Man, four days of auctions. I seriously understated the "bid limit" I needed. I couldn't place nearly as many bids up early as I planned, (didn't matter really since almost all went for more), so I had to attend via internet. Man, that is a mistake/fun. Just looked at my account. Is it bad when you do not remember all of the lots you won from Thursday/Friday monday morning? Lol. Well, should have some good coin fun coming up. Here is a group lot from early on I had forgotten about: To show my collecting "range", here is a very rare intact "pig mouth" money from Burma:
I had only bid once previously in a Stephen Album auction, and I had forgotten about the "bid limit". I also didn't realize you had to register for each individual auction. So it gets to be Friday afternoon and i go to put a bid on the 2 coins I wanted (in that evening's session), and the website told me I had to be approved and that it might take 24 hours! I panicked! Luckily, the approval came through. However, the first lot came up and sold for 6x the estimate (which seemed to be a common occurrence as I watched the auctions). It wouldn't let me bid any higher because that would put me over the limit. So I lost the first one. I made darn sure I won the second one!
Yeah, me too. I backed away a little on the Parthians to concentrate on the Sassanids. I did get a Vahran I obol, (rare thing), and a couple of group lots but that was all for Persian stuff.
I see what you paid in about ten coins IF the photo is random but the problem with such photos is you run the risk of coins placed best side up and the hidden sides are not at all similar to the ones shown. It does not take many lots to discover whether a seller is playing that game. I have bought from Album at shows but not by mail so I do not know how he is in this regard.
I promise to try to take pics of them laid out when I get them Doug. You can help me know which ones are worth anything. I bought them for the three Mamertine pieces listed in the group. I have a soft spot for those crazy thugs. I recognize a few of the others, (Mithradates IV, Macedon, dolpins of course), but some good pieces could fly right past me and I wouldn't know it. I bought the lot to force myself to learn more about greek bronzes. I can say all day I will read more about them, but owning them and trying to attribute them is the best way to force myself to do it.
I got outbid on some Parthian and Sasanian coins, but ended up winning two Islamic pieces: one Arab-Sasanian, one from a later Persian dynasty (photos and full write-ups to come eventually). Also got a book on U.S. Civil War tokens, as I've accumulated a few over the years and might as well actually start learning something about them...
I'm all for doing the right thing even if it is forced a bit. The first step will be the pictures. Please do take them even though I know that is not your normal method of operation. I wish we lived closer; I'd love to photograph your collection or at least the highlights. The thing that strikes me here is the coins remind me of the sort of thing I recall seeing 30+ years ago before so many coins were harshly cleaned on their way to market. Some of the coins in that lot actually have surfaces. How many Mamertine pieces do you see that are not chippy, rough or porous?
I really like your conversation. Why don't you go and meet some time? This was about the Album auction. Before the auction, I saved a bit and tried to fill some holes in my collection. Prices were high, as I had expected. At the moment, people want valuable old things. Real objects, antiquities - not virtual. I bought an islamic gold coin of the 11th century, that due to a colossal find of 3000 pieces in the 1960s costs only 10% more than the price of gold. And two very nice Arab-Sasanian coins. The Gyselen coins are very dear to me, and one of them hasn't been described in Gyselen even. Two eleventh century islamic coins, and two Sasanians, of which the most spectacular is the rare Varhran I with his square beard.
Ah, so you had the good taste on that one. I was an under bidder for a while. I have a few of his, and don't specialize in him, so was unaware of the beard rarity. Man, I knew it was rare, but that Hormizd I with the chip went high, huh?
Yes, Hormizd I, who only reigned for a year, and then a drachm of a rare type where the two bystanders at the fire both hold a sword upright. It went for $3,250. I never understood the structure of the Stephen Album auctions: first on the Thursday auction a part with many nice Sasanians (nrs. 86-156) and then on Saturday again a number of nice Sasanians, including another Hormizd I (nrs. 2073-2104), and Parthians again, and all the other categories. Do you know why this is?
