24/3 1603 Elizabeth I of England died. Elizabeth Tudor, the “Virgin Queen”, is mainly remembered for the flourishing of English drama, with playwrights such as William Shakespeare. Being Anne Boleyn’s daughter was not easy for her, since she was considered illegitimate soon after her mother’s execution. Her half-brother Edward VI died in 1553 and left his crown to his wife Lady Jane Grey, excluding both Elizabeth and her sister Mary from the succession. But Lady Grey was deposed, and soon after Mary's death, in 1558, Elizabeth ascended to the throne. She never married, and had no descendents. She died on March 24, 1603, and was succeeded by James VI of Scotland. [HR][/HR]26/3 49 B.C. Ptolemy XIII drowns in the Nile after fleeing Caesar's forces. Ptolemy XIII had allied with his sister Arsinoe IV to depose Cleopatra VII, his wife and Julius Caesar’s lover. They battled in Alexandria, where Roman reinforcements gave the victory for Cleopatra, forcing Arsinoe and Ptolemy to flee the city. While crossing the Nile, Ptolemy, who was not fifteen years old, drowned, ending the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt. [HR][/HR]28/3 193 A.D. Pertinax murdered while courageously confronting an angry mob of soldiers.Pertinax ruled for only 86 days in the year that would be later remembered as the “Year of the Five Emperors”. During his short reign, he increased the silver purity of the denarii, a measure that would not survive his death. He had promised the Praetorian Guard a generous pay before his ascension, but some historians say he only paid half their promised donativum. This incited an angry mob of soldiers to brake into his palace and murder him. After his death, the imperial position was auctioned, and Didus Julianus won it, becoming the new emperor of Rome.
This is a tough week. I don't have a Ptolemy XIII and my Divus Pertinax AE is a old (Paduan?) fake. The two Pertinax denarii are both Alexandria mint which turn out to be more common than Rome mint Pertinax coins making him one that might actually have gone down in price in the last decade as more and more of the Eastern coins have come to market. Many Elizabeth coins have weakly struck portraits so there is a large range in price between the good and the bad among them. Mine are very ordinary.
Wow, they're getting way more "broad" ... until recently, they were directed more at ancients, but lately they've strayed away (those tricky ol' V-Coin dogs!!) ... ummm, anyway ... => I want to post a couple of coins, just because they mention the dude's ancestors (is that cheating? ... yah, I know the answer is yes, but don't judge me too harshly, okay?) Ptolemy "IV" Philopator(s) ... so these two coins are Ptolemy VIII's Great-Great-Grandfather's coins ...
Last week I had a conversation with someone in the know to the effect that we had no idea when they first were recognized just how common the Alexandria mint Pertinax denarii were. Because they are only separated from Rome mint coins by style, we thought we were getting in on the ground floor when we bought them. More hoards have surfaced. I don't know that they should sell for less than the Rome coins but they should carry no premium. Of course there are still many dealers who feel comfortable buying and selling thousand dollar coins but who have not learned the difference here. It has been 20 years since these were recognized as Alexandria coins an we still see some listed as from Rome. Personally, I prefer the portrait styles on the Alexandrian coins and do not own a Rome mint one to show.
