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Roman Republic. C. Antestius AR Denarius (3.81g, 19mm). Rome Mint, BCE 146.

Obv: C•ANTESTI (ANTE ligate) to l. Head of Roma right, X below chin.

Rev: ROMA in exergue. The Dioscuri, each holding spear, riding right; dog running right, both fore-feet raised, below horses.

Ref: Antestia 1; Crawford 219/1e; BMCRR Rome 859.

Provenance: Ex-Artemide Aste srl e-Auction 11, Lot 236 (San Marino, 26 January 2020).

Numis. Notes: Spots of porosity/roughness, but overall good metal. A lively hound enjoying the hunt!

Hist. Notes: Although hounds were popular on Greek coinage as well, Roman Republican denarii provide much more varied depictions of the breeds and contexts of dogs in their society. This issue from Moneyer C. Antestius is notable for illustrating what today might be described as a “lion cut,” popular for poodles and other water dogs. The dog itself (or puppy?) is sometimes identified as a proto-poodle or water spaniel of some sort – a working dog. The “lion cut” is meant to permit buoyancy and warmth as the dog retrieved fowl from water. A similar breed may be portrayed on the denarius of L. Caesius, but in a distinctly domestic setting, hinting that, already in antiquity, canine coiffure may have been as much about fashion as function.

Album: All Coins

Categories: Roman Coins

Tags: #Animals #Republican #Roman #Silver

Tarsos, Cilicia AR Stater (10.66g, 22.5mm, 1h). temp. Mazaios, Satrap of Cilicia, BC 361 – 334.

Obv: BLTRZ (Baaltars) in Aramaic to right. Baal of Tarsos seated left, holding eagle, grain ear, grapes, and scepter; TR (in Aramaic) to lower left, M (in Aramaic) below throne.

Rev: MZDI. Lion attacking bull left; monogram below.

Ref: SNG Levante 106; Casabonne Series 2, Group C. Cf. BMC 53; Babelon 695.

Provenance: (See the “Provenance Chart” for this coin.) Aside from being an aesthetically impressive specimen, this coin has an important provenance, illustrating the modern history of ancient coins through its intersection with key developments of the late 20th century (the rise and fall of “investment fund” ancient coins, led by Bruce McNall’s Athena Fund; the highly publicized first ever major auction of encapsulated ancient coins; and changes in the laws and practices surrounding cultural property and international trade in ancient coins).

Ex-CNG e-Auction 455 (30 Oct 2019), Lot 168 [no provenance given prior to Heritage 2002]; J.B. (Edmonton, d. 2019) Collection; purchased from Calgary Coin Galleries (Robert Kokotailo), Autumn 2004; Heritage Auctions Signature Sale 269 (New York, 27 Jul 2002), Lot 11134; Dr. Joseph M. Seventko Collection; CNG MBS XXIX (30 Mar 1994), Lot 252 (ill. on p. 25); Sotheby’s w/ Numismatic Fine Arts, “Greek and Roman Coins” [Athena Fund Sale II] (Zurich, 27 Oct 1993), Lot 808.1 (part of 2, this rev. ill.).

Almost certainly from the well-known but unpublished “Tarsus Hoard” (late 1970s) that flooded the American market in the early 1980s w/ perfectly preserved examples of this previously rare type (Bing, Daniel J. 1998. “Datames and Mazaeus: The Iconography of Revolt and Restoration in Cilicia.” Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte 47 (1): 41-76.: p. 63, note 6, and p. 73).

Ex-ICG (AU53) #5571290112 (removed from slab, Feb 2021, originally slabbed c. 2001-2002)

Categories: Greek Coins

Tags: #Animals #Greek #Pedigreed #Showcase #Silver

PHOTO OF COIN IN ANACS HOLDER AVAILABLE HERE

Thracian Dynasts / Geto-Dacians. Koson, with Marcus Junius Brutus, AR Drachm.
Unknown mint (Skythia, Olbia?), circa 44 – 42 BC.
Obv: Roman consul accompanied by two lictors; BR monogram to left; KOΣΩΝ in exergue.
Rev: Eagle standing left on scepter, holding wreath in talon.
Ref: Fischer-Bossert (2016) Type B. cf. RPC I 1701 (AV Stater). For Drachm, see W. Fischer-Bossert (2016) “ΚΟΣΩΝ ΔΡΟΥΕΙΣ” in Festschrift Salzmann.
Pedigree: Ex-Silver City Auctions (Findlay, OH USA), 17 Dec 2019, Lot 228 (same coin previously unsold or unpaid at prior Silver City auctions). ANACS Certification # 6001074 (click for ANACS lookup)

Album: All Coins

Categories: Greek Coins Provincial Roman Coins

Tags: #Animals #Celts & Imitatives #Greek #Historic #Imperatorial #J & J Family Collection #Rare #Republican #Roman #Showcase #Silver

Superior example of a Numidian Obol, struck in lead (or highly leaded AE), with an unpublished and apparently unique control mark (pellet behind horse). Purchased from Specialty Coin (Champaign, IL), ex-Harlan J. Berk, Ltd. (Curtis Clay).

North Africa. Kings of Numidia, Massinissa or Micipsa AE or PB (Lead) Unit (26mm, 13.6g, 12h). Circa 203 – 138 BC.

Obverse: Laureate, bearded male head facing left. (King Massinissa?) Beaded border.

Reverse: Horse galloping left. Punic letters (“MN”) below AND pellet behind horse.

References: Unpublished variant (placement of control symbol on the reverse die), cf. Sear 6596-7; SNG Copenhagen 518.

Pedigree: Ex-Specialty Coin (Gary Dayton, Champaign), circa 2010-15; Ex-Harlan J Berk, Ltd. (Chicago), group lot purchased from Curtis Clay before 2010.

Numis. Notes: Typical flan irregularities illustrative of Numidia’s crude minting process. Casting flaw or “scoop,” rev. ~5h (scooping was a corrective used by mints to reduce weight when a batch of coins was above standards). On rev., red encrustations & minor pitting (9h); on obv., edge chip & crack (8h).

The pellet behind this horse is a seemingly unpublished and unique variant. The vast majority have a control mark below the horse, either a pellet (Sear 6597) or Punic letters (right to left) “MN” (Sear 6596).

Categories: Greek Coins

Tags: #AE & Billon #Animals #Greek #J & J Family Collection #Large #Pedigreed #Rare #Showcase

Roman Republic. Gaius Marcius Censorinus AR Denarius (3.80g, 18mm). Rome mint, 88 BC.
Obverse: Laureate head of Apollo right.

Reverse: CX (above), C•CENSORI (below). Horse galloping right. Serpent entwined staff in exergue.

References: Crawford 346/2b; RSC Marcia 19.

Pedigree: JJF Collection. Uncertain, purchased by CSJ ca. 2010 (+/- a few years).

Numis. Notes:These were struck with a variety of controls; this one, with the serpent-entwined-staff is a bit rare, and desirable because it’s rather bold & dramatic for a control symbol.

Hist. Notes: Once Sulla was done with his First Civil War (by about 87 BC), and his Mithradatic War, he marched his way back to Rome so he could team up with future Triumvirs Pompey and Crassus to wage another (Sulla’s Second Civil War). His opponents were the Marius-Cinna faction, led by Gaius Marius (dead in the first), his son (killed in 82), and Cinna (killed 84).

Gaius Marcius Censorinus was among the “last men standing,” captured after being defeated at the decisive Battle of the Colline Gate (Kalends of Nov, 82). Sulla ordered him executed and had his severed head sent to the remaining Marian army, which promptly deserted their leader Marius the Younger, who then promptly committed suicide.

Categories: Roman Coins

Tags: #Animals #J & J Family Collection #Rare #Republican #Roman #Silver

Roman Republic. Q. Titius AR Denarius (3.98g, 19.5mm). Rome mint, 90 BC.

Obverse: Head of Bacchus or Liber right, wreathed with ivy.

Reverse: Pegaus right. Q•TITI inscribed on tablet below.

References: Crawford 341/2; SRCV 239; Sydenham 692; Titia 2.

Pedigree: Jackson & Jacobs Family Collection. Purchased by CSJ from Forum Ancient Coins (#RR43729) between c. 2005 & 2013.

Notes:Ex-jewelry, bezel removed. Toned.

Categories: Roman Coins

Tags: #Animals #J & J Family Collection #Republican #Roman #Silver

Purchased from Colosseum Coin Exchange Mail Bid Sale No. 59, 22 Nov 1991. This coin was my first-ever auction purchase. (More: “Catalog Collection Favorites” page.)

Attica, Aegina (Saronic Gulf Islands) AR Drachm (5.0g, 19.5mm). Circa 404-375 BCE.

Obverse: Testudo Graeca, tortoise (or “land turtle”) with segmented shell containing 13 plates.

Reverse: Large incuse square with two pellets in one of five-compartment skew pattern.

References: SNG Cop 520; Millbank Pl II, 16 (Period V; 404 – 375 BC)

Provenance: Ex-Colosseum Coin Exchange (Ira Teitelbaum, Hazlet NJ), MBS 59 (22 Nov 1991), Lot 2.

Notes: See also earlier archaic style Sea Turle stater.
Located in the Saronic Gulf between Attica and the Peloponnese, Aegina held a strong commercial position in maritime trade, making it a site of competition with neighbors (most famously Athens).

Aegina is thought to have been the first European mint to introduce coinage to “the West,” c. early 6th cent. BCE. According to Ephorus of Kyme it was established by Pheidon of Argos c. 650, though modern historians have claimed the date was probably no earlier than 550 (Milbank 1924; see also Numiswiki, Turtles).

Aegina’s ~12.2g stater was widely adopted as monetary standard (~6.1g for the drachm, 1g obol). The sea turtle style stater was struck until either the end of the Peloponnesian War in 404 (Milbank 1924) or Athens’ military victory over Aegina around 457 (Kraay 1976), after which the design switched to the land tortoise. (The tortoise had also appeared on an earlier electrum stater).

The exact reason is a matter of some speculation. Milbank’s 1924 conclusion still holds: “No plausible explanation has as yet been put forward for this change from the sea-tortoise to a land turtle.” Maybe it was a show of gratitude and honorary tribute to a military ally to whom the land tortoise was sacred (perhaps Sparta or Thyreatis [Milbank 1924]). Perhaps the design was switched after being conquered by Athens, reflecting Aegina’s loss of their proud navy and maritime privileges (Kraay 1976). Neither theory has achieved a decisive level of evidence.

Categories: Greek Coins

Tags: #Animals #Classic #Greek #J & J Family Collection #Pedigreed #Rare #Showcase #Silver

Attica, Athens AR Tetradrachm (16.9g, 24mm, 2h). Circa 454 – 404 BCE.

Obverse: Head of Athena right, wearing crested Attic helmet ornamented with three laurel leaves and vine scroll.

Reverse: AΘE. Owl standing right, head facing; olive sprig and crescent moon behind, all within incuse square.

References: Sear GCV 2526; HGC 4, 1597; SNG Copenhagen 31-40; Kroll 8.

Provenance: Jackson & Jacobs Family Collection, purchased with my mother & father circa Aug. 1986 (to 1988?) at a Paris coin shop on la Rue Vivienne. (I could try to guess which, based on photos and trying to remember, but there are so many it’s hard to be sure. Back then we didn’t know how important it would become to record provenance. Just for fun, try: https://www.google.com/search?q=La+Rue+Vivienne+numismatique.)

Although both of my parents would take me to the coin shops while traveling (and to museums and bookstores and everywhere else), it was really my father who “collected” along with me. I’m sure my mother enjoyed it, and she still appreciates Greek coins (or seems to), but only my father was interested in building a coin collection and library.

Numis. Notes: Attractive, fine style Athena w/ subtle smile, well-centered on a compact flan (rev. slightly off-center). Nicely toned. Punch mark & scuff on reverse.

Categories: Greek Coins

Tags: #Animals #Classic #Greek #Historic #J & J Family Collection #Large #Showcase #Silver

Corinth, Corinthia. AR Stater (8.52g, 21mm, 9h). Struck circa 345 – 305 BCE

Video of this coin available here

Obverse: Pegasos flying right, Ϙ symbol below.

Reverse: Head of Athena left, wearing Corinthian helmet. Γ below chin, dove within wreath.

References: Ravel 1029; Calciati Pegasi 419; BCD Corinth 110; SNG Lockett 2094.

Provenance: Ex Prof. Samuel-Jean Pozzi (1846-1918) Collection, sold at Naville et Cie (Lucerne, 14 March 1921), Catalogue de Monnaies Grecques Antiques Provenant de la Collection de feu le Prof. S. Pozzi, Lot 1688 (Hammer, Sfr 17). Published in Boutin’s 1979 catalog of the collection, No. 3756.

Privately purchased from Anthony “Tony” Tumonis at Halden Birt’s Glass Shoppe Coins (Tucson, AZ, circa 1991-2).

Notes: One of the scarcer reverse dies for this type but, in my view, an especially expressive and lifelike Athena. Dark old cabinet tone. Well centered. Among the favorites of collection.

Hist. Notes: Dr. Samuel-Jean Pozzi (1846-1918) was a celebrated French gynecologist whose life was cut short when a disgruntled patient murdered him. He had been assembling one of the world’s finest private collections of Greek coins for 25 years.

The Pozzi Collection was cataloged for the first sale by Naville et Cie in 1921. During the early 20th century “golden age” of ancient coin catalogs, the Pozzi catalog set the standard, illustrating every lot and providing weights to 0.01g — a level of completeness previously unthinkable. For decades, it was a standard reference for Greek coinage by scholars, dealers, and collectors.

Alan S. Walker described it as “very possibly the best known and most famous auction catalogue of Greek coins ever produced” (2008, AJN, p. 604). For this reason, as Harlan J. Berk commented, “The Pozzi pedigree is one of the most revered in numismatics” (Berk 2004, BBS 190).

Bibliographic: Further references for the Pozzi Sale: Clain-Stefanelli 1988*; Daehn 2084; Grierson, p. 296; Kroh, p 11 (four stars); Spring 471, “Most important sales of ancient Greek coins.” References for the Boutin (1979) catalog: Clain-Stefanelli 1932*; Daehn 2031.

Album: All Coins

Categories: Greek Coins

Tags: #Animals #Classic #Greek #J & J Family Collection #Pedigreed #Showcase #Silver

NGC #3761188-001 VF, Strike 4/5, Surface 2/5, “core visible” (NGC Website certification lookup)

For more information on this type, see our writeup on the Julius Caesar Elephant Denarius

Sold 3 April 2014 (JJFN Ebay store, item # 231120578927)

Julius Caesar (Dictator, 49 – 44 BC) Fourrée / Plated Denarius
Mobile military mint traveling with Caesar in Northern Italy, 49 BC.
Obv: Elephant advancing right, trampling on horned serpent or carnyx (Gallic war trumpet). CAESAR in exergue.
Rev: Pontifical emblems – ladle (simpulum), sprinkler (aspergillum), axe (securis) surmounted by a wolf head, and priest’s hat (apex).
Ref: For prototype: RSC 49; Crawford 443/1; Sydenham 1006; Sear CRI 9; Babelon 1885, p10, Julia 9.
Pedigree: Ex-Jackson & Jacobs Family Numismatics (3 Apr 2014, Ebay item #231120578927; 1 Sep 2013, [Unslabbed] #330983650815); Lucernae Numismatica / Antonio Hinojosa Pareja (Alcala la Real, Spain, 20 March 2013)

Notes: Fourrées (or Subaeratus) are silver plated denarii with base cores. As NGC indicates, these were “ancient forgeries,” also known as contemporary counterfeits. (As Mattingly (1928/1960: 24) noted, though, there were times when the State officially struck plated denarii.)

Album: Sold Coins

Categories: Roman Coins

Tags: #AE & Billon #Animals #Classic #Historic #Imperatorial #Republican #Roman #Silver #Sold