Hi folks, picked this up at the latest Roma auction purely on eye appeal. I love these bronzes as I see them as a poor man's gold lol. Quick question for people more knowledgeable, did I overpay? Hammer was £190 so it's around £235 total. Second question is regarding the obverse lettering, Nero's face, and the bronze disease on the back. Would it be possible to bring any more detail back from these parts at all without affecting the coin? and the BD, it looks stable but I was wondering if it was possible to remove it using dry methods to improve the aesthetic? Or should I leave it? Thanks! Nero Æ Dupondius. Lugdunum, AD 65. NERO CLAVD CAESAR AVG GER P M TR P IMP P P, laureate head to right, [globe at point of bust] / SECVRITAS AVGVSTI, Securitas seated to right on throne, holding short sceptre, garlanded and lighted altar to right, resting on torch and bucranium; S-C across fields. RIC I 445; BMCRE 340 var. (bust type) or 341 var. (obv. legend). 11.40g, 30mm, 6h. Very Fine; die-shift on reverse. Very Rare. From the Vitangelo Collection
First of all, congrats for the coin. Very good eye appeal. I like especially the obverse, good details on Securitas. About the price - it all depends on how much a collector wants a coin in his album. I cannot discuss if the price is OK or not as I have rarely seen a Nero with these details and I can't determine how much do the problems on the coin "cost". There are people on this forum who are doing a terrific job with cleaning coins, some of the results are spectacular. The first member who comes in my mind is @galba68 but he is not the only one. And there are people like me, who clean coins (sometimes) and the result is worse than before. Personally with a coin in this condition I wouldn't risk cleaning it. On the reverse the deposits seem stable. You might regret it as under the green deposit you might get a "hole" in light color.
Thanks folks! Appreciate the input, I'll leave it be, would hate to attempt an improvement and make it worse
Cleaning this would seem a big mistake. The coin has serious pitting which will not improve. Red does not usually clean well but I like the red/yellow look. Are you sure the green is bronze disease? The photo looks like hard green. I would suggest selling the coin and buying one you like. Mine is more even but lower grade which I prefer in this case. $153 in 2002
I like your coin just as it is. To me, the colors enhance it. The green encrustation does not have the typical powdery, light green appearance of bronze disease, at least to me. I would definitely leave it alone and enjoy a very pretty coin.
Nice win! Did you pay too much? Don't think so, the obverse and reverse look great, nice size, it's a rare variant and it's nero. So, win, win, win and win! Like others mentioned already, see if the green is powdery. If not, leave it. If yes, check our simple cleaning methods posted on this board that won't damage the coin. Here's my Nero middle bronze, with some green deposits as well. It was € 165 at the time. You did well on yours.
Thanks! I can't wait to see what it's like in hand, so long as it's stable and looks great I'll be more than happy
I think you can feel safe - I doubt very much that ROMA would ever list a coin with obvious bronze disease.
