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<p>[QUOTE="dougsmit, post: 4871465, member: 19463"]Dishonest answer: I trust everyone noted that the Coin Weekly list stated that, had they not disallowed recurrences, the EID MAR would have held 9 of the 10 spots. I find the whole list skewed by the morbid fascination of people with money for coins of the oligarchs who killed the Republic. However, I must admit that I am no better - just different. Nine of my top ten denarii in the heart of this collector are one reverse type (more or less) VICTOR IVST AVG. My favorite coins are rarely my most expensive since price is a factor of what other people think of coins and I have little respect for the opinions of people to whom the coins are parallel to stock shares. I wonder if major share holders who have ten thousand shares of one stock have a favorite among them. I will start with the one coin in my group that some people might rate as valuable. It is the one from which the others were copied.</p><p><br /></p><p>Pescennius Niger / VICTOR IVST AVG</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1176366[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>The British Museum Catalog (BMCRE V, 338) shows in their plates a coin which they catalog as VICTOR IVST AVG but their specimen is on a small flan and missing much legend. Mine is a die duplicate that shows clearly that the legend on that die read VICTOR IVST AVS. You know what they say about assuming. I will never understand why this coin made it to the CNG sale of the Bickford-Smith collection since the BM had rights of refusal of his coins and took the good stuff. I assume they had a better one by the time of the sale and did not need this one.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1176359[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>The coin below is a different die that reads VICTOR IVST AVG so is actually BMCRE 338 but the people who compiled that list did not know they were doing the right thing by accident. Those who care might note the two coins use the same obverse die. That die was a workhorse and is known with several other reverses in my collection.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1176360[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Next up is the coin I have long touted as 'My Favorite Coin' since I bought is ~1963 and published a short piece about it in the "Voice of the Turtle" in 1967. I consider that jersey to have been retired so it no longer has to defend itself against other candidates for the title 'My Favorite Coin'. I paid Joel Malter $13.50 for it which was about three times the going rate for denarii of Septimius Severus back then. I spent years looking for others and was hopeful for a while that it was super rare.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1176361[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>It was not. maridvnvm has at least one and a few other variant obverse types that I do not have. The problem with 'unique' coins is they tend not to be and you made a fool of yourself hoping they were. The next two coins are different dies but still COS I obverses. There must be a score of them. </p><p>[ATTACH=full]1176362[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]1176363[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Next is the last variation combining the VICTOR IVST AVG reverse with the common COSII obverse. This coin is troubling since the theory was that the mint stopped making IVST coins when they discovered that that title was applied to the enemy (Pescennius Niger) and switched to VICTOR SEVER AVG coins. This coin pushes the switchover date later than previously thought (by me). </p><p>[ATTACH=full]1176364[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>The type was so common that even the barbarous guys got into the act. Placing this coin in the group stretches the point quite a bit. It is what it is whatever that is. </p><p>[ATTACH=full]1176372[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>That is eight. The last two spots are taken by VICTOR IVST AVG denarii of Julia Domna. When I got the first one, I was aware of the type as listed in Cohen from the BnF specimen. Last I heard, the British Museum has two (theirs are nicer). 'Scholars' dismiss the coin as a hybrid with reverse of Septimius Severus because they notion is that it must be an error if a coin has a he-man reverse coupled with a lady. It does not bother them in the least that we have at least five of these Victory <u>seated</u> coins for Domna (all are die duplicates) but not a single one for Septimius or Pescennius. When you decide that all men use manly reverses and all women run away blushing at the mention of victory (or a dozen other reverses used for Domna that seen inappropriate) you can prove anything using your own personal facts and dismiss things that don't fit preconceived notions. </p><p>[ATTACH=full]1176393[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]1176394[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>That is ten VICTOR IVST AV(G) coins making up my single most favorite coin type even though all are to some degree 'recurring'. No one collects EID MAR by die variations --- do they? Anyone who has read this far (Why? - I do not know) can expect my honest answer below.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="dougsmit, post: 4871465, member: 19463"]Dishonest answer: I trust everyone noted that the Coin Weekly list stated that, had they not disallowed recurrences, the EID MAR would have held 9 of the 10 spots. I find the whole list skewed by the morbid fascination of people with money for coins of the oligarchs who killed the Republic. However, I must admit that I am no better - just different. Nine of my top ten denarii in the heart of this collector are one reverse type (more or less) VICTOR IVST AVG. My favorite coins are rarely my most expensive since price is a factor of what other people think of coins and I have little respect for the opinions of people to whom the coins are parallel to stock shares. I wonder if major share holders who have ten thousand shares of one stock have a favorite among them. I will start with the one coin in my group that some people might rate as valuable. It is the one from which the others were copied. Pescennius Niger / VICTOR IVST AVG [ATTACH=full]1176366[/ATTACH] The British Museum Catalog (BMCRE V, 338) shows in their plates a coin which they catalog as VICTOR IVST AVG but their specimen is on a small flan and missing much legend. Mine is a die duplicate that shows clearly that the legend on that die read VICTOR IVST AVS. You know what they say about assuming. I will never understand why this coin made it to the CNG sale of the Bickford-Smith collection since the BM had rights of refusal of his coins and took the good stuff. I assume they had a better one by the time of the sale and did not need this one. [ATTACH=full]1176359[/ATTACH] The coin below is a different die that reads VICTOR IVST AVG so is actually BMCRE 338 but the people who compiled that list did not know they were doing the right thing by accident. Those who care might note the two coins use the same obverse die. That die was a workhorse and is known with several other reverses in my collection. [ATTACH=full]1176360[/ATTACH] Next up is the coin I have long touted as 'My Favorite Coin' since I bought is ~1963 and published a short piece about it in the "Voice of the Turtle" in 1967. I consider that jersey to have been retired so it no longer has to defend itself against other candidates for the title 'My Favorite Coin'. I paid Joel Malter $13.50 for it which was about three times the going rate for denarii of Septimius Severus back then. I spent years looking for others and was hopeful for a while that it was super rare. [ATTACH=full]1176361[/ATTACH] It was not. maridvnvm has at least one and a few other variant obverse types that I do not have. The problem with 'unique' coins is they tend not to be and you made a fool of yourself hoping they were. The next two coins are different dies but still COS I obverses. There must be a score of them. [ATTACH=full]1176362[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]1176363[/ATTACH] Next is the last variation combining the VICTOR IVST AVG reverse with the common COSII obverse. This coin is troubling since the theory was that the mint stopped making IVST coins when they discovered that that title was applied to the enemy (Pescennius Niger) and switched to VICTOR SEVER AVG coins. This coin pushes the switchover date later than previously thought (by me). [ATTACH=full]1176364[/ATTACH] The type was so common that even the barbarous guys got into the act. Placing this coin in the group stretches the point quite a bit. It is what it is whatever that is. [ATTACH=full]1176372[/ATTACH] That is eight. The last two spots are taken by VICTOR IVST AVG denarii of Julia Domna. When I got the first one, I was aware of the type as listed in Cohen from the BnF specimen. Last I heard, the British Museum has two (theirs are nicer). 'Scholars' dismiss the coin as a hybrid with reverse of Septimius Severus because they notion is that it must be an error if a coin has a he-man reverse coupled with a lady. It does not bother them in the least that we have at least five of these Victory [U]seated[/U] coins for Domna (all are die duplicates) but not a single one for Septimius or Pescennius. When you decide that all men use manly reverses and all women run away blushing at the mention of victory (or a dozen other reverses used for Domna that seen inappropriate) you can prove anything using your own personal facts and dismiss things that don't fit preconceived notions. [ATTACH=full]1176393[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]1176394[/ATTACH] That is ten VICTOR IVST AV(G) coins making up my single most favorite coin type even though all are to some degree 'recurring'. No one collects EID MAR by die variations --- do they? Anyone who has read this far (Why? - I do not know) can expect my honest answer below.[/QUOTE]
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