Just out of curiosity, what is the oldest line of pedigree that exists in an ancient coin, or for that matter any coin.
The Gonzaga/d'Este collection of the 16th century. They countermarked their coins with a silver or gold inlaid eagle. See here: http://www.cngcoins.com/Coin.aspx?CoinID=202135
No, that would be a continuous pedigree. You also have stuff like the Vatican hoard of Anglo-Saxon pennies, possibly delivered to Rome by Archbishop Wulfhelm in 927, that was discovered in 1928 and sold at auction.
