Message:

<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Curtis, post: 24667734, member: 26430&quot;]That&#039;s a great coin, and interesting date arrangement, as you say. Quite nice for a Diocletian -- the quality control had suffered in recent decades!</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Here&#039;s an Imperial Ant. Nothing too special about it except that it&#039;s reportedly ex <b>MA Historical Society / John Quincy Adams (6th American President) and Descendants Collection</b> (<a href="https://archive.org/details/partimassachuset1971stac" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://archive.org/details/partimassachuset1971stac" rel="nofollow">Stack&#039;s 5 March 1971</a>), Lot 939 (part).</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1572963[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Only a minority of the coins were illustrated or described in any detail, and I think the group lots came with a single label/envelope, so like most, this coin has lost any proof of provenance except by attestation of Heritage Auctions and CNG. (Unless the MHS&#039;s old inventory in Boston is that detailed, but I highly doubt it.)</p><p><br /></p><p>Incidentally, the ancients should probably be called &quot;Charles Francis Adams Collection&quot; instead.</p><p><br /></p><p>The last mention of J.Q.A.&#039;s ancients is in a letter from Charles Francis saying the box couldn&#039;t be located. (The modern coins were found.) C.F.A. bought a great number of ancient coins from Sotheby&#039;s auctions in the 1860s while serving as Minister to the UK during the American Civil War. (I think I even know which sale for a different Adams Collection coin of mine, <a href="https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=1274700" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=1274700" rel="nofollow">a Republican Quinarius</a>.)</p><p><br /></p><p>(He was also in temporary possession of <a href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=loc.ark:/13960/t2c83gs4p&amp;view=1up&amp;seq=18" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=loc.ark:/13960/t2c83gs4p&amp;view=1up&amp;seq=18" rel="nofollow">the ridiculous Groux Collection</a> -- which happens to be <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/25080756" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/25080756" rel="nofollow">a great numismatic story if you&#039;re ever bored</a> -- and may have &quot;accidentally&quot; held onto a few hundred after their drama was resolved.)</p><p><br /></p><p>C.F.A.&#039;s son, Henry Adams (of <i>The Education of...</i>) &quot;had no use&quot; for the coins, added none to the collection, and donated it to the MA Hist. Society in 1913, where it remained until they decided security was a problem &amp; sold them in 1971.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><b>My Alexandrian Diocletian</b>&#039;s are a sorry bunch.</p><p><br /></p><p>On this one at least the name is clear enough to be certain it&#039;s him! (A big problem I find when IDing the later ones.) I assume that&#039;s Dikaiosyne, as it looks like she&#039;s holding scales.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1572962[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

Your name or email address:

Do you already have an account?

• No, create an account now.
• Yes, my password is:
• Forgot your password?

Stay logged in