LordM BST archive, 3/8/11

lordmarcovan · March 8, 2011 11:02AM

Welcome to my BST Forum "mini store"!

TERMS OF SALE & SHIPPING: A modest contribution towards shipping costs is appreciated (add appropriate amount for insurance if desired). Generally I ask no more than a dollar or two for uninsured domestic shipments of one or two coins. Insured shipments require a 20-mile drive to the post office (as I live out in the country), so figure $4-5 or so, (more for valuable Registered Mail shipments). I usually prefer to send shipments under $50 value uninsured so I can mail them straight from my home mailbox instead of going into town, but that is up to you. I will package the coins securely in a bubble mailer either way. PayPal is fine.

If you use PayPal, PLEASE add your forum name to the payment so I know who you are and what you are buying!

Full return privilege if you are not 100% satisfied. My return privilege is very flexible, mostly because I've almost never needed one. The main thing I ask is that you notify me as soon as you can if there is a problem or concern of any kind, and I'll do my best to make it good.

CONTACT INFO: Should I ever disappear from the forums and the computer for several days to a week or more, as I sometimes do, and you need to reach me, feel free to call (912) 261-8408 and ask for Rob. I check PMs more than I do email, so emailing me in the event of a forum absence won't help much- usually when I am away, I am away from the computer entirely.

I LOVE TO SWAP! I'll even let you haggle... a little. Reasonable counteroffers or trades? Put your best foot forward... I'm listening! If there's "wiggle room" somewhere, I'm OK with letting you haggle me down a few bucks. The operative phrase there is a few. Generally I've got more flexibility in the world coins than the US coins, but of course that varies. Don't be shy- I've been a swapper for decades and hagglin' don't bother me too much 'cause I got my start as a flea market dealer. (Ain't come up in the world too much since then, either, haha.)

A NOTE ABOUT PICTURES: I totally stink at coin photography. Part of that is substandard equipment, part of it is improper lighting, and part of it is just plain inexperience. (I do some pretty decent landscapes outdoors, but my indoor macro work is horrid.) I've recently reverted to using a scanner since with that at least I know I'll get detailed and well focused images, but the scanner doesn't work well on lustrous coins or some with a thick patina. On a few coins I wavered back and forth between scanner and camera and got wretched results both ways. If the picture you see looks good, odds are that I got it from the previous owner of the coin! But even a blind pig finds a few acorns, so once in a while I get a lucky shot. Please bear this in mind when you see the pictures below, and forgive me if I am constantly apologizing for the poor pictures. In the rare event you might want to reuse one of my pictures, that's fine- go right ahead.

BULLION INFO & MISC.: I've added some bullion and currency charts from Kitco.com towards the bottom of this thread, should you need to reference the current price of silver or other bullion items. They're gifs, so they should update automatically. I'll probably add some other useful links there over time. Also, if you need info on a coin you bought here, I've started archiving these threads- Just do a search for "BST archives" on the Testing forum.

Enough blather, now- on with the COINS!

Below are some leftovers from my old Roman Imperial collection, which I was forced to break up when I got laid off in 2008. Since then, I've resumed collecting Roman coins (I love this stuff!) but now I'm focusing exclusively on the "Twelve Caesars" (Julius Caesar through Domitian). Got a nice coin of Augustus, Caligula, Claudius, Nero, Galba, Vitellius, or Titus to sell or swap? Let me know! Oh- and if you've always thought these kind of coins were interesting but have never collected any, don't be afraid- jump right in! They're not as hard to study as most people think, and the Web is full of free reference material. Also, they're often a lot less expensive than you'd think, considering the rarity of some of them.

Roman Empire, bronze As of NERVA (96-98 AD), nice patina
NERVA, Augustus 96-98 AD. AE as. Obverse- IMP NERVA CAES AVG P M TR P COS III P P, laureate head right. Reverse- CONCORDIA EXERCITVVM S-C, clasped hands. RIC-79, Cohen-21. 27.8 mm, 12.8 g. Ex-Ancient Imports, 05/2007. A quick note to those who might be unfamiliar with ancients- this kind of green patina may not be desirable on Indian cents or other more "modern" coins, but it's actually considered a plus on ancient bronze. Nice patina takes centuries to form, and it's popular enough that some people actually fake it! To the best of my knowledge, it's natural in this case. Asking $169, which is my cost.

Roman Empire: bronze sestertius of LUCIUS VERUS (161-169 AD), struck 164 AD
LUCIUS VERUS, Augustus 161-169 AD (with Marcus Aurelius). AE sestertius, 164 AD. Obverse- L AVREL VERVS AVG ARMENIACVS, laureate head right. Reverse- TR P IIII IMP II COS II S-C, Victory standing right, placing a shield inscribed VIC/AVG in two lines on palm. RIC-1396, Cohen-249. 33.79 mm, 23 g. Ex-Ancient Imports, 05/2007. Asking $73, which is my cost.

Roman Empire, silver antoninianus of VALERIAN II (ca. 253-257 AD), posthumous issue
VALERIAN II, Caesar under Valerian I, ca. 253-257 AD. AR antoninianus, posthumous issue.
Obverse- DIVO VALERIANO CAES, radiate and draped bust right. Reverse- CONSACRATIO, Valerian riding on eagle flying right.
RIC-9, RCV-10606, Sear-3071. 22 mm, 3.3 g. Ex-Incitatus Coins (Canada), 03/2008. Asking $59, which is my cost.

Roman Empire: bronze antoninianus of QUINTILLUS (270 AD)- scarce emperor- ruled less than a year
QUINTILLUS, Augustus 270 AD. Obverse- radiate and draped bust right. Reverse- Securitas standing left, leaning on column and holding scepter. RIC-31, Cohen-63, Sear-11451 21 mm, 3 g. Ex-Incitatus Coins (Canada), 05/2007. Asking $39, which should be my cost or a little below it, but since online records of that purchase are gone and I don't remember what I paid, just make me an offer.

Roman/Palmyrene Empire, bronze antoninianus of VABALATHUS (266-272 AD), struck ca. 271 AD, desert patina
VABALATHUS was king of the breakaway Palmyrene empire under his mother, Zenobia, ca. 266-272 AD. This was initially with the acquiescence of the Roman emperor Aurelian (who was busy fighting on other fronts), but Aurelian later conquered Palmyra in 273. This bronze antoninianus was struck at Antioch around 271 AD and shows dual portraits of Aurelian and Vabalathus, perhaps in expression of the Palmyrene hope that Aurelian would allow them to coexist. Obverse- VABALATHVS V CRIMDR, Laureate and draped bust right. Reverse- IMP C AVRELIANVS AVG, Radiate and draped bust right. (Which side is considered the obverse and which is the reverse is up for debate on a two-headed coin, but more folks probably use this type to represent Vabalathus in collections.) RIC-381. 20.62 mm, 3.3 g. Ex-Ancient Imports, 05/2007. Asking $69, which is my cost.

Roman/Gallic Empire, bronze antoninianus of TETRICUS I (ca. 270-274 AD)
TETRICUS I was emperor of the breakaway Gallic Empire from circa 270 (or 271) AD until 273 (or 274) AD. (As is often typical of the Crisis of the Third Century,sources sometimes differ on the exact dates). He ruled with his son Tetricus II, until they were defeated by Aurelian and the Gallic provinces were brought back under the dominion of Rome. AE antoninianus. Obverse- IMP TETRICVS P F AVG, radiate, cuirassed bust right. Reverse- HILARITAS AVGG, Hilaritas standing left, holding palm and cornucopiae. RIC-80, Cohen-57. 19.6 mm, 2.3 g. Ex-Ancient Imports, 05/2007. Asking $34, which is my cost.

Roman Empire, bronze antoninianus of FLORIAN (276 AD)- rare emperor- ruled only 88 days!
Florian is a rare emperor. He ruled for a mere 88 days before being killed by his own troops, which was a-common occupational hazard for 3rd century Roman emperors. That was 1,735 years ago. Who knows how many coins with his portrait were struck, and how many of them survive today?
FLORIAN(US), AE antoninianus, 276 AD. Obverse: IMP C FLORIANVS AVG, radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right. Reverse: CLEMENTIA TEMP, Clementia standing left with scepter, leaning on column, XXIZ in exergue. 22 mm, 3.7 g. Ex-Nemesis Ancients & Antiquities, 07/2008. Asking $90, which is my cost.

Roman Empire: bronze antoninianus of CARUS (282-283 AD), posthumous issue struck ca. 283 AD
CARUS, Augustus 282-283 AD. Posthumous AE antoninianus, Siscia mint, ca. 283 AD. Obverse- DIVO CARO PARTHICO, radiate head right. Reverse- CONSECRATIO AVG, flaming altar, A to right, SMSXXI in exergue. RIC-111 var., Cohen-23, Venera-4341. 21 mm, 3 g. Ex-Ancient Imports, 05/2007, Harmer Rooke 1988. Asking $55, which should be my cost or a little below it, but since online records of that purchase are gone and I don't remember what I paid, just make me an offer.

Australia, George V large penny, 1927(m), VF+
KM23, bronze. Take this coin for free if you buy the collection below- it is slightly better than the 1927 in that album. $2.

Australia, predecimal large penny collection in Dansco album, Fine to AU+, 72 pieces, lacks only 3 coins
Here's a nearly-complete collection of Australian predecimal large pennies, from George V, George VI, and Elizabeth II, spanning all the dates and mints between 1911 and 1964. They are housed in a like-new Dansco #7331 album. Only three coins are missing: the rare 1925, the nearly-impossible 1930, and the tough-but-obtainable 1946. Everything else is there. I am selling this set exactly as I received it- some of the coins could benefit from a little conservation, like the 1913, which has old adhesive tape on the obverse (that might respond to acetone treatment). A few others have modest circulation scuz (dirt) or light verdigris that should be easily removed with a harmless Vaseline rub or oil soak. A few pieces have old cleaning but that has retoned in most cases. Most of the coins are problem free and brown, with some of the later pieces displaying varying degrees of original mint red. Since Australian coins are dated on the reverse, these are put in the album with the reverses facing forward. Click the links below to see low-res pictures of each page. Asking $99 plus shipping.
Page 1 front (1911-1921 reverses) ~ Page 1 back (1911-1921 obverses)
Page 2 front (1922-1936 reverses) ~ Page 2 back (1922-1936 obverses)
Page 3 front (1938-1946 reverses) ~ Page 3 back (1938-1946 obverses)
Page 4 front (1947-1955 reverses) ~ Page 4 back (1947-1955 obverses)
Page 5 front (1955-1964 reverses) ~ Page 5 back (1955-1964 obverses)
For those of you who might lack a Krause catalog, I've copied and pasted screenshots from the 2009 Krause DVD for your reference and convenience.
George V values ~ George VI values ~ Elizabeth II values

Great Britain, George II farthing, 1754, VG
KM581.2, copper, 24 mm. This coin did not scan very well because it is such a dark brown. I had to tweak the colors and/or brightness in the picture and that ended up making it look a bit strange (and still too dark). In hand, it is a pleasant brown circulated example with nice surfaces. There are some faint old marks but overall the eye appeal is good for a low grade piece. Krause lists a 1754/0 overdate and there appears to be something going on beneath the 4 on this one, but it doesn't look like a 4 over a 0- it looks more like the 4 was repunched. Update- this photo only shows the obverse but it should demonstrate how bad the scans truly are. The coin actually has fairly decent surfaces for a lower-grade example. $7.

Great Britain, George III halfpenny, 1799, G
KM647, copper. 31 mm approx. A one-year type, KM647 has several subvarieties that have something to do with the number of gunports on the ship (five, six, nine, none, etc.), and whether those gunports are raised or incuse. Which is something of a joke, even on coins in better shape than this, as the ship is but a tiny blip on the horizon. Counting gunports on a piece in this grade? Fuhgeddaboutit- who cares? All the varieties are relatively similar in value, anyway. Just call this another nice, cheap oldie. Yes, there is a rim nick but the scanner exaggerated it- it's not inconsistent with the grade level, if you ask me. The coin has pretty nice surfaces overall. "Just honest wear", as they say. $5.

Great Britain, George VI halfcrown, 1938, BU
KM856, .500 silver/.2273 oz. Nice white UNC with cartwheel luster not seen in the picture. Gradewise, I personally would estimate it to be either a high-end MS63 or maybe even a more typical MS64. There are a few small marks so it's no MS65, but it's definitely one of the nicer 50% silver halfcrowns I've had. $27.

Mexico, 4-piece lot of silver 25-peso 1968 Olympics commemoratives
KM 479, .720 silver/.5208 oz. ea. No, they're not double dies- that's just another one of my trademark "shaky hand" photos with typically awful focus. At 38 mm, these are US silver dollar sized. Two pieces are basically white and two have light goldish toning. There is a total of 2.0832 ounces ASW in this lot. I bought these for spot recently, when silver was $33.82/oz., meaning I've got $70.45 in them. I see it's gone up since I bought them. Spot price -5%, minimum $70 (Scroll down for today's spot price.)

Straits Settlements, 1/2 cent, 1883, G+
KM8, copper. Apparently scarce- catalogs $75 in Fine in the 4th Edition Krause. Of course this isn't a Fine, but it's still a moderately tough piece. Flattened denticles at 12:00 and 2:00 on the reverse are apparently the result of small cuds rather than any damage. $9.

Straits Settlements, 10 cents, 1901, VF+ to XF
KM11, .800 silver/.0697 oz. Catalogs $80.00 in XF by the 2009 catalog, and I'd say this one is close. It used to be a part of my daughter's 1901 Victorian type set until I upgraded. Asking only $19, despite the odds of making much more for it on eBay.

1839 No Drapery Seated Liberty dime, G6
Light CircCam ("Circulation Cameo") contrast. I'd call it VG if the reverse rim weren't a tiny bit soft. Still, it's a decent looking example. Update- I just discovered this coin has a faint staple scratch on the reverse. It is so faint it only shows up at certain angles to the light, but I thought I should mention it and have reduced the price accordingly. $16.

Four-piece lot of BU silver Roosevelt dimes
These are nice white coins with gemmy luster. They are: 1959, 1961, 1962, and 1963-D. I'd call the 1959 MS63 and the others MS64. $12

1818 Capped Bust quarter, Browning-7 variety, R4+, VG with "CircCam" contrast
Ex-Elizabeth Reed, who also helpfully provided a chart of the diagnostics for this R4 variety. I'm a wide-spectrum generalist as a numismatist, and not a specialist in any particular series, so I'll defer to her for the attribution. I chose this piece simply because it looks like a great circulated type coin with that black and white CircCam contrast I like so much. She was asking $190 for it, and since I acquired it through a complex trade, I suppose I can afford to tack on a mere eight bucks for myself and ask $198. Even if you're not a specialist and the B-7 variety means as little to you as it does to me, you can appreciate the coin on its other merits. (Deal concluded 3/4/11, so as of this posting the coin is not yet in hand- will take a few days.) COMING SOON

1826 Capped Bust half, ICG VF30
Nice medium-grey original-looking coin with moderate "CircCam" contrast. Slightly rotated dies. In an ICG VF30 holder. I do not know the Overton variety. What appears to be a small rim bump or cud at ten o'clock on the obverse is neither- I've examined that area under a loupe and it appears to be merely an odd little break in the toning. There is no apparent disturbance of the metal there and the nearby denticles are well defined. Asking $125. (Current Redbook on this coin is $130 in VF20, and this is a slabbed VF30, obviously.)
Obverse ~ Reverse (With the standard apologies for poor image quality.)

Raw VG Barber half wantlist
I just swapped away all my duplicate Barber halves, but if I get any more I'll stick 'em here. Let me know if you have any I could use for my Dansco set!

1881-S Morgan dollar, PCGS MS61 OGH
This coin has nice rolling cartwheel luster and subtle gold-orange peripheral toning on the obverse, while the reverse is mostly white. MS61? I've seen worse-looking stuff in MS63 holders. This piece ranks modestly on the technical plastic grade but high on eye appeal, in my opinion. You won't hear me say this very often, but the scans actually turned out a little better than I expected them to. Nevertheless, a scanner has its limitations when it comes to luster on coins, and so I'll treat you to another round of my subpar photos, as well. $46.

Screw-top coin bezels in assorted sizes
The cent-sized bezels are gold-colored while all of the others are silver colored. I would not recommend these for valuable coins, obviously, but they make nice inexpensive mounts for cheap keepsake coins. A few years back I took some of those gold-plated Statehood quarters from my home state and put some in these bezels, and they sold very nicely at my antique mall booth. I gave my lady boss a Peace dollar in one of these as a Christmas gift, and she was happy. Put some common Indian cents, Buffalo nickels, or Merc dimes in these and I'll bet you'll find them popular. Use needle nose pliers to gently open the crown screw, put the coin in, and screw the crown back on. Be careful not to overtighten or you could snap the stem off. $2 each

CENT size (gold color): 9 available
NICKEL size (silver color): 10 available
DIME size (silver color): 10 available
QUARTER size (silver color): 23 available
HALF DOLLAR size (silver color): 8 available
LARGE DOLLAR (Morgan/Peace/Ike, not ASE) size (silver color): 8 available
Keychain attachment (the typical inexpensive kind you see on most novelty key rings): 5 available (just ask for one free if you buy a bezel).

Handsome pocket watch with 1883 Seated Liberty dime mounted in the case
The watch is modern, brand new in the original box, with a base metal "skeleton" case revealing the 7(?)-jewel analog movement. It's a very classy-looking watch with an antique-style design. Asking only $75, which is basically my cost.
(Picture 1) - (Picture 2) - (Picture 3)

I originally added this "Bid Board" section to my BST store in case I wanted to run small auctions here, but I think I'll also use it for stuff where I don't really have a firm price in mind- the my "make me an offer" stuff. So if you don't see any specific auction terms listed, just make me an offer!

BID BOARD AUCTION #1, ENDING 3/17/11

All proceeds to benefit DBSTrader2, who's had a couple bad turns of luck. He doesn't know I'm doing this yet.
Bid by PM, no reserve, highest bid by midnight Eastern at the end of St. Paddy's Day, 3/17/11, gets the coin(s).

Unattributed late Roman bronze AE3/centenionalis, ca. 4th century (after 348 AD)
Bronze with greenish patina, 20.5 x 21.5 mm. I can't quite make out the obverse legends, though a good bit of them are visible. This coin has the stylized "stock portrait" of an emperor (most likely of the Constantinian dynasty) facing right on the obverse, and the well-known reverse design with a soldier spearing a fallen horseman. No doubt the reverse legend once read "FEL TEMP REPARATIO", which was the Romans' way of saying "Happy Days Are Here Again". (They weren't- the empire was in decline.) There is a fairly clear mint name in the exergue at the bottom of the reverse, but I'm not quite up to speed on those. (Siscia, perhaps?) Update here's a photo (of the obverse, anyway).
Current highest bid: $0 (no bidders yet).

Unattributed late Roman bronze AE2 (Valentinian?), circa 4th century (after 364 AD)
Nice slightly-larger bronze with dark patina and fairly sharp details. The obverse legend pretty clearly says "VALENTINIAN", but which Valentinian? There were three. Valentinian I ruled from 364-375 AD, Valentinian II from 375-392 AD, and Valentinian III from 425 to 455 AD. I suspect the coin is from one of the earlier two Valentinians, because by the fifth century the bronze coins were usually much smaller and cruder than this. In fact, I think Valentinian II is our best candidate here because Wildwinds lists a few of his coins with this "GLORIA ROMANORVM" reverse, which features the emperor standing in a galley (ship). I believe the mint name in the exergue at the bottom of the reverse refers to Antioch. Update- here are some mediocre photos to supplement the bad scans.
Current highest bid: $0 (no bidders yet)

Unattributed late Roman bronze AE4 (Theodosius?), circa 4th-5th century
Small 15 mm bronze. Pretty clearly says "THEODOSIVS" on the obverse, so it should be either Theodosius I ("Theodosius the Great"), circa 379-395 AD, or Theodosius II, circa 408-450 AD. I lean towards the former of the two in my assessment. This coin looks truly wretched in the scans but has nice semi-gloss patina and sharp detail in hand. It's just one of those pieces that doesn't scan well. (Yes, I have resumed using my scanner since getting proper coin photography focus with my wife's camera has been driving me crazy lately). Looks MUCH better in hand. Update: those scans are so rotten that I took some photos of the coin, too.
Current highest bid: $0 (no bidders yet)

Four-piece mixed BU & Proof lot (Mercury dime, GA quarter, Franklin half, Kennedy half
Standard notice: my photography is wretched and this picture does these coins no justice at all (it's a bad photo even by MY standards). Coin 1: 1941-P Mercury dime, BU (eh, whoops- looking at it under a loupe, I think maybe it's just a nice slider. Let's call it AU58, but it looks BU. Has some faint gold toning, mostly on the obverse, which was strangely exaggerated in the photo. In hand, it's got great luster (which doesn't show at all in the weird picture) and the toning is more subtle (and NOT all spotty looking like it appears in the picture). Coin 2: 1999-S GA Statehood quarter, nice DCAM clad proof (say, did you know it's good luck to buy GA quarters from somebody in GA?) Coin 3: 1962 Franklin half, brilliant proof. Not a Cameo, but a nice white proof with no haze or spots- I would call it PR65 at least. Coin 4: 1970-S silver proof Kennedy half, likewise a brilliant proof I'd call PR65 at least.
Current highest bid: $0 (no bidders yet)

The coin below is not a part of the auction, but feel free to make an offer on it.

"Holey" 1851-C gold dollar
The hole goes through the right-hand side of the mintmark, but the consensus of this forum discussion (which included some specialists) is that it is indeed an 1851-C. I'm open for offers, be they cash or trade, but I should warn you that I probably overpaid for this coin. I have $300 in it, but don't let that deter you from making an offer- at worst, I'll just say "no", and keep it to hang back on my trademark "Holey Gold Hat".

Just for your reference and mine, here are some live Kitco charts, just in case they should ever be helpful.