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>> Many surviving owls bear such test cuts, which greatly reduce their value to collectors. Some counterfeit owls, even with noticeably deficient weight, manage

>> Many surviving owls bear such test cuts, which greatly reduce their value to collectors. Some counterfeit owls, even with noticeably deficient weight, managed to survive intact and be collectable today — a 12.44 gram example sold for $300 in a recent auction. Collectors be damned. I would rather own a coin with a history. A ancient coin with a test cut, or even an outright forgery, is more interesting than any pure and clean coin. I also like the old coins with the punctures, the ones that were clearly worn as a necklace. A coin that was around the neck of a real person walking around ancient Rome is way more interesting than one sat gathering dust in a vault.

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nemo 3y ago
I'm a collector with a few fourrées and a few other ancient counterfeits, they often are a bit cheaper and so long as they're still decent to look at they've just got added interest to me. I've got other ancient forgeries too, I collect ancient fakes since they're interesting. My Athenian owl doesn't have test cuts since I'd rather have one that's prettier to look at, but if I could get my hands on an ancient forgery of an Athenian tetradrachma with a forged test cut then I'd be interested. Those exist, the counterfeiters escalating to fake marks of authenticity was inevitable, and those have a fun enough story that the fact that they're ugly wouldn't bother me so much, but in general I prefer more attractive examples that I like to look at. The test cuts were definitely not all on the side, lots of circulated coins are severely marred with 1 or more face gashes or owl gashes which is why they're not desired.
kombookcha 3y ago
Fun fact, the punctures aren't necessarily from necklaces - it was also common for coins be nailed to doorframes for good fortune, and occasionally to the masts of boats and ships. All of these usages (including as amulets) are extra frequent if the coin features a gorgon's head, because the image itself was said to repel bad luck. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorgoneion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorgoneion I'm into ancient coins and I completely agree with you about cut coins being extra interesting - another interesting dramatic thing to dive into are overstrikes, coins that have been 'reminted' at a later time than their original minting, and ancient imitation coins - such as those made by tribal peoples living adjacent to Roman territories. These are generally interesting for such fun features as very eclectic fusion art (think Roman iconography by way of celtic or germanic swirls and stylization), and by sometimes having gibberish text on them when made by an illiterate artisan.

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nemo 3y ago

I'm a collector with a few fourrées and a few other ancient counterfeits, they often are a bit cheaper and so long as they're still decent to look at they've just got added interest to me. I've got other ancient forgeries too, I collect ancient fakes since they're interesting. My Athenian owl doesn't have test cuts since I'd rather have one that's prettier to look at, but if I could get my hands on an ancient forgery of an Athenian tetradrachma with a forged test cut then I'd be interested. Those exist, the counterfeiters escalating to fake marks of authenticity was inevitable, and those have a fun enough story that the fact that they're ugly wouldn't bother me so much, but in general I prefer more attractive examples that I like to look at. The test cuts were definitely not all on the side, lots of circulated coins are severely marred with 1 or more face gashes or owl gashes which is why they're not desired.

kombookcha 3y ago

Fun fact, the punctures aren't necessarily from necklaces - it was also common for coins be nailed to doorframes for good fortune, and occasionally to the masts of boats and ships. All of these usages (including as amulets) are extra frequent if the coin features a gorgon's head, because the image itself was said to repel bad luck. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorgoneion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gorgoneion I'm into ancient coins and I completely agree with you about cut coins being extra interesting - another interesting dramatic thing to dive into are overstrikes, coins that have been 'reminted' at a later time than their original minting, and ancient imitation coins - such as those made by tribal peoples living adjacent to Roman territories. These are generally interesting for such fun features as very eclectic fusion art (think Roman iconography by way of celtic or germanic swirls and stylization), and by sometimes having gibberish text on them when made by an illiterate artisan.