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<p>[QUOTE="SeptimusT, post: 4968053, member: 91240"]I love quirky coins. I also love Roman Egypt. That meant that I <i>had</i> to have this unique specimen, even if I'm not sure what to make of it. It's a drachm of Hadrian that has been filed to have a serrated edge. Based on the patina, this appears to have happened in antiquity, and would have likely taken some amount of work, judging by the depth of the scratches left on Hadrian's bust by a few slips on the file. Why? You tell me. And if you have a similar coin, please share!</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1194083[/ATTACH] </p><p><b>Alexandrian drachm of Hadrian; <i>modified</i></b></p><p><b>Obverse</b>: ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙ - ΤΡΑΙ ΑΔΡΙΑ ϹƐΒ; laureate draped and cuirassed bust of Hadrian, r., seen from rear</p><p><b>Reverse</b>: L IE; Alexandria, head bowed, standing, r.; to r., Emperor (Hadrian), laureate-headed, wearing toga, standing facing, head l., holding sceptre</p><p><b><b>Struck AD 130/1</b>, 17g, 34mm; <b><a href="https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/3/5777" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/3/5777" rel="nofollow">RPC III 5777</a></b></b></p><p><br /></p><p>If I'm not imagining it, it also appears to have a small graffito, which I wasn't able to really capture in the same image as the overall coin, on two of the serrations reading <b>T Φι</b> (or perhaps it was there before and was cut apart by the serrations):</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1194085[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Similar modifications seem to show up over large spans of time and in different cultures; there's no shortage of Roman examples (see a bunch of them <a href="https://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=117733.0" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=117733.0" rel="nofollow">posted on FORVM</a>), but they also show up in <a href="https://www.zeno.ru/showphoto.php?photo=12168" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.zeno.ru/showphoto.php?photo=12168" rel="nofollow">Qing Dynasty China</a>, <a href="https://www.zeno.ru/showphoto.php?photo=246078" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.zeno.ru/showphoto.php?photo=246078" rel="nofollow">Central Asia</a>, and <a href="https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/1012707" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/1012707" rel="nofollow">early modern Britain</a>. This is, to my knowledge, the only Alexandrian coin with such modification. </p><p><br /></p><p>Explanations range from creating cutting tools, toys, gaming tokens, decorations, or even combs. The possibility of a votive significance also crossed my mind. It may be that there isn't a single explanation for these, beyond noting that people do weird things with coins.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="SeptimusT, post: 4968053, member: 91240"]I love quirky coins. I also love Roman Egypt. That meant that I [I]had[/I] to have this unique specimen, even if I'm not sure what to make of it. It's a drachm of Hadrian that has been filed to have a serrated edge. Based on the patina, this appears to have happened in antiquity, and would have likely taken some amount of work, judging by the depth of the scratches left on Hadrian's bust by a few slips on the file. Why? You tell me. And if you have a similar coin, please share! [ATTACH=full]1194083[/ATTACH] [B]Alexandrian drachm of Hadrian; [I]modified[/I] Obverse[/B]: ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙ - ΤΡΑΙ ΑΔΡΙΑ ϹƐΒ; laureate draped and cuirassed bust of Hadrian, r., seen from rear [B]Reverse[/B]: L IE; Alexandria, head bowed, standing, r.; to r., Emperor (Hadrian), laureate-headed, wearing toga, standing facing, head l., holding sceptre [B][B]Struck AD 130/1[/B], 17g, 34mm; [B][URL='https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/3/5777']RPC III 5777[/URL][/B][/B] If I'm not imagining it, it also appears to have a small graffito, which I wasn't able to really capture in the same image as the overall coin, on two of the serrations reading [B]T Φι[/B] (or perhaps it was there before and was cut apart by the serrations): [ATTACH=full]1194085[/ATTACH] Similar modifications seem to show up over large spans of time and in different cultures; there's no shortage of Roman examples (see a bunch of them [URL='https://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=117733.0']posted on FORVM[/URL]), but they also show up in [URL='https://www.zeno.ru/showphoto.php?photo=12168']Qing Dynasty China[/URL], [URL='https://www.zeno.ru/showphoto.php?photo=246078']Central Asia[/URL], and [URL='https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/1012707']early modern Britain[/URL]. This is, to my knowledge, the only Alexandrian coin with such modification. Explanations range from creating cutting tools, toys, gaming tokens, decorations, or even combs. The possibility of a votive significance also crossed my mind. It may be that there isn't a single explanation for these, beyond noting that people do weird things with coins.[/QUOTE]
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