Denarius of Vitellius pickup

Wow nice one Octavius!

Considering his very short reign I would consider any of his coins to be somewhat rare xD.

It’s not that I think it’s a bad coin I’m just kind of bummed about the bidding mixup.

Overpaying for something by hundreds of dollars is just not fun at all and kind of diminishes the enjoyment of a new pickup.

But I agree it’s definitely a cool coin with a special kind of rarity to it and a unique historical connection with the reverse portrait of Vitellius’s ancestor.

 

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Ooh, a Vitellius family issue. Nice! Also, nice Octavian!

I think VG is a bit conservative. It's at least a nice VG or one could say Fine.

My Vitellius denarii are in about the same grade, picked up 20+ years ago when CNG was selling fixed price Vitellius denarii.

 

Vitellius. 69 AD. AR Denarius (18mm, 3.0 gm, 6h). Obv: A VITELLIVS GERMAN IMP TR P, laureate head right. Rev: XV VIR SACR FAC, tripod-lebes; dolphin above, raven within. RIC I 86; BMCRE 17; RSC 114.

 

Your Vitellius is a nice coin, @Gam3rBlake! It has lovely toning and legible inscriptions. And with the auction market on fire, who's to say what's "too much" these days?

 

Got any pics of yours?

I’m not quite sure if mine would meet the F grade criteria but it’s a solid VG.

I think my favorite thing about it is the reverse. Especially after reading that the Lucius Vitellius depicted on the reverse interacted with Pontius Pilate!

The other cool thing is that I happen to collect portraits and this one is two for one xD

 

No, the only pictured coins I have are one which had a dealer picture. It's been years since I looked at them. I forget what types they are.

No use photographing my coins in earnest until my coin photos improve. That'd also be a huge project to photograph everything.

 

Thanks for your kind comment!

I learned recently that sharing prices on purchases is frowned upon for some reason and if I had known it before I probably wouldn’t have posted what I paid for other coins but with this one I just know I overpaid because it was like double or triple what I intended to bid.

But I do like the coin and I will definitely be keeping it and it does fill the Vitellius hole in my Emperors collection .

 

To be fair that CNG one is way better than mine xD

Is it because the rarity of the reverse that the CNG one sold for so high?

Because I saw a nice AU Vitellius on Heritage sold items that sold for less than the one you posted from CNG.

 

Hmm the NGC pics look way different.

 

Banker's marks aren't a problem at all unless they cover an important part of a coin's design. They're part of the coin's original history, and show that it was actually used in ancient commerce.

 

I think banker’s marks would be a cool thing if there was a way to prove they were done during the Roman Imperial period.

One silver lining of a well worn coin is that it means it circulated among the people of that time and likely many of them and has that historical connection to the ancient Romans.

Whenever I buy high grade coins like my Athenian owl the small downside is that they likely were buried immediately after being minted and just sat there underground as millenia passed with no real contact with the people who minted it.

 

Silver Coin (AR Denarius) minted at Rome during the reign of VITELLIUS after July 69 A.D. Obv. A.VITELLIVS.GERM.IMP.AVG.TR.P. laurel. hd. r. Rev. CONCORDIA.P.R.: Concordia, dr., std. l., r. holding patera l. cornucopia. RCS #752. RSCII #18 pg.35. RIC #90 pg.272. DVM #3a pg.96.

 

Omg I just realized this entire time I was confusing my VG (very good) coin as an AG (almost good) coin.

xD I literally just realized a minute ago that this coin is better than Good 4 condition when I was viewing it as an AG3.

 

In my defense F12 is the lowest grade coin I’ve ever had (1799 Draped Bust Dollar) so I’m not as familiar with the grades below that. XD

 

You did rather well with this rare issue @Gam3rBlake



Vitellius, denarius - Rome mint, July - December 20, AD69
A VITELLIVS GERMAN IMP TR P, Laureate head of Vitellius right
XV VIR SACR FAC, Tripod-lebes with dolphin lying right on top and raven standing right below
3.43 gr, 16-18 mm
Ref : RCV # 2201var, Cohen cf # 110 et suiv, RIC I # 86 (this example illustrated in Wildwinds)

Q

 

Nice coin @Gam3rBlake , as are the others, I see no problem with bankers marks and in fact look for them , as @DonnaML commented, they show the coin was used in commerce and not simply put in a pot and buried...
Here is one of mine.


VITELLIUS (69). Denarius. Rome.
Obv: A VITELLIVS GERM IMP AVG TR P.
Laureate head right.
Rev: XV VIR SACR FAC.
Tripod surmounted by dolphin right; below, raven right.
2.9 gm 19 mm ex-Numismatik Neumann Auction 100

 

Thanks! Yours is a beauty!

I’ve been trying to find more information about exactly how rare this particular type is but my success has been limited aside from the article I shared here that said it was “very rare” and missing from the British Museum and Louvre collections.

That sounds pretty rare to me but at the same time I don’t know if those museums not having it really means much as they might not even want it.

Hopefully I can find some more information somewhere.

 

Yours has some great details and a very pleasing color and strike .

Just curious how do you know if the banker marks were made back in the ancient Roman times?

What if someone did it in modern times?

Because you said you look for them so couldn’t someone just take a normal coin and damage it with what appears to be bankers marks and then try to sell it knowing you like bankers marks?

 

I guess you have a point @Gam3rBlake but I don’t advertise the fact , I simply don’t mind bidding on them when I see them , I’ll post some tomorrow.