SOLD- Nice scarce denarius of the Roman emperor Otho, 69 AD, NGC certified Fine (3/5, 3/5)
lordmarcovan
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* 10/24/14: Many of you are wondering why I'm offering one of my oldtime favorite coins for sale. Simple- I'm attempting to "trade up" on another Roman coin. I have offered this piece as a potential trade-in to Harlan J. Berk, Ltd, on another coin they have. I originally purchased it from them, but as of this posting I do not yet know what kind of trade-in allowance they will offer, so in the meantime, if somebody here wants it at my cost, that may be the way to go. Then I won't have too far to stretch for the other coin I want from them.
They originally had this coin priced at $675 but I won it in a Buy or Bid sale for $575 back in 2007. Then I got laid off in the recession and had to sell my collection, including this coin. Since then I bought it back and had it slabbed, so my cost on it has crept up to $625, still below HJB's original ask price. For this reason, I am asking only my cost of $625 plus shipping for this piece. I personally think it is worth it. You can find Othos for less if you're lucky, but quality is always a challenge and this is a pleasing example. I've seen worse ones go for more. ~RWS
Below is a copy-and-paste from my main thread about this coin.
Ancient Rome (Imperial): silver denarius of Otho, ca. January-April, 69 AD
Obverse- IMP OTHO CAESAR AVG TR P, bare head right.
Reverse- PONT MAX, Ceres standing left, holding corn ears in right hand, cornucopia in left.
Silver version of RIC 20 (an aureus), 3.1 g. NGC Fine (Strike 3/5, Surface 3/5), cert #4095350-003. Ex- Harlan J. Berk, Ltd., November, 2007.
"Rare second issue of reign", according to HJB. This coin was the keystone of my original Roman coin collection. Otho was a Civil War emperor who ruled for only three months, from January to April 69 AD, and was the second ruler in the "Year of Four Emperors. I was always fascinated by his short reign after discovering how relatively elusive his coins are. When I first started seriously collecting Roman coins in 2007, Otho gave me the hardest time, even though most folks will tell you that Caligula is the toughest coin to add to a Twelve Caesars collection. This remains one of my favorite Roman pieces. These are tough, and even ugly ones sell for hundreds of dollars. I like that this one has a nice portrait, and a clear name, and it's rather interesting that the slightly irregular shape of the flan follows the contour of Otho's shoulder.
Original seller page
NGC cert verification page
Coins of Otho (Wildwinds reference)
Wikipedia links:
Otho
Year of the Four Emperors
Ceres (mythology)
As of the last edit, this coin was part of my "Eclectic Box of 20" collection.
It was originally part of my "Twelve Caesars" Roman collection.
And before that, it was part of my Old 2007-2008 Roman collection.
They originally had this coin priced at $675 but I won it in a Buy or Bid sale for $575 back in 2007. Then I got laid off in the recession and had to sell my collection, including this coin. Since then I bought it back and had it slabbed, so my cost on it has crept up to $625, still below HJB's original ask price. For this reason, I am asking only my cost of $625 plus shipping for this piece. I personally think it is worth it. You can find Othos for less if you're lucky, but quality is always a challenge and this is a pleasing example. I've seen worse ones go for more. ~RWS
Below is a copy-and-paste from my main thread about this coin.
Ancient Rome (Imperial): silver denarius of Otho, ca. January-April, 69 AD
Obverse- IMP OTHO CAESAR AVG TR P, bare head right.
Reverse- PONT MAX, Ceres standing left, holding corn ears in right hand, cornucopia in left.
Silver version of RIC 20 (an aureus), 3.1 g. NGC Fine (Strike 3/5, Surface 3/5), cert #4095350-003. Ex- Harlan J. Berk, Ltd., November, 2007.
"Rare second issue of reign", according to HJB. This coin was the keystone of my original Roman coin collection. Otho was a Civil War emperor who ruled for only three months, from January to April 69 AD, and was the second ruler in the "Year of Four Emperors. I was always fascinated by his short reign after discovering how relatively elusive his coins are. When I first started seriously collecting Roman coins in 2007, Otho gave me the hardest time, even though most folks will tell you that Caligula is the toughest coin to add to a Twelve Caesars collection. This remains one of my favorite Roman pieces. These are tough, and even ugly ones sell for hundreds of dollars. I like that this one has a nice portrait, and a clear name, and it's rather interesting that the slightly irregular shape of the flan follows the contour of Otho's shoulder.
Original seller page
NGC cert verification page
Coins of Otho (Wildwinds reference)
Wikipedia links:
Otho
Year of the Four Emperors
Ceres (mythology)
As of the last edit, this coin was part of my "Eclectic Box of 20" collection.
It was originally part of my "Twelve Caesars" Roman collection.
And before that, it was part of my Old 2007-2008 Roman collection.
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