Here are my top 10 purchases of 2019. In it are a myriad of different cultures and eras represented, but most are from ancient China (my specialty). Without further ado: 10. This is a “Liang Zi” coin, cast by the State of Qin either before or contemporaneously with the earliest Ban Liangs. They are the same nominal value, though typically a little lighter in weight. There are two varieties, with and without rims, of which the without rims variety tends to be cheaper (though both are just as rare). This coin is the without rims variety, with a fabric much more resembling that of the Ban Liang. This type is very rare with examples showing up at auction once every couple of years at best. This coin actually showed up on eBay, already slabbed, from a good seller. The certification and coin were verified, and I negotiated what I thought was a really good price. Since this coin was a type I had been wanting for a while, it makes the top 10 list. 9. This is a Florentine soldino from 1463. I bought it from eBay because it kinda looked nice, but it is really a stunner in hand. I have compared it to other known examples (the few I found; it is a scarce type), and it was by far better than all of them, making it probably one of the finest known of the type! I fell in love with this coin when I first saw it in hand. 8. This is a Venetian grosso of Francesco Dandolo. I was perusing a friend’s inventory of medieval silvers at a show when this popped out of the tray. It was superbly well-struck with a very complete design on both sides. They just don’t come like this, especially for the price I paid, so it is an obvious inclusion on this year’s top 10. 7.This is an incredibly rare ant-nose coin which I bought from @AnYangMan to complete my set of any-nose coins. It’s traditional reading is “Tao”, or “kiln”, but the ancient character does not match well with what is on the coin. Because this coin completed a set I have been working on for years (and because it came from a good friend), there was no way that it could not be on this list. 6. Another eBay purchase was this vey rare “San Zhu”, which was the predecessor to the extremely-common Wu Zhu. Exactly when they were introduced and exactly why the failed are not precisely known, but they are discussed in my thread here: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/an-epic-failure.343541/ Since I had been after the type for several years, and because it has my favorite patina coloration, this was another obvious choice for this list. 5. Now we are in the top 5. There is a variety of knife coins called needle-tip knives due to their sharp, long, and thin tips. They are very scarce, since the entirety of the type was unknown until a 1932 hoard discovery. Most are in rather poor condition due to chipping, advanced corrosion, etc, but this knife is in perfect shape. The hole at the base of the handle was inconsistent with the type, and the inscription was unpublished, so I had doubts about authenticity. However, the patina and style were otherwise perfect, there was a provenance to Jeff Young (a well-reputed dealer and collector), and the inscription matched that of an example in the British Museum collection. As a result, @AnYangMan and I both concluded that this coin was undoubtedly genuine. I was super excited to be given the opportunity to buy this coin, thanks to AnYangMan. Many apologies for the sub-par pics. It is still in transit from across the Atlantic. 4. This owl tet was my graduation gift to myself, and it really need no further preamble. It just has to be in the top 10. The condition and other attributes of this specimen really make it stand out from most others of the type. 3. I was after this Fiorino for several months before the stars alined and I got this example. It basically represents the catalyst that changed the trade economy of Western Europe for centuries. In addition, it is a very rare variety of a scarce type that indicates that it is one of the earliest of the type produced. The style, condition, and fully-original toning make this coin remarkable is every aspect. My writeup of this coin, which is the only comprehensive one in English, is here. https://www.cointalk.com/threads/new-auction-win-florences-first-florin.331259/ 2. This is the auction win I had alluded to earlier. I saw this coin in-hand when I was examining a friend’s collection while I was in Europe. I felt it was genuine and immediately fell in love with it. When I saw it pop up for sale, I decided I would pursue it when I had money after graduation. Then it was withdrawn from sale and put up for auction, meaning that I had to scramble money so I could put in a competitive bid. I raised the money, and I won the auction by the skin of my teeth. So why is this coin so special? Well, this would quite possibly be the only chance in my lifetime where this coin type would be available to me. There are virtually none in private hands. This type is a member of a series of extremely rare straight knife coins, of which this is the only half-unit. In fact, it is the only (as cast) half-unit knife coin known to exist. It is truly a piece worthy of being in a museum, and it will be absent from even the best-funded collections. 1. I bought this coin by chance because it was advertised as a contemporary counterfeit. In hand, I was able to demonstrate without a doubt that it was fully-genuine. This is a JiMo knife, a five-character knife cast by the city of JiMo in the state of Qi. These knives were cast to the highest quality, and they are extremely large and impressive in hand. I was not expecting to acquire one of these so soon, or even acquire one at all given how much they go for nowadays. Qi knives are my one of my favorite coins of all types due to their size and quality. For this reason, it is my #1 purchase of 2019, though the previous knife is a very close second.
Quite a diverse group! I am glad you won that coin My favorite is your Florentine Soldino/ beautifull Renaissance coin! John
Wow TypeCoin, what an incredible year!! I think my order of preference is exactly as you've given here. One through three are absolute jaw-droppers. I think you're going to have to change your signature paragraph - "Life this year was like a huge box of superb Belgian chocolates!" I feel like I should drop in some Chinese coins for your delectation but I didn't pick up much in that department this year. Here's a recent lot I think I won, but I haven't heard for sure yet! Plus this humble ex Sallent ban liang, with fabric incorporated into the patina (which I thought was cool... have you seen this on other coins?)
Being not at all into chinese, I can only believe you in how exceptionnal those are, but as you seem very pleased with them, so am I For what it represents for you, I think the owl deserves the first place, otherwise the ones that strike me the most are the fiorentine soldino and even more the fiorino, by all means an absolute winner ! Well done Q
We can always count on TypeCoin to bring the exotic to CoinTalk! Looks like you had a fantastic year. I love the patina on #2. It's great having you hear, buddy Congrats on your graduation and job. Here's to a wonderful 2020!
Both are staple Chinese coin types, and both appear to be genuine! I hope you won! I was in the same predicament with the #2 knife until I got the invoice. I do find fabric patina to be cool. While not common, it isn’t that rare either. I’ve seen it several times before.
Regarding fabric patina: Is there any sign of actual fiber surviving here or is what we see impression of fabric that rotted away leaving an imprint in the deposits? I do not collect Chinese coins but would like to know more about evidence from hoards of any type that shed light on how the coins were packaged. We have coins in pots but have to assume some were in cloth or leather bags that have disappeared over the centuries. Western coins tend to be cleaned more completely than would leave some of these signs.
In my experience, it has always been the latter. I also have a few ancient Chinese that have been fused to wood. It looks like part of a box in which they were stored, but it could have been due to being entangled in tree roots (seems unlikely, but possible. There have also been some instances of ancient Chinese coins found with remnant of the original string that they were tied up with.
Your Chinese coins are very cool. The color of the weathering and mineral deposits make them fascinating. I’m amazed by the presence of the associated organic material. It would be fun to hire a forensic lab to date them. I know that would be expensive Also, the florin from your previous post is my favorite of your 2019 Top 10 group
Thanks for the feedback, @TypeCoin971793! I have been after one of those early round coins for a while and I hope I did actually land one finally. The ming knife is an extra bonus. I had just looked at it with my ordinary magnifier before, and it didn't look like a negative impression, but rather a positive remnant or a fully mineralized "fossil" of the original fabric. I happen to still have the coin here - it hasn't travelled to the bank yet - so just now took a look under the stereo microscope. It's definitely not an impression, nor is it a "fossil." It's actual fabric, highly mineralized. How do I know? When I scrape at its edges a bit, I get fibres coming off. The microscopic fibres are clearly visible in the rest of the fabric. A casual look suggests that researchers probably have enough samples of Han dynasty fabric that they wouldn't be interested in analyzing this bit, but if anyone has an idea of who I might contact to make sure of that, let me know!
