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Author Topic: Auction Find  (Read 983 times)

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Offline VOTman

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Auction Find
« on: September 06, 2021, 09:23:47 pm »
Most of us have had some coin purchases that didn't live up to our hopes.  This time was different.

At a recent auction I low bid on a 29mm diam Justinian I folles with a rather unappealing look.  I was quite pleasantly surprised to find it wasn't 29mm but 39mm in diam and that the photo was unappealing, not the coin so much.  I didn't pay much for it but am most pleased!  Sometimes things just average themselves out.

Offline Obryzum

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Re: Auction Find
« Reply #1 on: September 06, 2021, 09:50:36 pm »
When I started collecting Byzantine coins many years ago, I immediately starting thinking of my collection as a collection.  Where does this coin fit into the overall whole?  With that mindset, I discovered that some coins that are not very attractive as individual specimens can become very special when thinking of the collection as a whole.  I was working with a strict budget back then.  One of my early goals was to have at least one coin from every century (long before I could start thinking about individual emperors).  My first eighth century coin was a Constantinople follis of Leo III that I purchased for less than $20.  It was extremely worn, pitted and holed.  As an individual specimen, it is utterly forgettable.  But as a piece in the collection it is one of my favorites.  I have a few sixth century large module folles from Athanasius I to Justinian I.  Individually they are nothing special, but as a group I really like them -- different colors from the different patinas, different degrees of wear, each with a different story.     

Offline vercingetorix

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Re: Auction Find
« Reply #2 on: October 30, 2021, 01:07:26 pm »
Sixth-century coins feel great in hand and display very nice because of their impressive size. And they're inexpensive compared to other ancient coins of similar size, like Roman sestertii for instance.
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