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floyd5175's Last 20 Posts
| My First Ancient Coin: What Should I Get?
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floyd5175
New Member
United States
39 Posts |
 Posted 02/24/2025 4:22 pm
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Not sure if anyone is still checking this thread out, but in any event, I just wanted to give an update on my first ancient coin purchases.
On a Heritage auction I bought an Alexander/Zeus, lifetime-early posthumous. The auction experience was stressful but fun!
I'm still looking for an Athena Owl and a Caesar Elephant. I've decided to stay away from purchasing a coin from a European dealer/auctioneer. Not because I'm concerned about fakes, but because there are so many purchasing variables. So I'm sticking with US auctions and US retail sites. |
| | Forum: Ancient, Greek, Roman, and Medieval Coins |
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| Two Athena Owls: Are They The Same Desirability?
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floyd5175
New Member
United States
39 Posts |
Posted 02/23/2025 11:54 pm
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Thank you for that link! Very informative and enlightening! This caught my attention and I think relates to my confusion!
Quote from the article:
"I earlier did a similar stylistic analysis. What I've noticed from looking in collection and auction catalogs and in person at untold numbers of these coins, as well as those that preceded and followed them, is that the Mass Owls that were likely issued earlier, compared with those issued later, tend to have the following characteristics:
Athena has a wider, smiling mouth that can appear as a smirk rather than a short mouth that's neutral in affect or that curves slightly downward, forming a frown.
Athena has a more protruding rather than a flatter face.
The eye of Athena is smaller and more symmetrical, with the curve forming the upper half mirroring the curve forming the lower half, rather than the two sides being asymmetrical.
The floral scroll on Athena's helmet is smaller rather than larger.
The owl has shorter rather than longer claws.
The ethnic consists of smaller rather than larger letters.
The incuse square is more clearly visible on the coin's flan rather than being off it." |
| | Forum: Ancient, Greek, Roman, and Medieval Coins |
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| Two Athena Owls: Are They The Same Desirability?
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floyd5175
New Member
United States
39 Posts |
Posted 02/23/2025 9:54 pm
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Okay... I did an awful job communicating in my opening post. I'm not concerned about these two coins specifically, my question is about the general style of the two coins. Is one style more desirable or valuable than the other. Maybe I'm splitting hairs, but it seems to me the eyes are bigger on the first version, but the head is larger on the second. The size and position of Athena's eyes seems different between the two styles, as well.
So I'm wondering if the top style is more desirable/valuable/rarer than the bottom style. Or is it a horse a piece?
I've been looking at a lot of these coins on various auctions, and it seems to me the top style hammers at a higher price on average than the bottom style.
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| | Forum: Ancient, Greek, Roman, and Medieval Coins |
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| Two Athena Owls: Are They The Same Desirability?
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floyd5175
New Member
United States
39 Posts |
Posted 02/23/2025 7:42 pm
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Of course "desirability" is in the eye of the beholder, very subjective. But all things equal, is one of these two versions (assuming you believe there are two versions pictured) more valuable in the collecting world and/or more desirable and/or more rare?
I want to get this coin. I've watched the youtube videos and read a good number of online articles about the Athena Owl. I know there are various versions of this coin. But in all the resources I've read, they've discussed obvious differences, e.g. owl size, owl design, etc.
But I haven't found a resource which discusses the history and value of these two versions, maybe because they are so similar.
So... are these two versions equal in desirability? Equal in value (all other things equal)?/collectibility? Or is one version slightly more sought after than the other? Were they simply minted in different places using different dies?
Thanks again! You guys/gals are probably getting sick and tired of my foolish questions. Sorry. Just tryin' to learn.
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| | Forum: Ancient, Greek, Roman, and Medieval Coins |
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| Breaking Apart A NGC Case: Stupid Idea?
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floyd5175
New Member
United States
39 Posts |
Posted 02/21/2025 11:23 am
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Excellent responses! As others have said, I kinda like the idea of holding a 2000+ year old coin in my hand and imagine if it was also held by a soldier.
Good point about buying a "raw" coin from a trustworthy dealer rather than focusing on slabbed coins just for authenticity peace of mind.
Unrelated question: When will I have enough posts to be able to quote a post and edit a post? |
| | Forum: Ancient, Greek, Roman, and Medieval Coins |
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| Breaking Apart A NGC Case: Stupid Idea?
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floyd5175
New Member
United States
39 Posts |
Posted 02/20/2025 10:55 pm
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I'm still looking to purchase my first ancient coin. I am absorbing all the wonderful, expert advice everyone on the forum has been generously providing. One piece of advice was to stick with a coin that is in an official NGC, sealed case.
Okay, that makes sense. But... I'd like to display whatever beautiful coin I get in a nice display case, not a rather (sorry NGC) drab looking slab (is that the correct term?) of plastic.
So I'm thinking about breaking whatever coin I get out of the NGC case. But I'll lose any provenance and legitimacy the NGC case provides. So would I be insane to take a coin out of the NGC case, or does my reasoning make a semblance of sense?
Would you or have you taken a coin out of the slab? If so, any regrets? |
| | Forum: Ancient, Greek, Roman, and Medieval Coins |
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