Wow, thanks JA ... you are an awesome coin-brother (thanks for the hospitality) => hey wait a minute?!! ... ummm, do you still need somebody to shovel the snow off of your driveway?!! (wow man, that's cold, brother) Oh, and by the way => the neighborhood daughters should be okay (my wife is hotter than your Eagle and/or Steeler cheerleaders!!)
Here's another pick-up from the show, Valentinian II. I'm somewhat annoyed that I liked this coin yesterday, and now that I've taken a picture of it, I'm less than thrilled. I could see that some of the patina on the obverse had been cleaned off, but it didn't bother me so much yesterday in light of other merits: the round flan, centered strike, full inscriptions, a handsome portrait, the nice detail on the kneeling figure, and a complete mint mark. Today, however, that missing patina irks me. Live and learn. It's RIC IX 26(b) with mint mark 7: starASISCdot.
Valentinian II?? ... dude, are you fricken lookin' at my RIC-sheet, or what? .... man, I need to buy more coins!! Great new pick-up, JA (congrats, my coin-friend) *stevex6 edit* => sorry to hear that you're disapponted with your cool new coin (yah, there is nothing more depressing than making a poor coin-purchase) .... well actually, there are several things that are worse, but I'm merely being a drama queen (hey but always remember => it's one of a kind)
ahaha ... what thread was that supposed to be in (now I'm all rattled!!) => I'm gonna go walk the hounds (time to reload) ... thanks, Coin-Sister
Please know how happy it makes me that someone else suffers from Post Show Buyer's Remorse. Every time I go to a big show I come home with at least one 'What was I thinking' coin. Often it is a duplicate of something I already had but failed to find when I scanned my lists and photos but sometimes it is just a minor fault that seems to have grown in the time between the show and the realization that I was a fool for buying it. One such coin recently was given away only to discover that there was something about it I had missed so I could feel bad that I not only bought it but that I gave it away. When you get to a certain point in this process, you may find that 'Live and learn' is glamorizing the situation. We err over and over again but still wait for the 'learn' part to kick in.
As mistakes go, it was cheap one, but perhaps my opinion of the coin will change. If I had been looking at a larger expenditure, the missing patina would have been a deal breaker.
This Claudius II arrived today. I thought it was a decent bargain bin coin - looks to have been struck from fresh dies, and the legends are only slightly clipped. I was concerned that the green spots might be a problem, but I tested them and they are hard deposits, nothing to worry about. I like the color of this coin. Either some of the the silvering has remained, or the alloy has enough silver to give the copper an attractive golden-green glint. Claudius II Gothicus AE Antoninianus, 20mm, 3.47g, 12h; Rome mint: 269-70 Obv.: IMP C CLAVDIVS AVG; radiate and cuirassed bust right. Rev.: GENIO EXERCI; Genius standing left, holding patera and cornucopiae. Reference: RIC 5a 48 (p. 215)
Nice coin, my victorinus that arrived recently has some of those same hard green spots, so its all good.
The coin I posted at the start arrived a few days ago, and I wasn't disappointed. It may not look like much, but it has some decent qualities. The obverse is average for the series, but the reverse has a very strong strike in the center, rendering Constantinopolis with considerable detail. The mint and field marks are also strong. Theodosius I Ae3; Nicomedia mint, fourth period: 378- 383 Obv.: DN THEODO-SIVS PF AVG; Pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust r. Rev.: CONCOR-DIA AVGGG; Constantinopolis, helmeted, seated facing, head r., on throne, holding partly seen spear and globe, r. leg bare, r. foot on prow / A // SMNΓ Reference: RIC IX 31(b) mm5 (p. 258) Scarce Like I said, not much to look at, but a scarce coin, and it's always fun to cherrypick something less than common from a group of ordinary LRB's.
Here is my version. The reverse is not near as nice however: THEODOSIUS I AE3 OBVERSE: D N THEODOSIVS P F AVG, pearl diademed, draped & cuirassed bust right REVERSE: CONCOR-DIA AVGGG, Constantinopolis seated left, holding globe & sceptre, CONSB in ex. Struck at Constantinople 379-83 AD 2.5g, 18mm RIC 57d