By Steve Benner for CoinWeek ….. The mythology of ancient Greece and Rome is vast, and many volumes have been written on it over the centuries. In the United States, several books have popularized the subject, with Bulfinch’s Mythology (1855) being the gold standard. Using it as a guide, the following is a brief exploration […]
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By Mike Markowitz for CoinWeek ….. I, Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus This-that-and-the-other (for I shall not trouble you yet with all my titles,) who was once, and not so long ago either, known to my friends and relatives and associates as “Claudius the Idiot,” or “That Claudius,” or “Claudius the Stammerer,” or “Clau-Clau-Claudius,” or […]
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CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz ….. MOST ANCIENT PEOPLE lived close to nature. Long before they built temples of stone, they worshipped their gods in sacred groves[1]. Greeks myths describe trees inhabited by supernatural spirits called dryads[2], who could take the form of beautiful young women. The ancient Mediterranean world was a much […]
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By Tyler Rossi for CoinWeek ….. As an avid numismatist, I tend to be attracted to coins that tell a story. While I of course appreciate the sheer elegance and beauty many coins display, I also seek out individual pieces that bear witness to history. For this article, I used the same criteria for selecting […]
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By Tyler Rossi for CoinWeek ….. As an avid numismatist, I tend to be attracted to coins that tell a story. While I of course appreciate the sheer elegance and beauty many coins display, I also seek out individual pieces that bear witness to history. For this article, I used the same criteria for […]
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CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz for CoinWeek ….. Fairy tales do not tell children the dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children that dragons can be killed. ― G.K. Chesterton, a la Criminal Minds (CBS, 2007) CLASSICAL MYTHOLOGY IS FILLED with monsters. For the civilizations of the ancient […]
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CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz for CoinWeek ….. ANCIENT PEOPLE WHO lived around the shores of the Mediterranean were intimately familiar with the marine life around them. Fish were a critical resource for these societies, figuring prominently in their culture, art, and mythology from very early times. When coinage came into wide […]
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Interesting silver coins from Central Greece are available for modest prices By Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) …… One popular area for ancient Greek coinage is central Greece, home to a number of important cities, notably Athens. From the sixth century BCE onward, a great variety of coins were struck there, principally in silver and […]
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CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz …. COINAGE IS CONSERVATIVE. IF a denizen of ancient Rome picked up a modern American dime, he would recognize familiar symbols: a torch, an olive branch, oak leaves. He could even understand the Latin motto E PLURIBUS UNUM (“Out of Many, One”). Similarly, if that ancient Roman picked […]
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An ancient people’s reliance on the sea is reflected in money Finely engraved images of animals and mythic creatures are commonplace on ancient Greek coins. The spectrum is incredible, ranging from imaginary creatures to the kinds of animals the ancients encountered in everyday life. Among the most frequently shown are aquatic creatures. This is hardly […]
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CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz …. You ain’t nothing but a hound dog, crying all the time. You ain’t nothing but a hound dog, crying all the time. You ain’t never caught a rabbit, and you ain’t no friend of mine. –Elvis Presley, 20th-century American philosopher, covering Big Mama Thornton’s “Hound Dog” […]
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Highlights of the upcoming Lanz Auction include an aureus of Magna Urbica with a provenance dating back as far as 1907 and an elaborately worked Bavarian gnadenpfennig By Numismatik Lanz …… Numismatic dealership Numismatik Lanz will auction off 710 lots comprising coins and medals from all over the world in their own premises on 7 […]
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Excellent prices were realized in the Gorny & Mosch Fall Auction. Above all, the Archaic coins from Athens and the collection of exquisite German thalers achieved five-digit hammer prices. However, Poland caused more than one surprise, too. During the week from October 5 to 9, 2015, coin collectors gathered in Munich. Presented in no less […]
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CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz…. Labyrinths and Minotaurs and Bulls, Oh My! For the Ancient Greeks, Crete was a place of myth and legend. It was the birthplace of Zeus and the site of the Labyrinth. It was home to the Minotaur and the Cretan Bull. It was also the center of Minoan […]
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