I don't have much from late Roman Empire (4th and 5th centuries CE) - this AELIA FLACCILA qualifies, a follis from Constantinople...

The Roman concept of the day: sulcus primigenius  or "initial furrow". A definition via Sextus Pompeius Festus , a grammarian, from the...

For many years I have admired the gold coins of the Kushan kings and finally decided it was time to move from admiring to owning. This...

The Temple of Hera (“Tavole Palatine”), late 6th-century BCE Doric sanctuary near Metaponto (ancient Metapontion/Metapontum), Basilicata,...

This coin is my latest RR denarius a story of family propaganda from ancient Rome in the run-up to and early phases of the Caesar–Pompey...

Today's post begins with the hope of making some sense of the weight standards for a set of staters in my collection. A number of...

This map (a detail from The Historical Atlas by William R. Shepherd, 1923 ) illustrates the western edge of Asia Minor, also known as...

Richard Witschonke’s 2012 article, published in the Revue Belge de Numismatique , tackles a long-standing puzzle in Roman Republican...

Portraits from a variety of Roman republican and Roman Imperial coins. Aristotle Physiognomy is the historical practice of judging a...

Pompey had already earned a reputation for cleaning up messes when the Roman Senate passed Lex Gabinia (67 BCE) and Lex Manilia (66 BCE), which handed Pompey near‑unlimited imperium over the eastern Mediterranean. Gabinius’ law handed him 500 ships, fifteen legates and fiscal carte blanche; Manilius then united that navy with Lucullus’ veteran army. Pompey had cleaned up the rebels in Spain who were led by Q. Sertorius (The Sertorian War) and commemorated his victory in 74 BC

Auctions are the main place to buy rare collectibles such as coins and fine art, and auction design and behavioral factors can impact final prices. A number of questions captured my attention today...

Detail from the Altıkulaç Sarcophagus (5th–4th c. BCE) discovered in Çingenetepe Tumulus (Çanakkale), today in the Troy Museum , features...

This week's coin of interest is a large 32mm coin (an AE Dirham of the Danishmendids). It was a steal at 20 EUR - yes it is ugly, yes it seems to be some sort of hot mess with a flan crack and maybe over-struck on some earlier coin? An unusual an interesting coin nonetheless...

British Trade Deficit and Opium Smuggling In the 18th century, British demand for Chinese tea, silk, and porcelain soared, but China...

Kings of Macedon, Alexander III 'the Great' (336-323 BC), lifetime issue from 325 or 324/3 BCE, AR (17.24g, 27mm) Tetradrachm, minted in...

Tipu's Tiger, an 18th-century automata with its keyboard visible. Victoria and Albert Museum, London . Public Domain image via Wikimedia...

Pigeon on a Peach Branch by Emperor Huizong Chinese coins are not an area where I have many coins to offer. Today's coin is from an...

Today's coins are 2 denarii from 116-117 BC from the Roman republic. They are beautifully toned and well executed examples with more...

In AD 100/101, during the reign of Emperor Trajan (regnal year 3 of Trajan’s rule), the city of Caesarea in Cappadocia (central Anatolia)...

In the late 15th century, the Timurid Empire was fragmenting, and Qunduz (modern Kunduz in northern Afghanistan) became the seat of an...