I fell off the wagon so bad...my new Athenian Owl

oh man, FANTASTIC coins score sallent!


coin budget blown? WORTH IT!

on my list, but a coin i'm not going to be able to own in the near future...just out of my price range.

 

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Congrats on acquiring a coin that makes you happy

Small correction: yours is an "intermediate" type, not "transitional" type.

Edited: apparently some people do call yours a "transitional type" , although usually "transitional style" is a term for the owl tets of a much different style (see AJ's example), issued a century or so earlier. The style of yours is generally called "intermediate style" or "late classical".

 

I call it a sweet owl

 

Everyone will have their own favorites when it come to style. The transitionals like AJ are what I'd call the finest art but I really would like the earlier Archaics that are more cute than artistic. I have neither. I do like the Classicals with almond eye. A friend of years gone by specialized owls but had the rule that Athena's nose had to be on flan and her smile had to be attractive. His wife would joke about his girls. More recently, there has been a movement from people requiring coins with lots of crest on flan to those wanting coins with no wear even if the flans are smaller. Test cuts remain only suitable for people like me. My friend would have liked the smile of the cut coin better bbut her nose is a bit too close for comfort. Opinions will always vary.

 

Ummm, do I get a couple of snout & smile points?

 

What is it with Athenians and their obsession with test cutting? I know they are far from the only people to have ever done it, but they seemed absolutely obsessed with it.

Even mine has a test cut, even if it's just a small one on the rim.

 

Ive often wondered that too @Sallent

 

The coins of Athens circulated over a wide area not just Athens. There were many copies and unofficial pieces. Test cutting was to sort them out. Would you have recognized this one was bad?