The Meat Man's Top 13 Coins of 2023 (Sorry, I just couldn't limit it to ten!)

I just read this thread and it is an amazing collection of additions to your collection. Many posters have already commented on the beauty of your photographs, and the scholarly write-ups of your presentation. The question that I wanted to ask has also been answered regarding the Turner trunk. I did participate in the Stack Bowers sale of coins from the Salton collection and I was able to procure the treasure shown below.

I was extremely fortunate to pick the coin up for the price I paid. Two later offerings of similar coins went for twice what I paid.

Thank you for sharing your photos and scholarship.

Credit for the photos and the description belong to Stack Bowers.



LOT DESCRIPTION
ITALY. Lucania. Metapontion. AR Stater (Nomos) (8.06 gms), ca. 540-510 B.C. NGC VF, Strike: 5/5 Surface: 5/5.

HGC-1, 1027; Noe-Class I; HN Italy-1459. Obverse: Ear of barley with eight grains and bracts at base; Reverse: Incuse ear of barley with eight grains. Wholesome and well centered, this specimen presents gunmetal gray surfaces and stands as one of the earlier examples from the series.

Estimate: $700 - $1,000.

Provenance: From the Mark and Lottie Salton Collection.

 

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Thank you all for your comments!

@Tall Paul that is a breathtaking stater - congrats!

 

I don't have one of my own yet, but those little Akragas Hemidrachms are great. You didn't reference Westermark (the primary die study for all 5th cent. coins from Akragas, including the Hemidrachms), so I grabbed some images of the appropriate plate (from vol. 1) and corresponding text from the catalog (vol. 2).

For anyone interested, the two volumes of Westermark are both available online as PDFs (entirely legally):

Westermark, Ulla. 2018. The Coinage of Akragas c. 510–406 BC. Uppsala: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis.

Part 1: Text and Plates: https://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2:1189867&dswid=9859

["Open Access in DiVA: fulltext(19528 kB)" PDF]​

Part 2: Catalogue: https://uu.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2:1190038&dswid=5183

["Open Access in DiVA fulltext(1687 kB)" PDF]​

Yours looks like Westermark 550 (O8/R7). Photos of closest, neighboring die-pairs included below for comparison:



I've included excerpts of the description & the catalog of known specimens below in expandable thumbnails (click to enlarge):

• 550.1-550.5

​

• 550.6 - 550.17

​

A lot of the Akragas coins available on the market were cited (or illustrated) in Westermark, though sellers don't always realize or mention it. They don't have to be pristine, just auctioned before the 2018 book.

(At 1.86g there are two plausible specimens -- 550.15 [NY Sale I, 26] and 550.17 [Peus 298, 22] -- but after checking the catalogs, unfortunately, neither turns out to be your coin.)

 

Thanks! I will add that information to my collection database. Too bad it's not cited - that would have been a nice bonus.