Unique Coins in Your Collection

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by ancientone, Jan 22, 2017.

  1. ancientone

    ancientone Well-Known Member

    Here are two coins from Elis and Nikopolis,Epirus that I believe to be unique. I have yet to find any reference or similar examples in private collections. The fact that they are possibly unique is exciting, but they are also from historically important cities. The Elis was probably minted to supplement an Olympics during the reign of Septimius. The city of Nikopolis was founded in 31 BC by Octavian in memory of his victory over Antony and Cleopatra at Actium the previous year.


    EpirusAugustus3.jpg
    Epirus, Nikopolis, AE18. Augustus / Head of boar
    Obv: AVGOVCTO CKTICTHC, Head of Augustus r., bare.
    Rev: NΕIΚΟΠΟ(Λ) ΕW(C), Head of boar r.


    normal_septsev.jpg
    Achaea. Elis, Elis. Septimius Severus AE18.
    Peloponnesus.
    Obv. - ΛCEPCEBHP.. Septimius Severus laureate, head rt.
    Rev. - HΛEIWΝ Zeus standing rt. holding eagle in left hand and throwing lightning bolt with rt.


    Please share coins in your collection that you believe to be "One of a Kind".
     
    Last edited: Jan 22, 2017
    stevex6, zumbly, randygeki and 17 others like this.
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  3. AncientJoe

    AncientJoe Well-Known Member

    If one were to go down to the level of die pairs as many collectors do in US coins, the number of known unique ancients would be astronomical. My only unique example is this Clazomenae drachm, which is the only known with this magistrate name and the only example with this caliber of artistic execution.

    Ex. Kunstrfreund and Ex. Pozzi:

    [​IMG]
     
  4. ancientone

    ancientone Well-Known Member

    What a beautiful coin! Is the magistrates name Apolla?
     
  5. ro1974

    ro1974 Well-Known Member

    [​IMG]
    This coin is more seen in denarius then sestertius Macrinus sestertius
     
  6. Puckles

    Puckles Cat Whisperer

    Utterly beautiful.
     
  7. TIF

    TIF Always learning.

    I have many very rare coins but none are absolutely unique, as far as I know.

    ...

    Hey AJ-- that spectacular Clazomenae drachm has always looked so familiar. I finally realized why.

    ClazoStewart_edited-1.jpg

    :D
     
  8. ancientnut

    ancientnut Well-Known Member

    14 Uncertain Mint Bruttium.jpg
    Uncertain mint, Bruttium, AR Didrachm c 278-275 BC under Pyrrhos, 21mm., 6.66g, 3h. OBV: Bust of Herakles right, wearing lion’s skin headdress with paws tied at neck and holding club over left shoulder / REV: Nike standing left, with wings spread, holding wreath in right hand. Historia Numorum Italy---; SNG ANS---; SNG Copenhagen---; BMC---. Apparently unique and unpublished.
    Purchased July 17, 2016, Naville Numismatics Ltd Auction 24, lot 75.
    From the Elvira E. Clain-Stefanelli (1914-2001) collection.
    The obverse type is that of Teanum Sidicinum (HN Italy 451-452), while the reverse type is that of Hypponium bronze issues (HN Italy 2258-2261).
     
  9. chrsmat71

    chrsmat71 I LIKE TURTLES!

    as far as i know, this coin is one of a kind....

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
  10. Bing

    Bing Illegitimi non carborundum Supporter

    Parthicus and ancientone like this.
  11. dougsmit

    dougsmit Member

    Part of me wanted to question AJ's use of the term 'Astronomical' since I might have preferred "Gargantuan' or 'Brogdingnagian' but I recalled this old Gary Larsen (Far Side) cartoon that demonstrates that even 'Astronomical' can cover quite a range of numbers.
    [​IMG]
    He makes a great point about just what makes a coin enough different that it qualifies. I will immediately discount a distinction like his second "only example with this caliber of artistic execution" since we are dealing with coins struck from individually cut dies and this is a value judgement of style (one with which I tend to agree - this is a great die set). Being the only example from a magistrate strikes me as more deserving as would a coin with a unique date or mint mark even though the type is common with other dates or mintmarks. That brings us to a coin of mine that may be unique under this definition.
    rs0230bb0893.jpg
    There are thousands of denarii of Septimius Severus from the Emesa mint with trophy of arms reverse but this is the only one known to me in the style and obverse legend of the Alexandria mint. The coin would attract a bit more interest if it were not as ugly as sin but lets be clear on the point that a unique coin is not guaranteed being mint state. In fact, I suspect the far greater number of unique coins will be more like my coin than AJ's when it comes to grade.

    That brings us to the question of how many coins exist that have a type unique to that specimen. I'm not talking about a die mismatch or a recut date or some other minor detail specific to one die out of a thousand that made similar coins. I love die studies but reject the idea that one die is more interesting just because it is different. I have several coins that are the only one I have seen and that are not represented in the literature. Martin and I regularly show 'new' to us Eastern Septimius varieties and half the time find out that the other one also had it. We are not the only two people who collect these things so a coin can jump from 'possibly unique' to 'several known' in a matter of minutes.

    Completely different type, not an error, researched (not just searched on acsearch or not seen anywhere in my 50 years of looking!) with known experts and clearly legible (not hard to be sure what it reads) ---- how many coins do I have that I can prove are 'unique'? Good question. Probably none. Whenever I think I might have one, another example seems to turn up in only a decade or two. It can not be proven what does not exist.
     
  12. TypeCoin971793

    TypeCoin971793 Just a random guy on the internet

    Try telling that to the Early American Coppers (EAC) nuts!
     
    ancientone likes this.
  13. ancientone

    ancientone Well-Known Member

    Thanks Doug for saying so eloquently what I could not. No coin can be definitively unique for one would have to prove there was no other example. So I'll stick with "possibly unique".
     
    Alegandron likes this.
  14. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    This one might be unique. I cannot find it in any reference.

    Severus Alexander and Julia Mamaea Marcianopolis.jpg
    Severus Alexander and Julia Mamaea
    Roman provincial AE Pentassarion
    Moesia Inferior, Marcianopolis, AD 225-229
    10.1 g; 25.7 mm
    Obv: ΑVΓ ΚΜ Α[VΡ CΕVΗ ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟC ΚΑΙ] ΙΟVΛΙΑ ΜΑΜΑΙΑ, confronted busts.
    Rev: ΗΓ ȢM [ΤΕΡΕΒΕΝΤΙΝΟV ΜΑΡ]ΚΙΑΝΟΠΟΛΙΤ-ΩΝ, Dikaiosyne standing l., holding scales and cornucopiae, E (5) in field, r.
    Refs: Not listed in: AMNG, Moushmov, BMC Greek, Sear Greek Imp, SNG Cop, SNG von Aulock, or Hirstova and Jelov.

    Although partially off the reverse flan, I am quite certain the inscription matches this one of Umbrius Terebentinus (225-229):

    Terevintinus.JPG
     
    Last edited: Jan 22, 2017
  15. Alegandron

    Alegandron "ΤΩΙ ΚΡΑΤΙΣΤΩΙ..." ΜΕΓΑΣ ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΣ, June 323 BCE

    I REALLY enjoy everyone's unique coin posting. Fascinating history, and a lot of regret for all of the "lost" coins either making them unique, or that they were intentionally a one-off strike. They are all GREAT!

    This is the most "Unique" or "One of a Kind" that I have:

    I captured this due to my intrigue with the mysterious Etrurian peoples, who were the predecessors to the Romans. Rome's first Kings were from Etruria, however, there are a lot of mysteries as to where the Etrurians originated. Rome borrowed a lot from Etrurian culture as they assimilated them into Roman culture.

    This coin is one of TWO known: The British Museum, and mine in private hands... I was careful that I had good provenance to ensure it's authenticity and rarity.

    I understand the Etrurian alphabet was different and generally retrograde to the Latin alphabet. I borrowed a pic from @red_spork 's beautiful RR AR Sestertius... the Symbol for Sestertius was IIS as shown on Sporky's coin.
    upload_2017-1-22_18-52-49.png upload_2017-1-22_18-56-35.png
    You must read the II"C" on mine in retrograde, (retrograde C standing for the "S" sound.)

    With it being roughly the same size and weight as a RR AR Sestertius, and this one representing 2-1/2 Asses, I wonder if the ROMANS borrowed their coinage from the Etrurians... I have an Etrurian 10 Asses (similar to Roman Republic Denarius at that time), and an Etrurian 20 Asses (similar to a Roman Republic Didrachm at that time.)

    upload_2017-1-22_18-47-51.png
    Etruria, Populonia
    2 ½ asses , AR 0.85 g
    3rd century BCE
    Obv: Radiate female head r.; behind, IIC (retrograde).
    Rev: Blank.
    Ref: EC 104 (misdescribed, Female head with an Attic helmet). Historia Numorum Italy 179.
    NAC Comment: Of the highest rarity, apparently only the second specimen known. Dark patina and about very fine.
    Ex: From the collection of E.E. Clain-Stefanelli
    (Further research E.E. Clain-Stefanelli's excellent provenance... )
    ANS Executive Director Ute Wartenburg reported that Elvira Eliza Clain-Stefanelli died Oct. 1, 2001. Mrs. Stefanelli retired in 2000 as the Senior Curator of the National Numismatic Collection in the Numismatics Division of the National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC. She was at the Smithsonian for forty years, and was responsible with her husband Vladimir for organizing and building up the National Numismatic Collection (from 60,000 to over 1,000,000 pieces.) She survived a Nazi concentration camp in WWII Europe, moved to Rome, and learned numismatics there. In New York she and her husband worked for Stack's and started the Coin Galleries division there. Her most recent publication was "Life In Republican Rome On its Coinage", a lavishly illustrated discussion of the themes which appear on the coinage of the Roman Republic, published in 1999. Her major contribution to the science of numismatic literature was her classic "Numismatic Bibliography", published in 1985.
     
    Last edited: Jan 22, 2017
  16. ro1974

    ro1974 Well-Known Member

    [​IMG]
    This coin hard to find with this bust
     
  17. randygeki

    randygeki Coin Collector

    Wonderful coins!

    I thought this was unique but I found another example, Martin has it.


    1607059_625273620842886_1594459012_n.jpg

    IVLIA DOMNA AVG, Draped bust right; FORTVN REDVC, Fortuna standing left, holding rudder and cornucopia
    Unlisted Syrian mint.
     
  18. Nap

    Nap Well-Known Member

    These two Merovingian Frankish coins are unpublished and unknown in the standard references. They may be unique.

    aodobert.jpg

    augclio.jpg
     
  19. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    In Rod We Trust!
     
  20. Ken Dorney

    Ken Dorney Yea, I'm Cool That Way...

    Looks like Varbanov1841, but most references do not list individual variations on the reverse, such as where the inscription ends (many end in the exergue, many do not, but few books mention it).

    Also, most references do not list celator errors, the most common being omitted letters.
     
  21. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    @Ken Dorney It's close, but that one has Nemesis standing left holding short scepter and scales; wheel at feet left. Mine has no wheel at feet and the deity (Dikaiosyne, probably) holds a cornucopiae, not a scepter.
     
    Last edited: Jan 23, 2017
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