red_spork's Top 10 of 2020

2020 has been an interesting year to say the least. For me it started out on a high note - I made it out to NYINC and got to spend some time with good friends discussing excellent coins and I picked up a few nice examples at the sale. We joked a few times about "Wuhan Coronavirus" before we all headed back home and planned to meet again in 2021. If the year went as we all planned, I'd be getting ready for my return to NYC right now, but of course NYINC has been cancelled and due to Covid precautions, I've put off meetings even with coin-friends who live nearby until it is safer to meet again. That said, working from home(even though my workload has increased), not having to commute, not having many events to go to and not having a lot else to spend money on has given me a lot of time and money to put towards my hobbies and in some ways it's been a very fulfilling and fun year, even if a bit lonelier and sadder at times than others. While in some ways it's been a terrible year, for my collection it has been the best year yet.

10. A denarius of Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, future Triumvir
After this coin went unsold at a pretty reasonable starting price in NAC Spring 2020, a friend recommended that I buy it. I was already paying for a second coin I'd won in the sale, so I figured "why not" and asked NAC to add it to my invoice. I promptly got an email back that it would be added to my invoice, with a note from Giuliano Russo that it was a particularly beautiful example of the type and I'd be very happy with it - a nice touch from an auction house that routinely sells coins worth more than my whole collection. This is not a particularly rare issue or anything like that, I just have always found it an attractive issue with interesting history given the moneyer's later accomplishments and I was very happy to be able to add such an excellently provenanced example to my collection.

Roman Republic AR Denarius(19mm, 3.91g). Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, 61 B.C., Rome mint. Laureate and diademed female head right. Border of dots/Horseman right, carrying trophy over shoulder. In exergue M LEPIDVS. Crawford 419/1b; Banti Aemilia 71-3 (this coin); Babelon Aemilia 22; Sydenham 830; RBW 1507.
Numismatica Ars Classica Spring Auction 2020, 25 May 2020, lot 633, ex JD Collection, Numismatica Ars Classica 72, 16 May 2013, lot 1213, ex Finearte 208, 1975, lot 28

9. A rare overstrike: uncia over semuncia
In the process of working on a paper on Second Punic War-era Roman-over-Roman bronze overstrikes with Andrew McCabe, one of the interesting phenomena we noted was the comparative rarity of uncia-over-semuncia overstrikes. Whereas some Crawford 41 denominations are commonly found overstruck on early Roman coins, the 41/10 uncia, one of the most common of the series, is almost never found overstruck on earlier coins. We knew of 2 examples in the entire corpus of overstrikes we initially assembled of an uncia overstruck on a semuncia - a very strange thing. When I spotted this coin for sale it took me a bit to work out what the overstrike was but once I finally figured it out, I happily forked over the cash for this interesting little uncia. It then became one of the coins cited in our paper.

Roman republic Æ Uncia(6.06g, 22mm, 10h), anonymous "post-semilibral" series. 215-212 BC. Head of Roma right, wearing attic helmet; to left, • / Prow right; above, ROMA; below, •. McCabe Group A2; Crawford 41/10
Overstruck on semilibral semuncia, Crawford 38/7, McCabe Group AA; For 41/10 overstruck on 38/7, cf. Crawford, table XVIII 20, Hersh 40, Bahrfeldt 5

8. An upgrade to my corn-ear uncia
This is a relatively common RR bronze, but one that's tough to find a nice example of. These are virtually all overstruck on Syracusan bronzes and may have been struck by the Roman army besieging the city circa 214-212 BC. The overstriking process made a real mess of many of these and the reverse often is partially off flan as it is on this one. My old example was egregiously smoothed and repatinated as well, something that didn't bother me when I purchased it but which increasingly began to bother me over the years. I spotted this new example on eBay earlier this year at a low starting price and surprisingly won it at the opening bid. The sale of my old example (with problems properly disclosed) more than covered the cost of the new one, so it was a nice "free" upgrade.

Roman Republic Æ Uncia(20.43 mm, 6.35 g, 7 h). Corn-ear(grain-ear) series. 214-212 B.C. Sicilian mint. Helmeted head of Mars right; behind, • / Prow of galley right; ROMA and grain ear above; below, •. Crawford 42/4; Sydenham -
Ex Old Pueblo Coin, Tucson AZ, eBay, 13 Feb 2020, ex Agora 68, 15 Aug 2017, lot 149, ex RBW Collection, ex Lanz 40, 25 May 1987

7. Prelude to Civil War: A Denarius of Quintus Sicinius
One of my goals this year was to collect more Imperatorial and Late Republic issues, so fittingly I picked up this denarius of Quintus Sicinius, considered by some such as David Sear as the first Imperatorial issue, and as such the first type listed in History and Coinage of the Roman Imperators. Why is that? Because this moneyer was seemingly the first moneyer to take a side - that of Pompey - after those in Rome heard that Caesar was marching towards the city. The types refer to Pompey's triumphs and are a sort of wish that fortune(Fortuna) be on his side. I was also happy to get a second chance on this coin, after having it on my list but losing it at Triton, and then picking it up for a few bucks less at Roma later in the year. You can read more about the type here.

Roman Republic AR denarius(4.00g, 17mm, 9h). Q Sicinius, early 49 BC, Rome. Diademed head of Fortuna right; P•R upward to left; FORT downward to right. Border of dots / Palm frond and winged caduceus, bound with fillet, in saltire; wreath with fillet above; III•VIR across field, Q•SICINIVS below. Border of dots. Crawford 440/1; Sear HCRI 1
Ex Roma Numismatics e-sale 72, 25 June 2020, lot 876, ex CNG Triton XXIII, 14 January 2020, lot 600

6. Q Pomponius Musa with Urania, muse of Astronomy
This coin is special to me for a few reasons. First, I've been searching for a denarius of this moneyer for a while and so I was very excited to find a nice example at a decent price with excellent toning and provenance. Outside of that, one of my hobbies aside from coins is astronomy, and as you might imagine I've had a whole lot of time for that this year, especially since I'm working from home and can afford to stay up later and sleep in later now that my commute is about 20 feet. I've spent more nights out with my telescope this year than ever before and I still haven't had enough and am regularly freezing my butt off looking for some galaxy, nebula, star cluster or planet. Because of this, I was quite excited to find a coin that in many ways combined the two hobbies that have kept me sane this year.

Roman Republic AR Denarius(3.81g), Quintus Pomponius Musa, moneyer, 56 B.C., Rome mint. Laureate head of Apollo right; behind, star. Border of dots. / Urania, muse of Astronomy left, holding rod in right hand and pointing to globe resting on tripod; on right, Q POMPONI downwards; on left, MVSA downwards. Border of dots. Crawford 410/8; Sydenham 823
Ex Harlan J Berk, 21 July 2020, ex Harlan J Berk Buy or Bid Sale 210, 1 April 2020, lot 164, ex Gorny & Mosch Auction 146, 6 March 2006, lot 379, ex Münzen & Medaillen GmbH 14, 16 April 2004, lot 479, ex Numismatik Lanz, München 18, 13 May 1980, lot 253

5. An Athenian Owl
Before I actually collected ancient coins an Athenian owl was what came to mind when I thought of ancient coins. Of course there are many more I know of now but I've always been a bit envious when others shared their beautiful owls and even though I collect Roman Republic primarily I do allow myself to occasionally pick up special coins outside my area of specialty. When it was obvious that there was a hoard and prices on owls were dropping I knew I had to get one while the gettin' was good. I looked for one at NYINC, but I couldn't quite bring myself to pay the retail premiums dealers were asking. After bidding opportunistically on a handful I won this example at CNG. I have to say as much as I like my denarii there is something about having a massive chunk of ancient silver like this and I hope I can pick up a few more Greek silver issues.

Attica, Athens, AR tetradrachm(23mm, 17.23 g, 1h) Helmeted head of Athena right, with frontal eye / Owl standing right, head facing; olive sprig and crescent to left; ΑΘΕ to right; all within incuse square. Kroll 8; HGC 4, 1597.

4. The first portrait coin of Octavian
I've always thought this first portrait issue of Octavian was a fascinating type because it comes right on the heels of a major victory for Octavian and is in some ways the announcement of a new major power entering the story. It's also our first glimpse at a portrait that would come to dominate Roman coinage for decades to come. You can read more about the type here.

Roman Imperatorial period AR Denarius(3.86g, 18mm), C Caesar Octavianus, mint with Octavian in Cisalpine Gaul, Spring-Summer 43 BC. Bare head of Octavian right, bearded; C·CAESAR·IMP around; border of dots / Equestrian statue of Octavian galloping left, his right hand extended; SC in exergue. Sear HCRI 131; Crawford 490/1; Sydenham 1318

3. Julius Caesar with C. Clovius orichalcum dupondius
This is my final purchase of 2020, one I wasn't sure would get here in time since I purchased it from a Canadian dealer in December and it just arrived last night. I like that this coin had a legend referring to Caesar's dictatorship and also its strange place in the Roman monetary system as an orichalcum dupondius(?) very unlike anything minted before. The historical significance of the events surrounding its minting also cannot be understated. This coin was likely minted to be handed out during Caesar's triumph after Munda. Unlike his previous triumphs which were ostensibly celebrating victories over foreign enemies such as Juba(who were allied with Roman armies), this triumph was explicitly celebrating a victory over other Romans, by a dictator who had recently been granted a 10 year term. If this was not the moment that started the plot against Caesar, it very likely gave the conspirators a lot of ammunition for casting him as a dangerous threat to the Republic.

Roman Imperatorial period AR Denarius(3.86g, 18mm), C Caesar Octavianus, mint with Octavian in Cisalpine Gaul, Spring-Summer 43 BC. Bare head of Octavian right, bearded; C·CAESAR·IMP around; border of dots / Equestrian statue of Octavian galloping left, his right hand extended; SC in exergue. Sear HCRI 131; Crawford 490/1; Sydenham 1318

2. 68/1a "Corn-ear" denarius
The 68/1a corn-ear denarius is a classic rarity of the Roman Republic series. It's well known but only comes to market once a decade or so. This is not the more common(and better style) Crawford 72 corn ear denarius but instead a much rarer series minted at a different mint, differentiated by the helmet spike and angular engraving style. After bidding aggressively and being outbid twice for the quinarius of this series, I was shocked to find this example being sold as the more common series by a retail dealer for about half of the hammer price of the quinarii I got outbid on. In this case I got really lucky that the dealer had posted the coin on eBay when I spotted it as it almost certainly would have been snapped up immediately on Vcoins. You can read more about this one here.

Roman Republic AR Denarius(4.35g, 11h), Corn-ear series, 211-208 B.C., Sicilian mint. Helmeted head of Roma right with "spike" on rear of helmet; behind, X / The Dioscuri galloping right; below, corn-ear(wheat ear); ROMA in linear frame. Crawford 68/1a

1. Crawford 46(a)/1
Mysterious coins like this one are what make me love this area of collecting. This coin comes from a small extremely rare issue linked by style to Crawford 46/1, but with some notable differences and no known die links. I got really lucky and spotted this in a Harlan J Berk Buy or Bid sale within a couple of minutes of posting, trusted my intuition and bought it as fast as I could. That was the right move as there were a handful of others who would have bought it had they seen it first. After purchase I found that the coin was actually published in the guide to anonymous denarii and was also published in a Numismatic Chronicle paper about the earliest denarii a few years ago as well. You can read more about it here.

Roman Republic AR Denarius(4.83g, 21mm, 10h). Anonymous. After 211 B.C. Uncertain mint. Helmeted head of Roma right; behind, X. Border of dots / Dioscuri galloping right; in linear frame, ROMA. Line border. Crawford -; Brinkman-Debernardi website 46(a)/1, example 2(this coin); Numismatic Chronicle 174(2014), "The Orzivecchi Hoard and the Beginnings of the Denarius", p. 85, fig 5.b(this coin)
Ex Harlan J Berk Buy or Bid Sale 210, 6 February 2020, lot 116, ex Harlan J Berk Buy or Bid Sale 121, 10 July 2001, lot 266

As always, feel free to share anything related and let me know which ones are your favorite.

 

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Some fantastic coins, RS. As for the ones I like best, it would be 10, 6, 4, & 1.

 

I really love your overstrike on #9! And your big corn-ear on #8! And what an fun early portrait of Octavian on #4!!! Great ear, er... YEAR for you @rrdenarius!

 

@red_spork , I really like your post--partly for the coins but even more for the good commentary. I would want #10, Lepidus, #7, early imperatorial, and #4, Octavian, the most. They are very attractive and very historical. Congratulations!

 

Some lovely Republican issues! Congratulations on a fine year.

 

Excellent coins, @red_spork !

 

Very nice selection. My favorite is Q Pomponius Musa with Urania, muse of Astronomy

 

#5 thee owl. wow

 

Thanks for the kind words everyone!

I have to say there really is something about the owl. When I was at NYINC I handled so many of them and couldn't get over how satisfying it was to handle a nice hefty Athenian owl. I knew I had to have one.

 

Your #4, the first portrait of Octavian, is my favorite. I saw it on Herakles' store on VCoins after it sold - it jumps out as a solid example of an artistically and historically important type (and undoubtedly has a pedigree somewhere waiting to be found). I'm glad it went to a great home!

 

Wonderful coins, @red_spork. My favorite is the Julius Caesar (a type I didn't even know about), and, after that, the gorgeous Quintus Sicinius. That head of Fortuna! As a Roman Republican enthusiast myself, although admittedly of relatively recent vintage, I know how hard it is to find Republican denarii that look like anywhere near that good. The Pomponius Musa is also very cool (but why does Urania look so sad?), and it's certainly appropriate that it's yours.

It seems that a lot of you were at the NYINC in January -- hard to believe that it was January of this year. I was there too, but I didn't join CT until the end of that month, so I had no idea who any of you were. (I was the short one.) I was looking forward to having a chance to meet some of you next month, but of course it was not to be. 2022, let's hope!

 

I favor #3 but really do not know why since I am generally adverse to the oligarchs and the system they founded. I do not have anything like it.

 

The Q Sicinius is a beauty! Other than that one, 6, 4 and 3 are my favorites, all of them being types that I'd be happy to have in my collection.

 

Great coins, all of them! My favorite is the first portrait issue of Octavian.

 

R.S., You had an exceptional year, especially with Republican coinage ! My favorite would be #9, the rare overstrike . The coin has a great jade-like patina & the photo comparison was a great idea . My 2nd favorite would be #7, the denarius of Quintus Sicinius. This coin has great eye appeal . My 3rd favorite is #1, the hefty over-weight denarius struck on a very broad flan. Could this be a trial strike ?

 

You know your coin year has been fantastic when the Athenian owl doesn't make it as #1 !
Your #4, #3, #7 and #10 are absolute winners to my eye

Q

 

7 is lovely

 

Lovely! The Urania denarius is my favorite.

 

@red_spork There are so many here it's hard to isolate to a few as favorites. The Corn ear denarius is quite rare and iconic. If you posted this earlier, I missed it. I missed the 46/(a)1 when it was first listed by Berk by a heartbeat. I even emailed Berk to make an offer to the buyer before I saw that you bought it a few minutes later. I've always wanted this variety. Further, the coins of Pomponius Musa are notoriously mis-struck and off-center. Yours has everything - another I don't remember seeing.

 

I think I've posted them all but some of these purchases were from early in the year. I believe both of these dioscuri denarii were purchased while I was still working in an office, which at this point feels like it was years ago.

The Musa denarius was recommended by a mutual acquaintance of ours who knew I was looking for one. It did not take me long to decide I had to have it. As you noted it is surprisingly complete for a series whose coins are often missing a Muse's head or some legend and the toning is beautiful in-hand. In previous years it probably would have been my top coin but there were so many other great ones this year.