1, 1, 1, 1, 1, Won

This coin is very special for completely non-numismatic reasons. It's historically important... but not for its ancient history. The value is in how it represents friendship, camaraderie, and for what will hopefully someday be a fondly-remembered ancient coin milestone.

Here's the coin. It's not rare. It's not in great condition. There are about a hundred of them for sale right now on Vcoins and most of them are much nicer, albeit more expensive. I wanted it anyway and it was my most important target in today's Ancient & Medieval Coins Canada auction, the brand-spankin' new Canadian auction house created by CoinTalk's @Severus Alexander.


GAUL, Massalia
c. 350-150 BCE
AR obol; 0.59 gm, 10mm
Obv: youthful male head left (Apollo?)
Rev: wheel with four spokes; M A within two quarters
Ref: Depeyrot, Hellénistiques, Type 18; SNG Leipzig 13.
AMCC Auction 1, lot 1, 1 December 2018

Bidder #1 placed bid #1 in AMCC auction #1, lot #1, and on December 1, won.

How's that for a silly reason to want a coin? Silly though it sounds, it truly was important to me .

I've been planning to win this lot months before Sev had even determined which coin would be lot #1! I'm greatly relieved it wasn't a dekadrachm . The moment his auction was posted I staked my claim on lot #1 with a generous bid.

Over the next week or two I placed another seven pre-bids. Today I bid live on many more lots. Happily, I now have several coins formerly belonging to various CoinTalk members-- @zumbly, @Severus Alexander, @Justin Lee, and @jamesicus . Yay! I went a bit overboard today but since I lost my higher-dollar targets that takes the edge off, plus the prices were still comparatively low and the exchange rate is very favorable. I normally wouldn't post a coin before it is in hand but I've already waited soooo long for this and couldn't resist posting just this one .

I've made several close friends thanks to ancient coin collecting and it was a completely unexpected benefit of the hobby! Truly, some of the finest people I know collect ancient coins. Congratulations to @Severus Alexander on the inaugural AMCC auction. Cheers, and here's to many more .

.....

My final tally for the auction:

• 17 lots bid on
• 11 lots won

Not a bad average-- a much higher win rate than I usually experience.

.....

Show us your coins purchased for whimsical, nostalgic, or silly reasons!

​

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Congrats @TIF !

 

The timing was bad for me, so I could not bid though there are several I wanted to bid on.

I habitually buy coins from Metz because I really loved living there.



And I have 7 more on the way!

 

Congrats to all winners and to Sev Alex; however, I'm bummed since none of my bids were high enough.

 

Well done @TIF . I won 6 today (Correction I won 7... I had an itchy trigger finger!). The provenances I know about include @zumbly and @jamesicus . Two great fellow collectors and friends.

Here is a coin I won today in the AMCC Auction 1 that I already dressed up for his induction into my collection


Roman Empire
Septimius Severus (AD 193-211)
AR Denarius, Rome mint, struck AD 205
Obv.: Laureate head right
Rev.: Jupiter standing, facing left, holding scepter and thunderbolt, "headless" eagle at left
Ref.: RIC IV 196

I like the portrait style and I already have a bit of a sub collection of Jupiter in this stance from the later empire. This one seemed like a good addition. I actually picked up two Severan coins today.

I was surprised to have no competition for this coin. Got it for a steal. If I had the funds currently I would have bought most of the unsold lots. Some great deals... Christmas come early

 

Congrats @TIF for that performance : this isn't just coin collecting on your part but modern art happening.
Hats off !

One of my wins today is a very emblematic ex @zumbly collection coin featuring a severed head. I will show it upon arrival.

The most nostalgic purchase I ever made is the following Otacilia Severa sestertius. I've already posted it in my Cucumbor's six - 2016 review : https://www.cointalk.com/threads/cucumbors-six-2016-review.288012/


Otacilia Severa, Sestertius struck in Rome on a medallic flan, 244-245 AD
MARCIA OTACIL SEVERA AVG, Diademed and draped bust of Otacilia right
PVDICITIA AVG. Pudicitia seated left holding sceptre
22.70 gr, 35 mm
Ref : Cohen # 55, RC #9169

It's a sestertius I had sold to a good friend of mine and a few years later bought back from his mum after he had passed away. I have to keep it

Q

 

I remember myself purchasing this coin after a long hesitation. It was big and appealing but really weird whereby I couldn't identify anything. Later, I posted it on CoinTalk where I learned it was an over -struck coin. A new term to me...
Today I think there's Alexander Balas on the obverse, whereas the reverse had been over-struck by 2 LRBs. That means the coin was over-struck after nearly 5 centuries. Roman over Greek.. Roma seems seated on a throne, so common on coins of Gratian. I can also detect river god swimming.
I'm glad and satisfied to have bought this "weird" or rare coin.

 

@Cucumbor, that is a sad but touching story. Thanks for linking the thread-- it is one of my favorite CoinTalk posts of yours.

For those who haven't read it, Cuke's 2016 year-end review of his top six coins is a great read: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/cucumbors-six-2016-review.288012/

 

How you managed the exactly 11 wins is beyond me. I have to wonder if the "generous bid" was $111. I do guarantee that if I were to ever start up an auction house, I'd be certain it would be on January 1 and lot 1 would be a dekadrachm.

All my coins are bought for silly reasons. Ask anyone who does not collect and many who do. I can't pick one silly enough to post here so I'll show #1. It was not my first coin. I collected for quite a while before I started numbering acquisitions in a catalog. When I did, I placed my then 20 Greek coins in alphabetical order and this one came out #0001. All that means is that on that day, I had no coins from Aa or Ab places and did not consider Elis more important as a city name than the League ID. I still have 3/4 of those 20 coins and have never been tempted to dispose of #1 because I like the style of the Zeus head.
Achaean League, Elis, Ar hemidrachm:

 

HA! That didn't even occur to me. It was not intentional, nor was the "generous bid" 111 but had I thought of it, it would have been!

I've already agreed to let Zumbly be the first bidder to sign up with your company . Hey Z! Better start saving your shekels!

 

And deniers.

 

Awesome post TIF. Congrats!

I managed one win today. I think I got it for a steal and no conversion or import fees for me!

 

I like that one Jay and considered bidding on it. I wondered who picked that up.

 

Congratulations to all the big winners, esp. to severus Alexander for getting on the auction bandwagon. My best showing ever was, when I won 14 lots in a Stack's Auction back in 1990. I bid low on 24 lots (all AV coins from the 1974-79 Wildlife Conservation Series) I ended up winning 14 of them, all same weight/size as a US Double Eagle. I got all them for under the gold price back then, yet all were perfect proof coins. So, when the invoice arrived in the mail, I was shocked, but happy with my horde. Then reality set in, since I owed a whack of cash for them Here is one of them.
Venezeula/ AV 1000 Bolivares 1975 Birmingham Mint 34mm. 33.98g. .916
Peruvian Cock of the Rock
This coin came from a happier Venezeula, today, after decades of leftwing governments ruinous, corrupt, brutal policies.....its a basket case like Zimbabwe.

 

Doug found you a couple extra 1's (that is truly amazing, and even better that it was unintentional!), and I can now add a couple as well.

First, when I looked at the auction stats just now, can you believe that the auction received exactly 1000 bids??! I kid you not:

I think this is absolutely true, but some are finer than others, and therein lies my additional "one": the bidder who won this coin is 1 of a kind. Thank you so much for all your support and friendship even since I joined CT and especially while I've busied myself diving into the deep end with this auction company. 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 11, 1000, won, for #1!

The force is clearly strong in this 1!

 

I have never attended an auction in person. But your stats make sense, for an internet auction. When I bid on internet only events, I seem to have better chance to score, then with "room" auctions. In room events, most times the "room" bidder will win. I guess the really serious high rollers attend in person. My coin club friend attended the Triton XIX Adams Coll. auction. He was amazed at the amt. of $ some room bidders where prepared to spend. But, congrats on making your first auction a sweeping success It will only grow from here on.
John

 

I also enjoyed the AMCC auction. Thanks to CoinTalk for discussing it and leading me to it. I won 2 by proxy. My first two ancients purchased by auction. I'm having trouble finding more info on this Commodus but that's half the fun-the search.
THRACE, Philippopolis, Commodus (179-192), AE22, issued c. 188-192. 4.03g, 21.6mm. Rare.
Obv: ΑΥ Μ Α ΚΟΜΟΔΟС, laureate head of Commodus, right.
Rev: ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟΠΟΛΕΙΤΩΝ, Tripod entwined by serpent.
Varbanov 1106 (R3) Mouchmov, Philip. 240-1; RPC Online Volume 4, #7608
From the zumbly collection; Ex Dr. George Spradling Collection.
A. Postumius A.f. Sp.n. Albinus, 81 BCE, AR serrate denarius. Rome, 3.99g, 20mm.
Obv: Draped bust of Diana right; bow and quiver over shoulder, bucranium above.
Rev: A. POST. A.F. S.N. ALBIN, togate figure standing left on rock before lighted altar; ox standing right about to be sacrificed.
Crawford 372/1; Sydenham 745; Postumia 7.
From the zumbly collection. Ex Ivar Gault Collection (Vauctions 303, Lot 284); Ex CNG E157, Lot 166 (realized $217)

 

Both are really excellent scores, especially for an auction first-timer. Of the coins that I consigned to AMCC 1, those two are definitely amongst my favorites.