Good morning everyone!
Hope your week is progressing well.
Today I'd like to present one of my favorite coins - a
denarius of
Septimius Severus:
https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/displayimage.php?pid=186239The coin itself is not a
rare type, and finding
Severan denarii in excellent condition is not all that difficult.
Still, this coin is exceptional in its
quality - crisply struck, perfectly centered on a large and heavy (3.70g!)
flan. The coin is beautifully
toned as well, with hints of
iridescence, and lustrous.
And to top it all off, this coin came from the famous Mark Salton
Collection. Salton (born
Max Schlessinger) came from a long line of established
German coin dealers, going back to the early 1800's.
His father,
Felix Schlessinger,
ran a coin dealership until he was imprisoned and murdered by the Nazis during the Holocaust;
Max and
his brother managed to escape, eventually settling in America. The coin came with an old handwritten envelope (pre-Salton, purchased in Istanbul in 1946) to which Salton added
his own notes in blue pen on the front.
Thanks for looking!