I believe that Gonzaga is the earliest "documented" collection which has had its presence retained via its countermarks. The eagle was adopted by the Gonzaga family in 1433 so the coins were countermarked some time after that .Here's my sestertius from their collection which was sold in 1628: I'm unaware of other definitively attributed collections between Gonzaga and Apostolo Zeno but perhaps @Andrew McCabe has more context there. I was the underbidder on that coin to "Clio". Interestingly, CNG has noted some doubts to the attribution of the pedigree in a more recent sale, writing: "Currently known on only three other specimens, the as yet unidentified crowned C countermark has been variously assigned over the years to the collections of King Charles I of England, Christian IV of Denmark, and Queen Christina of Sweden. Such desirable attributions, are however unlikely – Charles's well documented cipher was a crowned CR, Christian IV used a distinctive crowned C4, and Queen Christina's extensive collection, first published by Havercamp in 1742 (on whose plates no such countermarks are illustrated) is now housed in the Bibliothèque Nationale, where again, no such examples are recorded. The countermark itself is currently attested to only on imperial sestertii (the other examples being those of Vitellius, Trajan and Gordian I), with each example positioned in the same place, in the field behind the imperial bust. Although tempting to assign the countermark to such extensive and notable collections as those formed by royal households, it is perhaps more likely, especially considering its extreme rarity and instances of occurrence, that the crowned C countermark belongs instead to that of a smaller, far more specialised collector, the identity of whom is yet to be discovered."
Thanks! And, in this context, I'm referring to pedigree as collector ownership history (although I'd agree that my Athens gold is my favorite piece to be tracked back to a specific moment and location in history).
I wish we could know that! It reminds me of a post @dougsmit made some years ago wishing for a super power that allowed him to see where a coin has been. Following Apostolo Zeno around on his coin buying spree would have been fascinating (especially to see what fake coins he encountered). It is incredible to think that the auction house Spink was founded in 1666. I wish they had records stretching back that far - imagine the coins that have passed through their hands.
Yes - and it's depicted on a range of coins including @Cicero12 's beautiful aureus and this type of Caracalla:
Those are exactly my thoughts about Apostolo Zeno and his searches... and, who were selling them? And where did THEY get them? Etc. etc. Cool permutations of thoughts.
Another absolute gem in your collection @AncientJoe, and what a provenance : astounding Thanks for sharing Q
Impressive coin !! I have quite a few old pedigrees but my oldest is a coin from Lipara ex General Moore collection sale Sotheby Wilkinson & Hodge on 1 March 1889 (lot 156) it then went through the Sir Hermann Weber and Thomas Virzi collections among others. The second one was sold on the Sale Jacob Hirsch 18 may 1903 lot 868. It's funny because the coin was miss-attributed by E. Boehringer in his catalogue which probably explain why the coin hadn't been spotted.
Those Gonzagas are super cool. First time I ever saw one was at the Getty Villa, an aureus with the privy mark on it. Today it would be rather unthinkable to do that, but I guess once enoug time has passed it works out
Hahaha boy id probably die of excitement if that happened. I doubt I’ll ever beat my Commodus Herculi Romano denarius. This is the example at the Getty!
A.J. Regardless of the provenance, that's a stunning coin ! In regards to the provenance, it couldn't be much better than that . The coin has descended from an artist to one who appreciates art & history .
Congratulations on your beautiful new aureus, AJ. I picked up a Zeno coin in 2020 as well. L. Cornelius Sulla. 84-83 BC. AR Denarius (3.98g, 19.7mm, 1h). Military mint moving with Sulla. Diademed head of Venus right; to right, Cupid standing left, holding palm frond / Capis and lituus between two trophies. Cornelia 30, Crawford 359/2, Sydenham 761a.
Congratulations AJ! What a beauty!!! Worth a place in your collection which must surely rank high among the finest private assemblies of ancent coins known to us. Here are my bronzes with the oldest pedigrees. None of these were known to the respective sellers, I discovered them by own research or help from CT members and experts. I bought the coins because they were the best of their respective rulers that I could afford and find their histories an added bonus: My Sestertius of Macrinus was acquired by Christian August, Prince of Waldeck and Pyrmont (1744-1798), Austrian General and Field Marshal of the Portuguese Army: Curtis Clay ("The Roman Coinage of Macrinus and Diadumenian") Sestertius obverse die Nr.2 and reverse Nr.42 (this coin), Münzhandlung Basel 1935 (Waldeck Collection), Lot 730. My only Medallion´s first attested owner was Claude Camille Rollin (1813-1883). This specimen of Numerianus is listed in his 1880 "CATALOGUE D'UNE COLLECTION DE MÉDAILLES ROMAINES" and the standard works of Cohen and Gnecchi: Cohen 32 (this coin); Gnecchi II Nr. 9 (this coin); Pink ("Die Medaillonprägung unter Carus und seinen Söhnen", 1958) Nr.18 (this coin discussed). Jacob Hirsch 10.05.1909 (Consul Weber) Nr.2424; Naville VIII 25.06.1924 (C.S. Bement) Nr. 1428; Schulman 243, 08.10.1966 (Richard J. Graham) Nr. 2507. Gordian II Sestertius from the collection of Richard van de Vyvere-Colens (1837-1912) and Banti plate coin: Banti (I Grandi Bronzi Imperiali, Vol. IV-2) Nr. 6 (this coin illustrated), ex Charles Dupriez Sale Nr. 112 Bis (07.04.1913), lot 1527, and Heritage Sale 3071 (07.01.2019, „Morris Collection“) lot 32194 Nerva Sestertius from the collection of Arthur Löbbecke (1850-1932): Auction Hess Nr. 182 (06.01.1926), lot 1115 a
A "PRIVY" mark..attributable to Thomas Crapper and previously, Ex-Duke Funkledorf collection, time of The French Revolution.