Now here's a
type of „coin“ (strictly speaking, it’s not a coin of course but a
tessera, probably a gaming token) that I
had always wanted. Unfortunately, about everybody wants them, so these aren’t
cheap even on Fleabay (it’s the first specimen I’ve ever seen there). Now it was in my mail today.
Tessera („
spintria“) in
orichalcum, early 1st century AD
Obv. Symplegma scene (apparently, a woman to right, straddling a
man reclining left) on a bed ornamented with a garland
Rev. Numeral XV in a beaded
circle within a
wreathCondition: Well, you see it...
; also, the
flan is not completely flat but slightly bent
Technical data: 21 mm, 4.23 g,
die axis 6 o’clock
Of course, a
spintria is always a rewarding object of forgery, and doctored
fakes are often harder to tell than like-new ones. To me, the „coin“ looks genuine in terms of
style, manufacture, and aging. But since a very knowlegdeable friend from the
German board expressed
his doubts, I’d also like to hear your opinions. He doubted it (from the seller’s pictures) for the blurry figures and for its
provenance. I think that the figures are no more blurry than would correspond with wear and corrosion. I also asked the seller (since this was not stated in the
Ebay offer) whether he would guarantee for the authenticity, on which he answered (translation from
German by me):
„Hello,
The coin is authentic. All coins I’m
selling are authentic. Especially, this coin luckily turned up in a heap of uncleaned coins. I found it myself, so I guarantee its authenticity 100%. It’s a pity that it’s not more beautiful.
Best regards,
...“
So I’m waiting for your opinions. I’ve ordered Buttrey’s article on spintriae from 1973 in our university
library but don’t have it yet. Maybe it can be attributed to one of the known dies for this
type.
Best regards,
Rupert
