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Auction: 24005 - The Official Coinex Auction of Ancient, British and World Coins
Lot: 111

Roman Empire, Nero Claudius Drusus, AE Sestertius, struck under Claudius (AD 41-54), NERO CLAVDIVS DRVSVS GERMANICVS IMP, bare head of Drusus left, rev. TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TR P IMP, Claudius seated left on curule chair resting on globe, holding branch and resting hand on lap, and placing his feet on a cuirass lying horizontally before him, surrounding him, a helmet, five shields, and two spears 27.22g (RIC 93; Cohen 8), lovely Tiber patina, detailed, powerful portrait, some light cracks to surface of reverse, but nevertheless a wonderful stylistic example, with a rich pedigree, good very fine, determined as having 'edge filing, therefore no decision' by NGC, and therefore regrettably not graded [NGC Submission No. 8221849-030]

Provenance

The Major Hamish and Mrs Ann Orr-Ewing Collection of Roman Coins

Seaby CMB, May 1988, C252

(Possibly) Ibid., August 1960, 126

Spink NC January 1952, 169, bought 24 May 1952

H P Hall Part II, Glendining, 16-21 November 1950, lot 992

Lincoln Coins, c. 1901

Carfrae, Part II, Sotheby's, 7 August 1901, lot 44

Bunbury, Part II, Sotheby's, 6 October 1895, lot 621 (part)


Despite the suggestion in our marked Bunbury catalogue of this example as being purchased by Hall in 1895, it appears that it found its way to Hall by way of the Carfrae Collection and Lincoln Coins in 1901, and the aforementioned attribution was likely made in retrospect following his sale in 1950. As Hall bid on and won several lots in the vicinity of this one, it is likely that he decided to make another attempt to acquire the coin from Lincoln or a later owner at some point between 1901 and his death in 1949. As Leonard Forrer mentions in his foreward for the sale of Hall's Collection, the latter kept a receipt of every coin purchase between 1895 and 1949; the inclusion of the Carfrae provenance in the Glendining Catalogue indicates, therefore, that Hall did not purchase this coin from the Bunbury sale.


The life of this example between 1950 and its purchase by Major Orr-Ewing from Seaby in 1988 is much harder to trace. Spink held onto the coin for a couple of years, including it in the January Numismatic Circular of 1952, along with two other bronzes from Hall's Collection (a Galba, lot 1119, and an Elagabalus). This, along with several other bronzes (a Nero, a Titus and a Vespasian, all from Howard Schulman of New York), one denarius of Galba and a couple of Greek coins (a Hieron II 16-Litra and a Philip II Stater for anyone keeping score), were purchased by a mystery buyer, known to us only as 'E1678', on 24 May 1952. E's only other appearance in the mighty Spink purchase ledger of 1921-1959, is to return that same Sestertius of Vespasian to Spink on 4 June that same year - a Sestertius which finally went on to be sold again in 1959.


While there is an example listed in the Seaby CMB of August 1960 as 'Ex. Bunbury, Carfrae and HP Hall Collections', and this has been included on the present provenance, the coin in question is sadly not illustrated by Seaby. As such, this must be considered a provisional provenance, not least due to the number of Sestertii which appear in all three of these collections. One painstakingly tantilising example appears in Harlan J. Berk's Fixed Price List of 1974 as "X, Brunbury(sic), X. Trau, and X. Henry Platt Hall Collection", but as per the illustration, is not our present example. As such, the last confirmed buyer until 1988 is our mystery purchaser, E1678.


In the unlikely event that this mystery buyer or any of their descendants is reading this commentary, the author would be delighted to hear from them. Sadly, while the pedigree of this coin is remarkable, one is left wondering what it got up to between 1952 and 1988.


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Sold for
£1,100

Starting price
£600