Reviews written in German, Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and English language:

[All languages:] Republican vol.0,  280 BC - BC 31  / quotes /

[All languages:] Imperial, vol. I, 31 BC - AD 138      / quotes /

[All languages:] Imperial, vol. II, 138 AD - AD 254  / quotes /

[ Information in: English language / German language / French language / Italian language / Spanish language / Danish language ]

REPUBLICAN: Preface / Vorwort / Avant-propos / Prefazio / Prefacio / Forord  .

IMPERIAL: Preface / Vorwort / Avant-propos / Prefazio / Prefacio / Forord  .

A record of prices realized at public auctions will primarily be of monetary interest to collectors, dealers and others.

One important fact should be noted: a price realized at auction is not necessarily the correct "market value" . A number of factors influence auction prices: were there no bidders on the day, were there two ´fanatic´ bidders competing, were people prevented from attending due to the weather or the football match, or did absolutely every dealer and collector attend because of the importance of the material offered, was the coin mis-identified or wrongly graded, etc. etc.

"Market value" is an arbitrary amount only valid at one place at one time; after that it is out of date. Like condition grading it is subjective, within certain limits. "Valuation guides", perhaps arrived at without the benefit of the market overview supplied by the Coin Price Yearbook, are even more subjective.

The listing of prices realized at public auctions is a valuable source of information.

The market overview the Coin Price Yearbook gives may reveal that a coin regarded as common rarely appears on the market, or conversely that a coin believed to be rare in fact turns up quite frequently.

A second and important value of such a listing is as a source for specialist collectors, writers and researchers. It shows clearly which and how many specimens appear on the market. Details of weights, varieties according to the RIC+Cohen+BMC catalogue reference numbers and illustrations are of particular interest to these users, and it would be valuable for them if all auction houses supplied these details.

Not every coin type is sold every year. There are many extremely rare coins which are only offered for public sale once in 5, 10, 20, 30, 50 or even more years !

A long sequence of Coin Price Yearbooks will thus be of immense value to those with a commercial interest as well as to academic researchers. Much information will be readily available here, making time-consuming consultation of many different catalogues unnecessary.

So, keep this edition of the Coin Price Yearbook. It will still be of value in ten years´ time.

This book is NOT COMPLETE

This book will NEVER BECOME COMPLETE

It has NOT BEEN ATTEMPTED to make this book complete

The yearbook contains a broad selection of auction results for Roman coins sold by a random selection of 251 public auctions throughout the world during the years 1995 and 1996. 372 catalogues in all were examined.

The key to all entries in the yearbook is Roman Imperial Coinage (RIC). Only coins given a reference to RIC by the auction house (or a reference to Cohen/BMC/Seaby that can be converted to an RIC number without problems) are included. Coins outside the scope of RIC will not be found in this book. Coins from auctions giving Sear or Kankelfitz references will not be included as these works give insufficient details. Only coins sold as single items are included, mixed lots are excluded.

As already mentioned, the RIC reference is the key to all entries. In addition, the yearbook gives references to BMC, Cohen, Kankelfitz, Seaby, Sear etc. These are either as supplied by the auctioneer, or as they appear in the various books. We have made use of concordance tables compiled by Maria R. Alföldi and Franziska Schmidt-Dick. In some cases a coin will be listed by one reference and not another. It can be a recent discovery, or an old entry later considered by the current author to be a forgery. There are some discrepancies in the cross references between works, no attempt to correct these has been made, but the editor would be grateful to receive corrections of these, or any other errors that readers may find, for inclusion in future editions of Roman Coin Price Yearbook.

Descriptions and legends are quoted as they appear in RIC. No attempt has been made to correct any errors therein.

Readers should be aware that Vol. I of RIC was completely revised and renumbered in 1984. The following still refer to the old edition (1923 and later reprints):

Seaby, vols. I & II, 3rd ed., 1978-79

Kankelfitz, 4th ed., 1996

frequently in Sabine Bourgey, Hess-Divo, Münz Zentrum, Harald Möller and a few other auction catalogues.

In this yearbook references to RIC Vol. I, 1st ed., have been converted to the numbering used in the 2nd ed. with the help of Franziska Schmidt-Dick’s concordance.

Throughout the years collectors have followed various quite different systems to arrange their coins. These are some of the most used:

1) according to Description historique des monnaies frappées sous l’Empire romain communément appelées médailles impériales (Cohen), 2nd revised edition, vols. I–VIII, Paris and London 1880-1892.

Eight volume work in French covering all imperial coinages in all metals, c. 75 BC - 476 AD. Coins are listed by the ruler whose portrait and/or name appears on the coin, and under each emperor heading in alphabetical order of reverse legend (gold, silver and base metal coins are mixed). All types and varieties known at the time of publication are included: 32,500 different coins listed (2,033 are illustrated) spanning 550 years of coinage.

 

Cohen has the simplest and most user-friendly (but quite un-scientific) arrangement, which explains why it remains indispensable after more than 100 years. A coin is found quickly and easily in Cohen.

 

2) according to British Museum Catalogue, Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum (BMC), vols. I–VIII, London 1923-1980.

Eight volume work in English covering those Roman Imperial coins in all metals held in the British Museum collections. Scientifically arranged: within each emperor’s reign the coins are arranged chronologically and according to place of minting.

 

3) according to The Roman Imperial Coinage (RIC), vols. I–X, London 1923-1994.

Ten volume work in English, covering all Roman Imperial coins in all metals, c. 31 BC - 491 AD. Scientifically arranged: within each emperor’s reign the coins are arranged chronologically and according to place of minting. All types and varieties known at the time of publication are included: around 35-45,000 different coins listed (5,400-5,600 are illustrated) spanning 500 years of coinage.

 

It is difficult to find a coin quickly in BMC and RIC unless the reader is very familiar with the coins, it is often necessary to consult several indices.

 

4) according to Roman Silver Coins (Seaby), vols. I–V, various revised editions London 1978-1987.

A five volume work in English covering all Roman Republican and Imperial silver coins, c. 289 BC - 476AD. All types and varieties known at the time of publication are included; 16,200 silver coins (2,287 are illustrated).

Coins are listed by the ruler whose portrait and/or name appears on the coin. Only silver coins are listed, all gold and base metal issues are excluded. The coins are arranged according to Cohen, i.e. in alphabetical order of reverse legend. The different denominations (denarius, quinarius, tetradrachm, etc.) are therefore mixed. It gives the collector a brief survey of 800 years of coinage in five small books. Suitable for accurate reference, as all types and varieties (of silver) are included.

 

5) according to Roman Coins and their values (Sear), 4th revised ed., London 1988.

Single volume work in English covering all Roman Republican, Imperial and Provincial coinage, c. 289BC - 518AD. Lists 4,400 selected coin types (503 of which are illustrated). Coins are listed by the ruler whose portrait and/or name appears on the coin. Under each emperor the coins are arranged according to metal: first gold, then silver, base metal last. Within each metal group the coins are arranged according to Cohen, i.e. in alphabetical order of reverse legend. Gives the collector a summary of 800 years of coinage in a single book. Not suitable for accurate reference, as many thousands of coins are excluded.

 

6) according to Römische Münzen von Pompejus bis Romulus (Kankelfitz), 4th revised ed., Augsburg 1996.

Single volume work in German covering all Roman Imperial and Provincial coinage, c. 49BC - 476AD. Lists 4,600 selected main types (1,137 of which are illustrated). Coins are listed by the ruler whose portrait and/or name appears on the coin. Under each emperor heading the coins are arranged in two metal groups: precious metal - silver first, gold last, and base metal - copper, brass etc. Within each metal group the coins are mostly arranged according to Cohen, i.e. in alphabetical order of reverse legend; but in long passages the arrangement differs from this sequence, and does not use a clearly defined system. Gives the collector a summary of 500 years of coinage in a single book. Not suitable for accurate reference, as many thousands of coins are excluded, or are grouped together under a single number.

 

7) in order of denomination beginning with the highest

 

8) in order of denomination beginning with the lowest

 

9) according to mint

 

10) according to region of use

 

11) according to metal

 

12) or according to other systems or a combination of some of the above

 

Whichever method chosen will find favour with some whilst others will find it unsatisfactory.

Only coins that can easily be given a RIC reference from details supplied by the auctioneer are included.

The yearbook quotes the information as given in the auction catalogues. Some errors may occur. There may be identification errors or misprints in the auction catalogues, and the yearbook itself cannot be guaranteed error-free. The details in the yearbook are recorded on the basis of the RIC catalogue reference number given by the auction house, so any error in this number will most likely be transferred to the yearbook.

If there are varieties of a type, for instance RIC 80A, RIC 80B, RIC 80C, and the auction catalogues states only the main type RIC 80, then the coin will appear in the yearbook as the first variety, in this example RIC 80A.

Identifies the auction house. Also gives the date of the auction and the lot number.

Denotes photographic illustration in the auction catalogue of the coin in question.

References to varieties according to the BMC catalogue are quoted where given.

References to Cohen are quoted where given.

Mint.

Gives the comments of the auction house. Rarity ratings are those given by the auctioneer. These definitions of R-ratings differ and varies from firm to firm. In the main the ratings given reflect the information in the RIC catalogue, The auctioneer’s comments are quoted in the original language and not translated.

Remarks of the editor are restricted to [Printers error: ..... ] or [Quoted as: ..... ] .

Weight is quoted where given by the auctioneer.

The auctioneer´s condition grading. Note that this is very subjective and varies from firm to firm.

The grades of conservation have, for convenience of comparison, been translated into English. Details of the various international systems of conservation grading will be found at the front of the book.

Stated minimum or estimated prices. If a range is given (e.g. 10,000-15,000) the higher figure is quoted (15,000).

All amounts are converted to US Dollars at the exchange rate of the day. Converted amounts are marked with an asterisk * . A table of exchange rates at the various dates is given at the front of the Yearbook.

Hammer price at the auction. In addition a buyer´s commission will be payable to the auctioneer, and in some cases tax is payable to the state. A table of commission rates and tax rates is given at the front of the Yearbook.

Prices are converted to a single currency (:USD in this Yearbook) to facilitate comparison. Converted amounts are marked with an asterisk * . A table of exchange rates at the various dates is given at the front of the Yearbook.

The prices are quoted from the auctioneers´ printed lists of prices realized. These may vary according to what present bidders felt they experienced in the auction room, for instance in the case that a coin at first not sold later were cried out once again.

The reader should be aware that the prices of Roman coins can vary considerably depending on the individual appearance, colour of patination, strength of strike, style of engraving, etc., of a given coin. For a coin considered particularly desirable the price can increase by 30, 50 and 100 % or even more !

The defining rules for the coin price yearbook will be found in the foreword. This guide explains in a little more detail the general principles behind the yearbook.

It follows from this that any errors in catalogues references, grading or even identification will be copied directly from the auction catalogues to the yearbook.

There has been no systematic attempt to identify or correct any of these errors. The task would be impossible.

Any errors discovered by chance during the compilation of this yearbook have been noted, but we repeat, no systematic attempt has been made to find and correct such errors.

The yearbook has no illustrations, as it is only an index. In some cases publishers of coin price yearbooks give references to illustrations in the auction catalogues.

One of the main reasons for publication of the yearbook is price comparison. In order to compare prices it is necessary to convert prices to one currency in the case of auctions taking place in different countries.

A coin price yearbook includes only auctions in what is defined as the ‘home market’.

As an example, the old and established Deutsches Münzpreis-Jahrbuch only covers auctions held within what was the old German Empire (around the 35 most influential auction houses in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Poland). This book does not include German coins sold in USA or the rest of the world.

As a second example, the likewise old and established Auction prices realised. U.S. coins. Auction results only covers auctions held within America (around the 15 most influential auction houses in USA). This book does not include American coins sold in Germany or the rest of the world.

As a third example, the new Dansk-Norsk Myntpris-Årbok 1995/96 only covers auctions held within Scandinavia (though the new Svenska Myntpris-Årsboken 1995/96, exceptionally, includes one Swiss auction).

For antique coins the ‘home market’ is defined as the ‘world market’.

Finally - Thank you everybody for your interest in the book, and your desire to discuss its present and future form.

This book is NOT COMPLETE

This book will NEVER BECOME COMPLETE

It has NOT BEEN ATTEMPTED to make this book complete

The yearbook contains a broad selection of auction results for Roman coins sold by a random selection of 251 public auctions throughout the world during the years 1995 and 1996. 372 catalogues in all were examined.

The key to all entries in the yearbook is Roman Republican Coinage (CR). Only coins given a reference to CR by the auction house (or a reference to Babelon/Sydenham/BMCrep/Seaby that can be converted to an CR number without problems) are included. Coins outside the scope of CR will not be found in this book. Coins from auctions giving Sear or Gebhardt references will not be included as these works give insufficient details. Only coins sold as single items are included, mixed lots are excluded.

As already mentioned, the CR reference is the key to all entries. In addition, the yearbook gives references to Babelon, BMCrep, Gebhardt, Seaby, Sear, Sydenham etc. These are either as supplied by the auctioneer, or as they appear in the various books. In some cases a coin will be listed by one reference and not another. It can be a recent discovery, or an old entry later considered by the current author to be a forgery. There are some discrepancies in the cross references between works, no attempt to correct these has been made, but the editor would be grateful to receive corrections of these, or any other errors that readers may find, for inclusion in future editions of Roman Coin Price Yearbook.

Descriptions and legends are quoted as they appear in CR. No attempt has been made to correct any errors therein.

Throughout the centuries collectors have used various systems for ordering and cataloguing coins. Some of the widely used methods are:

Whichever method chosen will find favour with some whilst others will find it unsatisfactory.

Only coins that can easily be given a CR reference from details supplied by the auctioneer are included.

The yearbook quotes the information as given in the auction catalogues. Some errors may occur. There may be identification errors or misprints in the auction catalogues, and the yearbook itself cannot be guaranteed error-free. The details in the yearbook are recorded on the basis of the CR catalogue reference number given by the auction house, so any error in this number will most likely be transferred to the yearbook.

If there are varieties of a type, for instance CR 80A, CR 80B, CR 80C, and the auction catalogues states only the main type CR 80, then the coin will appear in the yearbook as the first variety, in this example CR 80A.

Identifies the auction house. Also gives the date of the auction and the lot number.

Denotes photographic illustration in the auction catalogue of the coin in question.

References to varieties according to the Babelon catalogue are quoted where given.

References to varieties according to the BMCrep catalogue are quoted where given.

References to varieties according to the Sydenham catalogue are quoted where given.

Mint.

Gives the comments of the auction house. Rarity ratings are those given by the auctioneer. The auctioneer’s comments are quoted in the original language and not translated.

Remarks of the editor are restricted to [Printers error: ..... ] or [Quoted as: ..... ] .

Weight is quoted where given by the auctioneer.

The auctioneer´s condition grading. Note that this is very subjective and varies from firm to firm.

The grades of conservation have, for convenience of comparison, been translated into English. Details of the various international systems of conservation grading will be found at the front of the book.

Stated minimum or estimated prices. If a range is given (e.g. 10,000-15,000) the higher figure is quoted (15,000).

All amounts are converted to US Dollars at the exchange rate of the day. Converted amounts are marked with an asterisk * . A table of exchange rates at the various dates is given at the front of the Yearbook.

Hammer price at the auction. In addition a buyer´s commission will be payable to the auctioneer, and in some cases tax is payable to the state. A table of commission rates and tax rates is given at the front of the Yearbook.

Prices are converted to a single currency (:USD in this Yearbook) to facilitate comparison. Converted amounts are marked with an asterisk * . A table of exchange rates at the various dates is given at the front of the Yearbook.

The prices are quoted from the auctioneers´ printed lists of prices realized. These may vary according to what present bidders felt they experienced in the auction room, for instance in the case that a coin at first not sold later were cried out once again.

The reader should be aware that the prices of Roman coins can vary considerably depending on the individual appearance, colour of patination, strength of strike, style of engraving, etc., of a given coin. For a coin considered particularly desirable the price can increase by 30, 50 and 100 % or even more !

German coin collectors have been able to consult Deutsches Münzpreis-Jahrbuch (1. edition 1976) for market prices for more than 20 years. These yearbooks of German coins have been published by Tyra Gräfin Klenau, O.P.Wentzlaff and at the latest by Kazimir Wonsik (1995: price DEM 185), and contains in every yearbook about 30.000 auction prices realized from the auctioneers hammer in German / Swiss / Austrian / Polish / Swedish auctions.

Collectors of Roman coins now will have the same opportunity in the new Roman Coin Price Yearbook 1996/97.

The 32.000 hammer prices realized, were for coins sold through 251 public auctions held during 1995 and 1996 by the companies:

B.Ahlström (Sweden) - Willem van Alsenoy (Belgium) - Antikören (Sweden) - Apostrophe (Stack´s, Rarcoa, Akers) (USA) - Numismatica Aretusa (Schweiz) - Numismatica Ars Classica (Schweiz) - Auctiones AG (Schweiz) - Australian Coin Auctions / Downie´s (Australia) - Bankhaus Aufhäuser (Germany) - Baldwin (England) - Harlan J. Berk (USA) - Sabine Bourgey (France) - Bowers & Merena (USA) - Bruun Rasmussen (Denmark) - Buckland, Dix & Wood (England) - CGF Comptoir Général Financier (France) - Classical num. Group (USA+England) - Coin Galleries (USA) - Crédit de la Bourse (France) - Delavenne & Lafarge / Weil (France) - Delorme et Fraysse / Weil (France) - Dix, Noonan & Webb (England) - Dorotheum (Austria) - Jean Elsen (Belgium) - Emporium Hamburg (Germany) - Finarte Casa d´Aste (Italy) - Frankfurter Münzhandlung (Germany) - Giessener (Germany) - Glendining (England) - Gradl & Hinterland (Germany) - Greiser (Germany) - Heidelberger Münzhandlung (Germany) - Heritage (USA) - Hess-Divo (Schweiz) - Claus W. Hild (Germany) - Gerhard Hirsch (Germany) - Holmasto (Finland) - Hornung (Denmark) - I.K. Møntauktioner (Denmark) - Kricheldorf (Germany) - Kunsthallen (Denmark) - Kurpfälzische Münzhandlung (Germany) - Künker (Germany) - Kölner Münzkabinett (Germany) - Lanz (Germany) - Leipziger Münz.hdl (Germany) - Bank Leu (Schweiz) - McCawley-Grellmann (USA) - Millon & Robert / Parsy (France) - Monasterium (Germany) - Myntgalleriet as (Norway) - Myntgalleriet AB (Sweden) - Münz Zentrum (Germany) - Münzen & Medaillen AG (Schweiz) - Harald Möller (Germany) - Nellemann & Thomsen (Denmark) - Oldenburg (Germany) - Oslo Mynthandel (Norway) - Bankhaus Partin (Germany) - Busso Peus (Germany) - Ponterio (USA) - H.D.Rauch (Austria) - Riibe (Norway) - Schenk-Behrens (Germany) - Laurens Schulman (Netherland) - Schweizerischer Bankverein / SBCO (Schweiz) - Sotheby (England) - Spink London (England) - Spink America (USA) - Stack´s (USA) - Sternberg (Schweiz) - Superior (USA) - Tempelhofer Münzenhaus (Germany) - Tietjen (Germany) - Tkalec (Schweiz) - Tonkin (Sweden) – Tradart (Schweiz) - Italo Vecchi (England+USA) - Josiane Vedrines / Poindessault (France) - Jean Vinchon Numismatique (France) - Wallin (Sweden) - Westpfälische Münzauktionen (Germany) - Maison Williame (Belgium) - World-Wide Coins of California / Elmen (USA) .

All coins offered as SINGLE-objects will be included for the complete period 280 B.C – 254 A.D. (as far as they can be easily identified). All lots containing TWO or more coins are excluded.

For every single piece offered the Roman Coin Price Yearbook 1996/97 will give the following information:

a) identification of the auction: auction house + date of auction

b) lot number

c) identification of the coin: Year + mark of value

d) reference number of the coin:

Crawford/BMCrep/Babelon/Sydenham/Gebhardt/RIC/BMC/Cohen/Sear/Seaby/Kankelfitz

e) state of conservation for the given coin

f) estimated value

g) hammer price

h) comment from the auction house, if any

The above mentioned principles of information will be followed whenever possible.

The yearbook is size A5 (148 mm width, 210 mm height) and bound in hard cover. More than 1.200 pages of 32.000 hammer prices and an extra [204] pages of advertisements by auction houses and dealers the world over.