CNG FEATURE AUCTION 123 HIGHLIGHTS

A rare silver stater from the birthplace of the Olympic Games in Greece, a spectacular bronze medallion of the Roman Emperor Maximian, an extremely rare silver piece struck by the last Byzantine Emperor, and a high-grade gold sovereign of Queen Elizabeth I highlight a star-studded offering of more than 1,100 exceptional ancient Greek, Roman, Byzantine, World and British coins in Classical Numismatic Group's Feature Auction 123, to be held live an online May 23-34.

 

Lot 99, the Olympia stater, was struck between 268 and 252 BC at the ancient site of the Olympic games in Elis, a region of central Greece, depicts a bold portrait of Zeus, king of the Greek pantheon of deities, on the obverse and an eagle clutching a serpent in its talons on the reverse. This wonderful coin is one of only three known specimens of its type, and has an outstanding pedigree to the famous Robert Jameson and Clarence Bement collections, with an original auction sale date in 1910, said Gasvoda.

 

Lot 214 is an impressive silver tetradrachm with the portrait and name of Timarchos, a usurper who tried to seize the throne of the Greek-ruled Seleukid Kingdom of the east in circa 164 BC. Unusually, the king wears a broad-brimmed helmet reminiscent of British campaigners of the Victorian era.

 

Lot 679, the Maximian bronze medallion, 40 millimeters in diameter and weighing an ounce and a half, depicts an amazing portrait of the emperor in full armor, holding the bridle of his horse.

 

Lot 823, a silver stavraton of the last Byzantine Emperor, Constantine XI, was struck during the Turkish siege of Constantinople in 1453. It's an amazing survival from this pivotal moment in history, when the heir to the Roman Empire finally fell to the overwhelming might of the Ottomans, Gasvoda said. It's also testament to a very brave man, Constantine XI, and one of the favorite coins in my Byzantine collection.

 
Lot 482

 
Lot 516

The run of Roman Imperatorial coins, lots 480 to 576, is one of the most extensive offerings covering this period that CNG has ever brought to the block. It includes lot 482, an amazing denarius depicting the head of Pompey the Great with a reverse depicting a Roman war galley; lot 506, the first portrait silver denarius of Julius Caesar struck in 44 BC, the first of nine portrait coins of the great dictator; lot 516, a gold aureus of Caesar's assassin Cassius Longinus; and lot 531, a gold aureus of Mark Antony and his wife Octavia, whom he later divorced to marry Cleopatra of Egypt. The section concludes with 32 of Antony's famous and popular Legionary denarii, including lot 565, the exceptionally rare LEG XVIIII.

The World section features a special collection of coins and medals relating to Madagascar formed by an English collector, highlighted by Lot 880, an extremely rare and important silver medal by Jean Warin for Louis XIV commemorating the French colonization of Madagascar.

British Highlights include an excellent run of Celtic coins, including many rare types, and a group of three superb Cunobelin Staters from the Borden Hoard, lots 918, 919 and 920.

Further British highlights include:

 

Lot 978, a high grade gold Sovereign of Elizabeth I, depicting the Tudor queen enthroned facing, holding the globe and scepter.

 

Lot 1076, an extremely rare pattern Crown of William IV struck in sterling silver on a heavy weight flan, graded PF 61 by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation.

This section also includes selections from the Malthouse Collection of English hammered and milled coins, formed by two generations of an old English family in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These coins were housed in a fine mahogany cabinet, lying undisturbed for the past eighty-three years, said David Guest, CNG's British coin specialist. Consequently, a very high proportion have rich cabinet tones.

CNG Feature Auction 123 will conclude Tuesday and Wednesday, May 23 and 24, starting at 9 am EDT each day. The sessions will be conducted live and online via the firm's website, www.cngcoins.com.

Classical Numismatic Group LLC is the foremost U.S. numismatic firm dealing in Ancient, World and British coinage. It's recent Triton XXVI auction, held January 10-11, 2022 in New Work City, generated more than $14 million in prices realized and set a world record for the highest auction price ever paid for a Roman Imperial coin, $2.3 million for a magnificent 10-aureus medallion of the Emperor Diocletian (AD 284-305).

For more information about Feature Auction 123, to receive a printed catalog of the sale, or to inquire about consigning to this sale and future Classical Numismatic Group auctions, write to CNG@cngcoins.com, or call (717) 390-9194

For more information, see:
https://auctions.cngcoins.com/

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