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<p>[QUOTE="Valentinian, post: 3836271, member: 44316"]Some of the most common Greek silver coins of fractional denominations are from Kyzikos (Cyzicus) with the forepart of boar with tunny behind / lion's head like this one:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1018738[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>It comes in various weights and small denominations. This one is 9 mm and 0.82 grams, probably an obol. There are also hemi-obols and even smaller denominations with the same basic design. There are 59 with design very much like this one on vcoins as I write. The type is common.</p><p>Sear Greek 3848. Klein 264. BMC Mysia Cycicus 121.</p><p><br /></p><p>Now the next coin from Kyzicos is earlier and different in significant ways.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1018744[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Head of Hemes right wearing winged petasos</p><p>KY IZ (Z shaped differently than my fonts allow) around tunny right</p><p><b>7 mm</b>. 0.25 grams. (That is very small.)</p><p>The attribution to Kyzikos is obvious, both from the lettering and the tunny. But, the attribution would not be so obvious from checking the major catalogs.</p><p>SNG Copenhagen -- Supplement --, BMC Mysia --, SNG France Mysie --</p><p>Sear Greek --, Klein --, Rosen --, Boston --, Dewing --, SNG Turkey I Kayhan --</p><p>and SNG von Aulock 7338 (It's in there!)</p><p><br /></p><p>So, given only pre-internet-style sources, it would be called very (or even "extremely") rare.</p><p><br /></p><p>However, now we do searches with modern on-line databases which have digital images, mostly from auctions since about 2000. acsearch has no examples offered prior to 2011, so it was rare enough to not appear in their auctions for a decade. In 2011 at least two bidders thought it was very rare:</p><p><a href="https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?term=Cyzicus+hemiobol+Hermes&category=1-2&en=1&de=1&fr=1&it=1&es=1&ot=1&images=1&thesaurus=1&order=0&currency=usd&company=" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?term=Cyzicus+hemiobol+Hermes&category=1-2&en=1&de=1&fr=1&it=1&es=1&ot=1&images=1&thesaurus=1&order=0&currency=usd&company=" rel="nofollow">https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?term=Cyzicus+hemiobol+Hermes&category=1-2&en=1&de=1&fr=1&it=1&es=1&ot=1&images=1&thesaurus=1&order=0&currency=usd&company=</a></p><p>That example, which is not better, hammered at $1300! (That same coin and price-realized is listed twice because it the auction conducted jointly by two firms and it is under each of the firm names). It looks like since then maybe a dozen have appeared (several listed twice on acsearch), most closer to $100 as the hammer price. So, I think the "very rare" label is no longer applicable. However, there are none on vcoins or MA-Shops and I am still calling it "rare." But, auction records no longer price it as something highly desirable. Why is that?</p><p><br /></p><p>I have my own thoughts and would love to hear yours. I think that rarity boosts price when collectors "need" a type to complete a set, but this type does not fit any commonly collected set. (I once wrote an article on rarity and its impact on cost. It is <a href="http://augustuscoins.com/ed/numis/rarity.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://augustuscoins.com/ed/numis/rarity.html" rel="nofollow">on the web here</a>.) Also, experienced collectors realize that many thousands of types are "rare" and they can't afford to care about rarity as much as the other possible reasons for desiring a coin (It's old, it's beautiful, it's historical, it's big, it's gold, etc.). This type might be desirable because "It's small" but that is not going to add much, if anything, to its price:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1018745[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>I think that both <i>condition</i> and <i>rarity</i> are important for price, but that <i>condition</i> is, relative to the previous century, relatively more important and rarity less so. There are just too many rarities to care about them unless they fit some limited list (like <a href="http://augustuscoins.com/ed/catalogs/Roman_Ruler_RarityModified2.pdf" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://augustuscoins.com/ed/catalogs/Roman_Ruler_RarityModified2.pdf" rel="nofollow">the list by Ras Suarez of frequencies of Romans on imperial coins</a>).</p><p><br /></p><p>What are your thoughts about rarity and condition?[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Valentinian, post: 3836271, member: 44316"]Some of the most common Greek silver coins of fractional denominations are from Kyzikos (Cyzicus) with the forepart of boar with tunny behind / lion's head like this one: [ATTACH=full]1018738[/ATTACH] It comes in various weights and small denominations. This one is 9 mm and 0.82 grams, probably an obol. There are also hemi-obols and even smaller denominations with the same basic design. There are 59 with design very much like this one on vcoins as I write. The type is common. Sear Greek 3848. Klein 264. BMC Mysia Cycicus 121. Now the next coin from Kyzicos is earlier and different in significant ways. [ATTACH=full]1018744[/ATTACH] Head of Hemes right wearing winged petasos KY IZ (Z shaped differently than my fonts allow) around tunny right [B]7 mm[/B]. 0.25 grams. (That is very small.) The attribution to Kyzikos is obvious, both from the lettering and the tunny. But, the attribution would not be so obvious from checking the major catalogs. SNG Copenhagen -- Supplement --, BMC Mysia --, SNG France Mysie -- Sear Greek --, Klein --, Rosen --, Boston --, Dewing --, SNG Turkey I Kayhan -- and SNG von Aulock 7338 (It's in there!) So, given only pre-internet-style sources, it would be called very (or even "extremely") rare. However, now we do searches with modern on-line databases which have digital images, mostly from auctions since about 2000. acsearch has no examples offered prior to 2011, so it was rare enough to not appear in their auctions for a decade. In 2011 at least two bidders thought it was very rare: [URL]https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?term=Cyzicus+hemiobol+Hermes&category=1-2&en=1&de=1&fr=1&it=1&es=1&ot=1&images=1&thesaurus=1&order=0¤cy=usd&company=[/URL] That example, which is not better, hammered at $1300! (That same coin and price-realized is listed twice because it the auction conducted jointly by two firms and it is under each of the firm names). It looks like since then maybe a dozen have appeared (several listed twice on acsearch), most closer to $100 as the hammer price. So, I think the "very rare" label is no longer applicable. However, there are none on vcoins or MA-Shops and I am still calling it "rare." But, auction records no longer price it as something highly desirable. Why is that? I have my own thoughts and would love to hear yours. I think that rarity boosts price when collectors "need" a type to complete a set, but this type does not fit any commonly collected set. (I once wrote an article on rarity and its impact on cost. It is [URL='http://augustuscoins.com/ed/numis/rarity.html']on the web here[/URL].) Also, experienced collectors realize that many thousands of types are "rare" and they can't afford to care about rarity as much as the other possible reasons for desiring a coin (It's old, it's beautiful, it's historical, it's big, it's gold, etc.). This type might be desirable because "It's small" but that is not going to add much, if anything, to its price: [ATTACH=full]1018745[/ATTACH] I think that both [I]condition[/I] and [I]rarity[/I] are important for price, but that [I]condition[/I] is, relative to the previous century, relatively more important and rarity less so. There are just too many rarities to care about them unless they fit some limited list (like [URL='http://augustuscoins.com/ed/catalogs/Roman_Ruler_RarityModified2.pdf']the list by Ras Suarez of frequencies of Romans on imperial coins[/URL]). What are your thoughts about rarity and condition?[/QUOTE]
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A Kyzikos hemi-obol. Thoughts about rarity.
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