Featured Book review #3/Look what came in the mail today, Emmett (No, not the Lego character.)

Well, well, well, what do we have here, another book on tets, from our very own TIF!

So anyhow, TIF was sweet and bought the cute 'widdle YN a book on Alexandrian coins...but on the condition that he do a book review! Yay!

Alexandrian Coins, by Keith Emmett
Originally published 2001

Overall impression: Emmett catalogs (as the name suggests) not merely tetradrachms, but all denominations of Alexandrian coins. This makes it a fascinating read (erm, skim to be more precise) for those not already acquainted with the (slightly) less popular types. Emmett also includes an exciting cataloging system, but I'll build some suspense and save that for later.However, you're out of luck if you're looking for a Milne style history of the mint or something similar.

Specific Points of Awesome (SPA): Type totals by denomination and issuer; cataloging system; rarity ratings; highlights 'o-awesome; Greek to Latin translator; expanded obverse inscriptions.

Specific Points of Fail (SPF): "Detailed Reverse Descriptions", advanced cataloging system.

SPA 1. Type totals by denomination and issuer. This is one ingenious move, a table of the number of (in major published collections) types for every denomination of every issuer. Wanna know how many issues Julia Domna has when under Severus? That'll be 34 tetradrachms, 3 hemidrachms, and 15 diobols. Doing a quick check to see if Gallineus really made drachms? Yup!



SPA 2. Cataloging system. If you want history, go with Milne. If it's a guide, Curtis is for you.
But when you're trying to find a reference, BUY...EMMETT (If you don't I'll have to call down the coin police on you for sheer stupidity.)! Emmett's system is easy to use, decent to look at, and corrects some things that I didn't even realize had been faults. But what really blows my mind is that he uses the reverse designs to define catalog numbers, he only lists portrait styles (along with a thumbnail) and obverse legends at the beginning of each emperor's section.



He also assigns one number to each reverse type, regardless of year. The exceptions to this are when a power switch occurs, or it's the same design, but with the "actors" in different positions (such as Demeter standing light rather than left). By assigning one number to each year, he was able to bring in a convenient format, using rows for types and columns for years.

SPA 3. Rarity ratings. I thought this deserved it is own mention. In each "occupied" spot of the cataloging system resides a number from one to five, one through three being relatively available to the average collector, four and five being much harder to find.

I've had mixed feelings about assigning a rarity rating to every issue. I think that they should only be used as a very general guideline. He assigned a rarity number to over 8000 year/design combos! With a task so large mistakes are inevitable.



SPA 4. Highlights 'o-awesome. Emmett occasionally picks out cool or unusual coin types, then provides historical background and interesting tidbits. However on pages 74A, 74B, and 74C he goes overboard and has full pages of illustrations (Yes, those are the page names, and no, I'm not going to show them.).

He is like a kid in a candy store.



SPA 5. Greek to Latin translator. Translates the Greek alphabet into Latin and the other way around. Pretty much exactly what it says on the tin. http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin


SPA 6. Expanded obverse inscriptions. From a historical perspective this is one of the most interesting things, it provides expanded (if necessary) obverse legends in Greek, and English translations.



Now for the rotten was-he-even-awake-when-he-wrote-this, Specific Points of Fail.

SPF 1. "Detailed Reverse Descriptions." MY FOOT! This might be helpful in some situations, but after Curtis' truly excellent descriptions this just seems pathetic.



SPF 2. Advanced cataloging system. The standard "Emmett 443" or whatever is good, and the extended version may also be good, but for the life of me I can't understand his explanation of it. So, I'm placing it in the "fail" category.



To wrap up, thanks for reading, and thanks to TIF!

Cheers all!

 

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Nice work, as usual. Thanks for the review!

 

Your review is a SPA as well, V.

(Pretty clever, don't you think, getting a kid to do my homework.)

Edited: Goodgoshalmighty I typed "you're" instead of "your". The gears are starting to slip.

 

awesome

 

Ha, LOL!

 

Very well done Vlaha, keep up the great work...

 

Great job! I agree with all points but found the advanced cataloging system quite easy to understand. It is based on his statement, "It is anticipated that cataloguers and collectors will use as much or as little detail as suits the occassion."

All coins have an Emmett number: E370 is an Alexandria bust right reverse of Trajan. If that coin happened to be from year 15 (L-IE), the number advances one step to E370(15). Currently there are no E370 coins from year 14 but if we find one it will be E370(14). He does not consider obverse legends as important as reverse types but lists them with capital letters so those who wish can take one more step and acknowledge that the coin has obverse legend C and make the number E370C(15). Do you want to draw attention to a special variety (listed or not) with a different style portrait? Just insert that code after the legend letter making our example E370Cb(15). He suggests placing an X after the E for numbers you made up to describe a coin not listed in his book but using his number system. Here is where I find some awkwardness in the system. If you find a coin with a new reverse that fits (alphabetically by reverse) after 370 and before 371, it becomes EX370A but if you want to go whole hog with the rest of the system and add the legend and bust codes, you have the A followed by the C from our example above. I would have used a decimal and name the new coin EX370.5Ab(15) which would be appropriate for the exact coin as our original example but where the reverse looked left instead of right. From the number thus generated you could not tell how the coin was different just that it was alphabetically after 370 and before 371 (Canopus). That same EX370.5Ab(15) would be equally appropriate for a coin with the reverse of the god Anubis which is not known to exist but fits this space if one were to be found. Emmett also mentions that his cross references elsewhere in the book use this system and gives the example that E370(15) equals Milne 633 or, abbreviated, E370(15)=M633.

Clear? If you don't like this, I challenge you to come up with a better system that allows expansion to cover all possibilities in a more clear manner. Most people do not really care and just want a number to put on their eBay listing so they sound smart. For them, E370 works just fine and dandy. Obsessive specialists will like E370Cb(15) better and be proud of the number of X coins in their collection. It is hard to please all of the people all of the time but Emmett tried and really did not do a bad job of it.

 

Nice job!

 

Thanks Doug! That makes a lot more sense, he should include your explanation with the next addition.

 

My explanation is longer than his text. That should surprise no one that knows me.
Test time:
Assign a full fledged and expanded Emmett number to this 13g. 28mm coin:

Use cursor to highlight the space below to see my answer.
I say it is EX1352AAa2(UD) acknowledging that it is the reverse variation lacking the cornucopia. See page xvi for obverse types.

 

Awesome critique, young coin-bro!!

Wow, you get full-points for diving-in and trying to learn the fundamentals!! (ummm, we are definitely "not" related)



=> keep-up the great work!!

 

EX1352AAb(1)=G1273 Technically this is labeled as "UD", I believe it stands for undated,but he only issues coins in this year, so....

Edit: looks like I didn't understand the obverse system well enough. Ah well, back to the drawing board.

Redit: Ah ha! So the obverse numbers reference the chart a the beginning of the book, not the short descriptions near the issuer's thumbnail.

 

That is the way I took it. Correct??? The coin is dated but using the Roman system to 137 AD. The system breaks down here a bit. I take ND to mean there was a date but it can't be read on this coin while UD means there never was an L or Etoys number. To be consistent, if it had been my choice (which it was not!) I would list a previously unknown year of a known reverse (x14) rather than just (14). Petty, petty, petty.

I also fail to find a way to separate a coin marked LH from one marked ETOYC H but it might be there somewhere. Your review of the book written a year from today would be much better but I believe your first impressions as posted were better than anyone here four or five times your age would do.

 

Thank you Doug, that means a lot. It might be a fun thing to do in the future, "Emmett revisited". It could address my former points, or what I think of it after owning and using it for a longer period.

I don't see a way to do it either, personally I'd do E370(15v), v standing for variant.

 

thank you very mutch i wonderd what these numbers where 1-5
very helpful.

all the best,

Eric

 

Although I don't use Emmet very much I like the book, and I'm proud enough to own a distinctive plate coin (the Domitius Domitianus octadrachm I've shown a few days ago)

Nice write up

Q

 

I mailed them via emmett site and no responce.
with other mail it worked.

thx

 

Emmett apparently isn't selling them directly anymore, TIF ordered the copy she gifted me from Wayne G. Sales (who happens to just have opened a store on Vcoins). He's a cool guy, I'd recommend going through him.

Cool! Thank you!

 

Oki,

Are you asking what the R numbers mean, as in R1, R2, etc? That's Emmett's estimate of rarity. R1 is common and R5 very rare. He assigned these rarity ratings based on the number of such coins found when he researched and categorized a large number of collections.

Availability and rarity may not correlate though.

 

Generally coins that are R4 or R5 will likely be a challenge for most collectors to obtain with the R5 coins being even more of a challenge than R4. I have focussed on Probus coins and it has taken me over 10 years to chase down a reverse type that is R4 leaving me with a single reverse type left to obtain, which unsurprisingly is an R5 and a type I am unlikely to over obtain.