Hello everyone, An apology to start with. Because even though 2019 has passed and 2020 is well under way and several members already posted their new acquisitions of 2020, I would like to present to you my year end list of 2019. The reason for posting this late, is that one amazing coin was due to arrive and had some trouble in the mail. I did not want to jinx it, and I wanted to take photo’s myself. So, I hope this post will not offend anyone. First, I would like to say a few words looking back at 2019. 2019 has been an interesting, busy and exciting year. Personally - the birth of our son and hopefully coin collector to be - but also coin-wise (frustrating my wife every now and then...). Coin-wise, I have added 28 coins to my collection and sold 18. In total, I now have 72 coins. It’s a decent amount and it will expend in the future, perhaps double. I like to view my coins in a showcase which also means that my space is limited. In 2019, I have focussed more on the final years of the Roman republic and the Roman empire up to and including the Severan dynasty, but also added two LRB’s. I also re-photographed all my coins and worked on my presentation format. I’m not completely statisfied yet, and it will probably never be finished and will have my continuous attention. Re-photographing my coins prompted me in updating my database, which I did (using excel), adding new source material and references and, for example, updating my physical and digital database with invoices. Which then encouraged me to decide on a definitive manner in which to catalogue my coins. Lastly, and perhaps the most important, my focus in collecting also made me decide to use my resources wisely and, despite temptations, chose more sharply which coin to go for, and which not. This also led me to sell off 18 coins, and to strive for the best coins possible within my budget. This is something I will continue doing in 2020. My wishlist is nevertheless ever expanding, also due to the inspiring coins the members of this board post, so my strive is quite challenging. So, up next are the coins. First, thanks to everyone who posted their lists before. They show a great variety of areas of collecting and interests and they are a pleasure to go through. Some lists display exceptional coins, and raise the bar to a level I know i will never be able to reach. Nevertheless, having overcome my initial reluctance, I have decided to show you my coins of 2019, thinking that no matter the quality and eye-appeal, they all are pieces of history that tell magnificent stories and are worth looking at. It has proven too difficult to pick favorites without showing other favorites, so I have decided to post them all (no worries, I cropped them together, see the next post, below). Since this board has shown a tradition involving list and i do not want to spoil it, I will start off with a smaller selection of the 2019 additions, of which I think are in particular interesting to show. Who doesn’t like elephants? What can I say about thise one? It really is a beauty and I am happy to watch over it during my life time. And it has an elephant, a reference to the colloseum! I knew I had to have this one once I first saw this type a while ago. It really does get prettier every time I look at it. And who doesn’t like horses? I strive to complete my 12 Caesars set in silver, and up untill this year, I was missing Galba and Caligula. I can live with not being able tot add Caligula immediately and I will wait patiently for an opportunity, but in my mind I surely had to be able tot add a denarius of Galba. And to make it a bit more complex, I also wanted a special (my words...!) type. The opportunity presented itself unexpectedly and I went for it. It left me with a coin that meets all my demands. Perhaps to some however, it does not. A scarce type with a great reverse and the obverse legends are legible. Farewell old boat, welcome new boat In my opinion I needed to upgrade my previous legionary denarius. I saw this one at a coin fair at the end of 2018 but then decided not to buy it. It nevertheless sticked with me, and the thought that i perhaps made a big mistake not getting it, haunted me. Luckily during a coin fair half way 2019, the same seller was present and still had the coin, which I ofcourse bought. I’m happy with it, its a pretty specimen with nice toning and sharp devices. A surprise portrait addition Marc Anthony - portrait issue My denarius of Sextus Pompey was deemed a fake, which led me on a quest to find a new one to add to the other ‘end of the Republic coins’. Having been outbid , I stumbles upon the portrait issue of Marc Anthony below which I could snatch up for a decent price. I had a potrait issue of MA on my wishlist, but way further down. Sometimes collecting coins demands everything of your flexibility, doesn’t it? The coin has everyhthing I look for in a coin of this category: the obverse is off-centre and the reverse is weakly struck. But, the potrait is visible enough, the colouring is neat (a bit of irridescence above the hair, I can’t quite catch it properly on camera), and it was within my budget. Sextus is dead - long live Sextus Despite the sweet portrait issue of MA, I remained on the look out for Sextus Pompey. The ones I can afford don’t show up often, and having been outbid on a similar type as my fake one, I shifted my attention to other specimens of SP. Quite naively perhaps (perhaps? No, definitely naive...!), because they are scarce and desirable of course. So no luck, untill december, when I got the one below for my max bid, which had not been enough before. Which can mean two things: I got this one the way I wanted and it’s good like that, or everyone else thought the coin was not good enough. Whatever it may be, I am happy with it. Again, the obverse is off-centre and the reverse weakly struck, but overall, especially in hand, it truly is a nice coin with sharp devices (the ones that are present that is....). Meet the family I like dynastic/show-your-friends-issues and I am not the only one who does. I am very greatful I was able tot add three to my collection this year. Below I will show one: Iulia with her unfortunate son. The coin has a bit less eye-appeal perhaps, but then again: it’s an awesome Severan dynasty issue with Geta!!! What more do you want? Oh yes, ofcourse, another one! Lastly, my absolute price-winner this year: mr. JC himself! The final days of 2019 gave me the opportunity to add this portrait denarius of JC to my collection! What can I say, except that it is beyond awesome! It is also the reason for posting my list a bit later, receiving it a day ago. But it is worth the wait, right? Again, I would like to put all my coin in the year end list and tell you about them: the denarii of Claudius, Nerva, Pertinax, Clodius Albinus, sestertii of Philippus Arabs, Caracalla, and so on and so on. To me they are all beautiful, special, desirable, and with all of them there’s a story to tell why I wanted that specific coin. That is why I put them all together in the pictures below. Hope you won’t mind and enjoy looking at them! Again, I apologize for the delay, the large amount of text and the many pictures. So, if you have read this far, many thanks for your attention! Please tell me which coin(s) is/are your favorites. I wish everyone all the best this year in life and coining!
And here is all of it. Not as pretty as the posters Deacon Ray creates (I would love to learn though). But if suffices.
Super selection! All beautiful and interesting coins. My favorites are the Titus elephant and the JC denarius. I like the Titus because of its toning, the JC because of its historical background. In short, a great year for you. I wish you also a nice 2020! (it remains strange to communicate with a fellow Dutchman in English)
Wonderful additions, and not just in the list of favourites. The Titus elephant is my favorite. I would love to have one like it in my own collection. The Nemausus croc is superb as well. Honestly, though, all are very nice. I hope your 2020 will be equally fruitful!
I love them all, @Limes ! I like the Domna/Geta one; it's very scarce and desirable. I also really like the Titus and elephant denarius and the Julius Caesar. You've had a great year!
My favorite is the Titus elephant because of the clear, round ear. I believe your Pertinax is Alexandria mint (by style). When these first appeared on the market, I thought they were special but it seems that there were so many in the find that the Rome mint coins are now more scarce. I would like to know more about the circumstances of this matter.
Interesting coin year. Thanks for sharing. My favorite is the Titus / Elephant. You obviously put a good bit of time into the post and had a new addition to your home. No need to be humble.
What a year! That Julius Caesar portrait denarius has it a lot of character. As do all the coins, really.
Looks like you've had a stellar year, Limes Jr being the cherry on the cake ! Well done, I would be hard pressed to choose just one... Well, no, that's just a lie to myself, I would definitely take the Julius Caesar denarius Congrats Q
Offend anyone on this web site???...sheesh! Besides, the only way I would be offended is if you didn't post them,...but then, I wouldn't know that, so either way, not offended. But grateful that you did!...all fantastic, quite a collection. Especially love the Titus/elephant detail, the Marcus Antonius "boat" is awesome, & who doesn't like alligator (fried...um, ummm) And Julius to top it off...You done good!!!!
Better late then never! Wonderfull coins, great writeups/ photos. Seems 2019 was a super year for your collecting goals. I wish you a great 2020 coin year. That elephant is very realistic looking indeed! I am still in the hunt for a Otacilia Severa Hippo Denarius! John
The denarii of Pertinax pose something of a dilemma. It is clear that they are far too numerous to have been minted during his lifetime. I have not looked at this issue for sometime. My suspicion for what it is worth is that the authorities in Alexandria caught between the warring parties chose to mint denarii of Pertinax so as to not tip their hand during the conflict. This likely ended when Severus rushed a legion possibly the III Italica into the city. The loyalties of the citizens of Alexandria were somewhat ambiguous during this conflict. Denarius of Septimius Severus Alexandria Mint 194 A.D. Rv. Legionary eagle flanked by two standards LEG. III IT. AVG. TR.P. COS. Bickford Smith 3 3.06 grms 17 mm
Thank you for the kind words and appreciation. Ja dat klopt! Idealiter communiceert iedereen hier in het Nederlands, maar ik denk dat dat te veel gevraagd is ;-) Interesting observation dougsmit. I followed Sear, who only mentions Rome. But I did not check it out thorough enough. I find it difficult to compare the mints, although I think that the difference is shown especially in the flowing of the beard, the 'fuller' head and the bulby eyes. When searching in acsearch on this type and 'Rome', I get 139 hits. while Alexandria gets 6 hits. Although the 'Rome' hits do show some results that meet the criteria mentioned above, which could mean they would belong to the other mint. Harlan J Berk mentions the following: "These Alexandrian denarii of Pertinax are not in the standard catalogues, because they have only recently been distinguished from his Rome-mint pieces; see for example R. Bickford-Smith, Rivista ital. di numismatica XCVI, 1994/5, p. 54." Which could explain why Sear only mentions Rome? RIC 10a is the scarcer type, with Providentia stretching out both arms fully towards the star. An even more rare type is one I found auctioned by HD Rauch in 2006, RIC 10a with 'PROVID DEORVM' on the reverse in stead of PROVID DEOR COS II. Here is the full image of my Pertinax denarius.
Looks like and amazing year to me: Mark Antony, Julius Caesar and Pompey portraits and more. I’d be pleased to own any coin in the list, and Julius Caesar, Titus elephant, and Mark Anthony portrait would be my first picks. Congrats and best wishes.
All of those coins appeal to me very much! Of course the JC denarius is to die for (which he did, I suppose) and I share everyone's appreciation of the lovely Titus. I would like to mention your new boat, the COL NEM, and the Judaea Capta for special appreciation too. Great stuff!
While nothing will ever be proven, I believe the theory that the Alexandria Pertinax coins were continued after his death or entirely posthumous is as good a guess as we have. I am not convinced your Septimius is a rare AVG version rather than the more common AVI without looking at possible die links either way. I have not done any die study even comparing my coins. The first one has completely lost the last letter so I consider it an I while the second two show the I to a sufficient degree to be sure. I'd say half of the Alexandria Legionaries I have seen have been on small enough flans that the last letter is uncertain. Of my four, only the one below is AVG. This specimen is ex. Roger Bickford-Smith and as clear as any G coin I have seen. While on the subject, I also believe all the Commodus denarii from Alexandria were struck after his death. Again, I do not see it being proven either way. The study of these denarii was set back thirty years when Roger died and I am not aware of other publications since his as mentioned by Berk. Those who have volume III of Roman Silver Coins can see a nice AVI illustrated as #262. That coin was sold in the great Arnold sale in 1984 where it was also illustrated and misread as a Rome mint ITAL coin. These are good examples of what happens when you read what you want to see rather than what you do see. The Arnold coin was sold again in the 1997 Michael Kelly sale by Spink who similarly failed to read the coin. I would like to know how many certain AVG coins exist. Barry Murphy had one that read (LEG) IIII IT AVG but I do not know who has it now. http://bpmurphy.ancients.info/severan/ssalex3.htm
