My most expensive coin purchase

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by arnoldoe, Dec 1, 2020.

  1. arnoldoe

    arnoldoe Well-Known Member

    I won an auction for this coin earlier this year.
    quadriga.jpg
    A Quadrigatus from the Roman Republic, at 450 GBP plus Fees it was my most expensive coin purchase ever..


    but...
    upload_2020-12-1_17-16-48.png
    upload_2020-12-1_17-16-21.png

    When I got the envelope it was sealed in a plastic bag from Customs which said that it was damaged when it arrived in the country, + the envelope inside was ripped open (+ taped back together)

    + the coin was missing..

    It seems that packaging the coins inside of boxes with sharp corners inside of a very thin paper envelope was a bad idea :angelic:
     
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  3. ancient coin hunter

    ancient coin hunter 3rd Century Usurper

    Oh No! Did you get your money back?
     
  4. arnoldoe

    arnoldoe Well-Known Member

    Yeah, It took a while.. but I got my refund a few days ago.
     
    Kasia, DonnaML, Quant.Geek and 7 others like this.
  5. physics-fan3.14

    physics-fan3.14 You got any more of them.... prooflikes?

    Oh man, that sucks - especially since that appears to be an exceptional coin.
     
    Restitutor and arnoldoe like this.
  6. Bing

    Bing Illegitimi non carborundum Supporter

    Totally agree!!
    Crying Man.jpg
     
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  7. Ryro

    Ryro Trying to remove supporter status

    I can see why you decided to go big! And do sorry to read. That coin adds an a hefty amount of clout to the collection it is in.
    Wonder where it is right now?
     
  8. arnoldoe

    arnoldoe Well-Known Member

    idk, maybe at a dump somewhere.
    [​IMG]
     
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  9. Broucheion

    Broucheion Well-Known Member

    Sorry!

    upload_2020-12-1_19-8-40.png
     

    Attached Files:

    Ryro and ominus1 like this.
  10. SensibleSal66

    SensibleSal66 U.S Casual Collector / Error Collector

    Dreaming .... Dreaming.jpg
     
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  11. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    While I'm glad you got your money back, I'm sure you'd rather have the coin than the money (after all, you traded your money for the coin in the first place). That's really disappointing. I'm sorry.
     
  12. Quant.Geek

    Quant.Geek Well-Known Member

    Damn that really sucks! At least you got your money back. This reminds me of the time I bought a beautifully toned Basilikon and apparently the mail sorter ate it :bigtears:. Thankfully, I got my money back, but still. Haven't seen one that toned to date and I still miss it. Even when you get your money back, while it is comforting, it will be difficult to replace that happiness of that coin, unfortunately..

    [​IMG]
     
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  13. panzerman

    panzerman Well-Known Member

    So sad! Most auction houses send their coins super well protected in secure packaging. Kunker, really does a great job, the coin is in a flip/ inside the cardboardwrap/ inside a plastic tray, inside a sealed box. One time, Numismatika Pannonia Terra send my 7K Euro Transylvanian Dukat to a US address by mistake, thankfully, after a two month wait, I finally got my coin in perfect condition.I was sweating buckets for all that time;)
     
  14. Collecting Nut

    Collecting Nut Borderline Hoarder

    Glad you got a refund but I'm sure you'd rather have the coin. One look at it and I know I would.
     
  15. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    That’s brutal, I’m sorry. I had a batch of coins stolen on their way from Europe to america, myself. Only $25 so I didn’t try to get a refund, but it was a real bummer
     
  16. DonnaML

    DonnaML Well-Known Member

    I still feel sad every time I think about this coin, which was lost or stolen in the mail ten months ago on the way to New York from Belgium. It just never turned up, and the missing mail report I filed did no good whatsoever. I really loved that obverse, and I've never seen one exactly like it since then. The refund didn't make me feel much better. It wasn't a whole lot of money in the first place, and I wanted the coin.

    LOST Faustina II - jpg version.jpg
     
  17. pprp

    pprp Well-Known Member

    Damn I told them already that packing the coins in jewelry like boxes may seem nice but anyone in the mail circuit handling the envelop will think there's jewelry inside. In thousands of their shipments this would eventually happen...
     
  18. ambr0zie

    ambr0zie Dacian Taraboste

    Really sorry for the coin.
    I buy coins for about 8 years but I only had one problem, after getting a 60$ modern coin from eBay, the seller stated he couldn't find it so I got a refund.
    All the other transactions went fine, some of them slightly delayed but nothing too serious.
    However I only buy from Europe, I have never bought something from other continents.
    I've heard of too many cases (for my tastes) of damaged envelopes/lost/stolen content from the envelopes and since I'm not too patient anyways (when I buy something, I check the tracking 30 times a day) I prefer sellers from Europe.
     
    DonnaML likes this.
  19. Nvb

    Nvb Well-Known Member

    :(@arnoldoe This is the stuff of nightmares. That quadrigatus has an exceptional reverse and is full of character with sideburns for days. Nice metal and some iridescence too.

    It’s nice you got a refund but I know that doesn’t make up for losing the coin.
    The coins I buy are special to me - that’s why I bought them in the first place! Most of my collection I wouldn’t sell for twice the price.
    The silver lining is with that refund you get to spend the money all over again. The thrill of the chase is what keeps us engaged and you never know when the ‘next one’ will come calling.

    I only have one such lost coin but the story is different. I am still holding out a sliver of hope the coin will find its way to me, but it’s a matter of sorting out what went on with an uncooperative seller.
    14 months after paying for my lot I have no confirmation of shipment and every time I enquire I’m told it will be looked into and dealt with ...tomorrow. :banghead:

    Oh what the heck.. here it is..
    I wonder if I’ll ever get the coin OR a refund. Probably the sharpest, nicely styled specimen I have ever seen of this scarce type and it came complete with a steep ‘chipped flan’ discount. Not so easy to find another at all, let alone of the same quality and appeal.


    59F6B083-C6A2-4352-9D1F-DA2A31C3B7EB.jpeg
     
    Last edited: Dec 2, 2020
  20. ambr0zie

    ambr0zie Dacian Taraboste

    14 months?!
    That dealer/auction house should be mentioned and avoided in the future.
     
  21. Nvb

    Nvb Well-Known Member

    This thread spurred me to email them once again. I called last week as well.
    If I don’t get a response and an explanation tomorrow, yea I’ll drop a name. I am a person with a heck of a lot of patience and understanding and it takes a long time for me to be fed up. But here we are.
     
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