 8.05 gm, 16 mm, light standard, Sardes Mint. Estimate $20,000.00. Sale price $84,000.00 ! Antioch, Syria, Galba, AD 68-69 AD, AR Tetradrachm, 14.91 gm, 25.5 mm. Estimate $2,000.00. Sale price $7,800.00. Tyre, Phoenicia, Caracalla, AD 198-217 (struck 209-212), AR Tetradrachm, 13.65 gm, 25.5 mm. Estimate $2,000.00. Sale price $7,800.00. CNG called this coin Choice EF, it looks like a FDC to me .
It certainly is a great coin but not FDC. There was a time that FDC meant unimprovable but now some people can accept loss of legend due to centering as on this coin in the belief that wear is the only evil. There was also a time that Choice EF was the highest grade we ever saw for ancients but NGC introduced AU and MS to speak to their target market of collectors who came over from modern. CNG graded this coin correctly IMO. Perhaps they realize that a dealer is better received by buyers if they are not tagged as overgraders.
It IS a lovely coin, and the reverse has the rare "laureate and draped bust, right, seen from the front, and with bundle of asparagus tucked into paludamentum" bust type!
I did not win a single target in the sale. I went 0 for 5. Very unusual for me. I was under-bidder on two, blown-out on two more, and missed the fifth because of a bidding error. The hammer prices were extremely strong for high-quality and/or provenanced Roman Republican coins.
