Foibles Revisited, More birds of a Feather, and Expanding the Roman Frontiers - 2021 Review

My near infatuation with owls continued this year, unabated. I am not sure if this is a terminal condition, or if the prognosis is more benign; I have not raised this topic with my doctor, who I have actually not seen in about six years.

This is not to say, as many of you know, that I don't have other areas of interest. I do make the occasional foray into Roman provincial territory, as well as Byzantine and Arab imitations, but my interest in the netherworld of owl imitations and all of the variations thereof keeps drawing me into purchasing more and more owls, the vast majority being of non-Athenian origins. I like to tell myself that this undertaking will have an ultimate, constructive purpose, beside filling up coin boxes, and perhaps that will be the outcome of this grand project of accumulation. Time will tell.

Okay, so here are some of the coins that crossed the threshold of my humble abode this year. There are a few candidates that have not arrived, so they may show up in next year's list.

1. An archaic owl of merit

I have learned over the years to accept a coin's flaws, as well as its attributes. When collecting archaic owls, this approach is essential, unless one has unlimited funds to sink into a flawless example. I am not a member of that club.

Attica, Athens 482-480 BC
AR Tetradrachm, archaic style.
Obverse: Head of Athena facing right, wearing an archaic style helmet.
Reverse: Owl standing right, eyes slightly left and down, olive sprig to left, ΑΘΕ to right.
This coin has an exceptional reverse, one of the best I have encountered, with a very appealing, plump owl and a quizzical expression. The obverse has some flaws, along with an apparent worn die.
Good centering on both sides and no test cuts.
Seltman Group C
Good VF

17.4 grams


The compromise with this coin, produced in the years approaching the Persian invasion of 480 BC, is clear. The obverse is rough, primarily due to the coin's deposition, but also due to a worn die. It seems that the obverse dies in particular were used well past their useful lives. Centering is also a problem, as it is with many classical and intermediate owls, with the obverse serving as the anvil die, while the owl side (reverse) was the hammer die. Actually the obverse centering for this coin is decent, and Athena's archaic smile is visible.

The appeal of this coin is clearly the reverse. I might be a little hyperbolic in the description of the the reverse, but it is very nice and apparently struck with a fairly new die, at least with regards to the owl. There seems to be some erosion of the ethnic.

2. What's this? Another archaic owl?

One day, in the late winter as I recall, when I was puttering around the house, Kirk Davis' catalog came through the slot. Normally I put these catalog aside for a month or two, but this time I opened the envelope to look at his small but excellent selection of coins. Boom...there is was, beckoning like a Siren to wreck my coin budget on the shoals of numismatic desire. Unlike Ulysses I succumbed to the call.

Attica, Athens 500/490 - 485/82 BC
AR Tetradrachm, archaic style.
Obverse: Head of Athena facing right, wearing an archaic style helmet, hair style of waves above the forehead.
Reverse: Owl standing right with over-sized eyes and a wide short body, olive sprig to left pointing downwards, ΑΘΕ to right.
Seltman Group M
About VF

17.23 grams



This coin's appeal rests with the somewhat unusual hair treatment, plus the nicely centered owl on the reverse. As I try to collect one owl for each of Seltman's groups, this is my Group M owl.

3. An early archaic owl.

I wasn't sure, initially, if this would be a wise acquisition. This coin is a Seltman group H owl, making it the earlies type in the collection. But I decided to bite the bullet, bought the coin and removed it from the slab.

Attica, Athens 525/10 - 515/05 BC
AR Tetradrachm, archaic style.
Obverse: Archaic head of Athena to right, wearing crested helmet decorated with chevron and dot pattern at base.
Reverse: Owl standing to right with head facing, small olive sprig behind head, ΑΘΕ before; all within incuse square with flat edges.
Obverse strike off-center. Crest has dots at the base, and the owl die links this coin to Group H.
C. Seltman, Athens, Its History and Coinage before the Persian Invasion, group H, cf. 292 page 190; Plate XIII, similar to A192-P238.
NGC Choice VF, with good quality metal.
Rare

17.46 grams



This is very distinctive coin, with the solid crest and dots running along the base, the high relief portrait and the small owl that is fairly well proportioned. Another feature of the group H owls is the flat edges on the reverse that really frame the design.

The centering on the obverse could be better, and there are a couple of flan flaw at the bottom, but, were these issues not present and the obverse centering a bit better, I am sure this coin would have been priced well out of my financial means.

Seltman states that the artistic style of the group H owls is Doric, of high artistic merit, and likely issued during the reign of Hippias in conjunction with the Greater Panathenaic festival.

4. A Lihyan imitation owl

For the past few years I have been looking for a nice example of these unusual and abstract owl imitations. I have had not luck obtaining a silver coin, but I was able to snag a nice AE version.

ARABIA, Northwestern.
Lihyan. 2nd–1st centuries BC.
Æ Tetradrachm (21mm, 12.89 g, 3h). Imitating Athens.
Obverse: Schematic head right, two upward crescents on cheek.
Reverse: Schematic owl standing right, head facing; olive spray to left.
Huth, Athenian, fig. 5, d; Huth
A very nice example of this debased imitation coinage.
EF
Rare




5. A flashy tetradrachm of Macrinus, Cyrrhestica

This coin is part of my on-going, on-again, off-again (more off-again) effort to create a tetradrachm type set of Roman emperors. I like the tetradrachm format, since it provides, much like the large bronzes, a larger canvas for the engraver to demonstrate artistic achievement, or in some cases lack thereof.

This coin came to me by way of Roma's XXII auction, so it was not cheap by any means, but it fits the type coin role perfectly.

Roman Empire, Macrinus, 217-218 AD
BI Tetradrachm of Beroea, Cyrrhestica.
Obverse: AYT•K•M•OΠ•CЄ•MAKPIN[OC CЄ], laureate, draped and cuirassed bust to right, seen from front.
Reverse: ΔHMAPX•ЄΞ•YΠATOC•Δ•, eagle standing facing with wings spread and head to left with wreath in beak; B-Є flanking bird standing below.
Lot 546, Roma XXII
Prieur 891. 15.00g, 26mm, 12h.
Extremely Fine; struck in high relief, light cabinet tone over lustrous metal. Rare.
From a private Dutch collection;
Ex Roma Numismatics Ltd., Auction X, 27 September 2015, lot 629;
Ex Belgian collection, Tradart S.A., Auction 5, 16 November 1995, lot 205.


I must say, that the bird below the eagle does have a strong resemblance to Big Bird.

6. An artistic Sol Reverse, and a nice obverse to boot

This coin came by way of Harlan Berk. I normally do not collect Alexandria tetradrachms, although the series does offer some very interesting reverse themes.

Roman Empire, dated RY 14, 266/67
AR tetradrachm, Alexandria
Gallienus
Obverse: Laureate, cuirassed bust of emperor right.
Reverse: Radiate and draped bust of Helios right; palm frond before, L I? (date) across field.
Dattari-5239, Emmett-3813.
Ex CNG VI, lot 340, 1989.

10.22 grams



For an Alexandrian tetradrachm for this period, the quality of the die work is really nice, and the metal quality is above average, although I am not sure what the silver content actually is.

7. Lounging by the Danube

Sometimes a nice type coin comes along with an interesting and historical reverse. I came across this denarius of Trajan while viewing the offerings of a seller that I have done much business with on eBay.

Roman Empire 107-108 AD
Trajan
AR Denarius (3.57 gm, 18mm)
Rome mint
Obverse: Laureate bust right, slight drapery.
Reverse: DΛNVVIVS in exergue, Danube reclining left on rocks, head right, cloak floating above, hand on prow of ship and resting arm on urn.
RIC II 100; Woytek 277b; RSC 136.
Lightly toned good VF.

Very scarce.




8. An appealing Annona reverse

Roman Empire 156-157 AD
Antoninus Pius
AE Sestertius
Obverse: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P IMP II, Laureate head right, drapery on shoulder.
Reverse: TR POT XX COS IIII, Annona standing right, holding rudder, left foot on prow.
RIC 980 Rome
Exceptional light/dark green patina, excellent portrait and overall grade.
Good EF
31.1 mm., 25.4 grams




9. An unusual bronze from Henna

A bit off the beaten track with this one, for me, but I was attracted by the portrait of Ceres, as well as the quadriga on the reverse.

Roman Republic 44-36 BC
L. Cestius and L. Munatius (duoviri)
Æ30 of Henna, Sicily
Obverse: L MVNATIVS M CESTIVS, veiled head of Ceres left, wearing grain ear wreath; torch behind.
Reverse: Pluto and Proserpina driving quadriga right; MVN HENNAE above. RPC 661; Calciati 12; SNG ANS -. 16.17g, 30mm, 12h.

Very Fine.

From a private European collection, acquired from Bertolami Fine Arts - ACR Auctions.





10. An interesting Byzantine/Arab fals

This coin was part of a group lot of Byzantine/Arab coins.

Umayyad Caliphate
Uncertain period (pre-reform) AH 41-77 / AD 661-697.
Æ Fals (follis) Arab-Byzantine type.
Dimashq (Damascus) mint.
Struck circa AD 685-693.
Obverse: Byzantine-style emperor seated facing on throne, wearing crown and holding cruciform scepter and globus cruciger; to left, bird standing right on T; Λ/Є/O to right.
Reverse: Large M; above, staurogram set on crescent; A/N/O X/Ч/II across field, Δ below M; ΔAMI.
SICA I -; DOCAB -; Khalili 19; Walker, Arab-Byzantine 4; Album 100.
Good VF, Great strike. Earthen Patina. Rare
From Jordan.

4.49 grams

 

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Between the very early owl and the Arab-Byzantine, I chose the Arab-Byzantine.

 

Only one vote seems to be allowed? So I voted for the beautiful Trajan.

 

Only one vote is allowed, but I would have voted for the three owls, simply because the idea of exploring many variations of a single type appeals to my obsessive nature.

Also, the ultimate, constructive purpose of life IS filling up coin boxes. You need search no further.

 

Wow! That is quite the parliament of owls, @robinjojo! I like the archaic owl with the very quizzical expression, the Trajan Danube denarius, and -- the one I voted for -- the lovely AP Annona sestertius.

 

WoWiE!!! I love all your owls and their history! But for sheer beauty I did go with Trajan That coin is a dazzler But so were all your coins in the top ten.
I too purchased an owl this year. It probably makes my top ten, but this year was competitive so we'll see:

 

I'd love to have an archaic owl! My favorite of the three shown is #3, and that's my overall favorite. Rounding out the top three are the Lihyan imitation owl (interesting!!) and the Trajan denarius because of its documentation of history and sheer eye appeal. Good year!!

 

Wonderful selections, @robinjojo.

I love your archaic owls. I totally agree that some sort of sacrifice has to be made on these coins, unless one has an unlimited budget. For me, I prefer a fine archaic Athena portrait, so I usually sacrificed the owl...

Your Lihyan imitation owl is very nice also.

 

Lovely accusations @robinjojo! My favorites are ofcourse the archaic owls, really excellent examples. Nr 3 is wonderful, very nicely centered and all the details there. The Lihyan owl is very interesting as well.

 

Owls are wonderful and your coins are great @robinjojo . I loved Bubo the mechanical owl from the eighties version of Clash of the Titans.

Here’s my Seleukid owl.

 

Very nice!....Went for #6, #7 and #8......Lovely coins!
Congrats.

 

Sorry! It was late last night, and I didn't change the number of votes allowed from one to three.

I made that change just now, so I hope it works.

 

I goofed. I edited the form to allow up to three votes.

 

Thank you all for letting me know about the survey problem. This is the first time that I set up a survey, and I was running on negative power mentally when it came time to create the form. It should work now for 3 votes max.

Since my OP was limited to 10 coins, I thought I would post a few "honorable mention" coins. I really don't rank my coins in terms of personal preference, since each has its own appeal.

Roman Empire 63-68 AD
Nero
AR Tetradrachm
Antioch, Seleucis and Pieria
NERO CLAVD DIVI CLAVD F CAESAR AVG GER, laureate head of Nero to right; behind head, above the wreath ties, ivy leaf / DIVOS CLAVD AVG GERMANIC PATER AVG, laureate head of the deified Claudius.
RPC 4122 var.; McAlee 269; Prieur 47
VF with fairly complete legends on both sides. Slightly soft wreath detail, both sides.
Scarce
Purchased from an Israeli seller in 2021.

14.49 grams





Kings of Persis, Vādfradād (Autophradates)
AR Tetradrachm. Istakhr (Persepolis) mint, circa 3rd century BC. Diademed head to right, with luxuriant moustache and jutting beard; wearing kyrbasia or satrapal hat, with flap down to form a visor, and pendant earring / Fire Temple of Ahura-Mazda; to left, Vādfradād standing to right, bow set on ground before; standard to right; above, half-length figure Ahura-Mazda.
For type, cf. K&M 2/17, Alram 533, De Morgan 12a and pl. XXVII, 19 & BMC 1; Sunrise -. 15.86g, 31mm, 11h.
Good Very Fine; traces of overstriking.
Lot 634, Roma E-Sale 89
From the collection of Dr. Gholam Reza Assar.





Levant, Late 5th-mid 4th centuries BC
Philstia?
Tetradrachm in the form of Athens
Obverse: Head of Athena right.
Reverse: Owl facing forward, leaning right, olive branch to the left and AOE to the right.
The style of this coin suggests an origin in the Levant, more specifically, Philista.
Purchased from an Israeli seller in early 2021.
VF, with dark patina and some adhering dirt.
Very scarce.

16.80 grams




Arabia, Southern, Late 4th-3rd centuries BC
AR tetradrachm, imitating Athens
Qataban
Obverse: Athena facing right.
Reverse: Owl standing right, olive sprig to left, AΘΗ to right.
Struck on a wide flan for this type. Good centering.
Munro-Hay 1.0.4
VF
Very scarce

16.90 grams



While this example does have some light corrosion on the obverse, the wide flan allows for most design details to be visible.


Lucania, Thourioi, Circa 400-350 BC
AR Stater
Head of Athena to right, wearing crested Attic helmet decorated with Skylla holding oar and scanning; palmette on helmet flap. / Bull charging to right; ΘΟΥΡΙΩΝ above, above ethnic(?), fish to right in exergue.
SNG ANS 1052 (same obv. die, I above ethnic but off the flan); HN Italy -.
7.55g, 21mm, 9h.
A nice example, with a very nice bull on reverse. Some signs of die wear/deterioration. Some horn silver.
Lot 19, Roma E-Sale 89
Very Fine. Very Rare.
From the collection of Z.P., Austria.



This coin has obvious wear and horn silver/corrosion, but at least it is a start on my part with the beautiful coinage from Lucania, Thourioi featuring Skylla on the helmet of Athena.

The bull is quite nicely modeled:

 

It works! I voted for the early archaic owl and the Gallienus tet in addition to the Trajan.

 

Those owls are fascinating! I voted for the oldest one, as I can't recall seeing too many of that age up for auction.

Here's my owl, of the Walmart variety.

ATTICA, Athens
AR Tetradrachm 22.5mm, 17.18g, 1h
Circa 454-404 BCE
Kroll 8; HGC 4, 1597
Ex CNG inventory June 2004
Ex CNG January 2021​

 

I can't choose the winner between the Trajan Danubius and the Gallienus tetradrachm , both are very nice. Congratulations !

 

That's a very nice classical owl. The quality is very good and I think it would easily grade as a nice EF, if not higher. The strike is excellent, the metal good and style very good for a mass production owl.

Do you plan on getting an archaic, intermediate and new style owl? Getting a nice intermediate owl is challenging, given the generally "dumpy" nature of the flans, I usually compromise on having part of the ethnic on the reverse off the flan, if other elements are visible. A slightly off center obverse isn't a big issue either, since a full crest on an intermediate owl is a very rare occurrence.

Roma has been featuring a lot of classical owls. I think it is a good opportunity for collectors to pick up a type example at fairly reasonable prices, especially compared to what dealers are asking for them.

While the market has been awash in classical owls over recent years, nothing lasts forever. I have seen the impacts of various hoards on markets before, and eventually what was quite common becomes scarce or rare. Also, the expanding collector base for these coins seems to be sustaining the current high prices. Barring a major economic downturn, this trend should continue.

 

Thanks.

Both coins are generally outside my collecting fields, but if I like a coin, and I won't need to take a loan out against the house, I'll probably buy it, budget allowing.

 

Thank you for helping with the survey setup, Donna.

I'll try to remember next year, assuming that I still have a memory at that point.