David Atherton Posted September 15 · Member Share Posted September 15 (edited) I never thought I would own this rare Judaea Capta variety. Seldom seen in trade, if at all, and being a JC type, I felt my chances were slim to none. It helped that the seller attributed it as the more common Lugdunese variety from 71 rather than the super rare 77-78 that it actually is. The very distinct portraiture style is the dead giveaway. Needless to say, I'm over the moon. I have perhaps a dozen new coins ahead of it waiting to be unboxed, but I just couldn't wait! I took the 2 day shipping time from Paris as a sign. LOL Vespasian Æ Sestertius, 20.56g Lyon mint, 77-78 AD Obv: IMP CAES VESPASIAN AVG P M TR P P P COS VIII; Head of Vespasian, laureate, r., globe at point of bust Rev: IVDAEA CAPTA; S C in exergue; Palm tree; to l., Vespasian stg. r. with spear and parazonium, foot on helmet; to r., Judaea std. r. on cuirass RIC 1204 (R2). BMC 826. BNC -. Hendin 1545. Ex CGB, September 2024. In 77-78 Lugdunum (modern Lyon) after a hiatus of several years struck a decently large issue of bronze coinage, presumably to address a coin shortage in the Western provinces. The types copy those common to Rome and feature distinctive 'blocky' portraits. Sestertii from the issue are quite scarce today - this Judaea Capta type being among the rarest. Only one example cited by RIC in the BM, and one lone auction record on asearch. This coin serves as proof that even towards the end of Vespasian's reign the propaganda value of "Judaea vanquished" had not lost its power. In hand. As always, thank you for looking! Edited September 15 by David Atherton 19 1 7 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roman Collector Posted September 15 · Patron Share Posted September 15 I love it when a specialist can recognize an underappreciated rarity and pick it up for a good price! These rarities are out there. Specialist collectors have to wait a long time for them to surface and it's not always in one of the big-name auctions or properly identified, but it's a fantastic feeling when they do. 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPK Posted September 15 · Supporter Share Posted September 15 A great coin in its own right, aside from the rarity! Congrats! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Atherton Posted September 15 · Member Author Share Posted September 15 55 minutes ago, Roman Collector said: I love it when a specialist can recognize an underappreciated rarity and pick it up for a good price! These rarities are out there. Specialist collectors have to wait a long time for them to surface and it's not always in one of the big-name auctions or properly identified, but it's a fantastic feeling when they do. I couldn't put it in my shopping cart fast enough! LOL Earlier in the week, I lost a second known example of a Vespasian dupondius on eBay because I took a couple of minutes to look up the references to be sure it was what I thought it was. It sold in those few minutes ... wasn't going to let that happen with the JC sestertius! 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayAg47 Posted September 15 · Member Share Posted September 15 What an iconic coin type! I’ve been reading up on the first Jewish wars lately and become interested in acquiring a Judaea Capta example. Despite being some of the common issues of Vespasian, due to high demand they also cost a lot! Even some of the Flavian coins that denote a military victory cost as much as a coin that explicitly states IVDAEA depending on the condition. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nerosmyfavorite68 Posted September 15 · Member Share Posted September 15 Cool type, and a great addition to an iconic collection. It's definitely a bold VG and the design is clear. Is CGB's customer service and shipping as good as Numiscorner's? (whoops, I just went back and read the first lines - it appears so). I've almost purchased from them several times, but the prices were a little high... I have only a decrepit, unphotographed sestertius of Titus which second-handedly refers to the Judean campaign. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limes Posted September 15 · Supporter Share Posted September 15 Despite the wear, i love the fact that IVDAEA is clearly legible, and the figures are distinguishable. A fantastic coin @David Atherton! 1 hour ago, Nerosmyfavorite68 said: Is CGB's customer service and shipping as good as Numiscorner's? (whoops, I just went back and read the first lines - it appears so). My personal experience is great. The prices are on the high end, but most of the times I'm able to agree a price with them. If it's ok I'd like to add my own IVDAEA CAPTA issue. Not as rare as David's, and I'm no Flavian specialist. But I believe it's a must have in my collection, and I really enjoy it. 5 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPK Posted September 15 · Supporter Share Posted September 15 6 hours ago, Nerosmyfavorite68 said: Cool type, and a great addition to an iconic collection. It's definitely a bold VG and the design is clear. Is CGB's customer service and shipping as good as Numiscorner's? (whoops, I just went back and read the first lines - it appears so). I've almost purchased from them several times, but the prices were a little high... I have only a decrepit, unphotographed sestertius of Titus which second-handedly refers to the Judean campaign. I really like cgb.fr. Though the prices on some coins may be on the high end, they can often be negotiated. Service is great, packaging is top notch, and the inventory is wide and varied and includes a lot of pretty rare types. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CPK Posted September 15 · Supporter Share Posted September 15 5 hours ago, Limes said: Despite the wear, i love the fact that IVDAEA is clearly legible, and the figures are distinguishable. A fantastic coin @David Atherton! My personal experience is great. The prices are on the high end, but most of the times I'm able to agree a price with them. If it's ok I'd like to add my own IVDAEA CAPTA issue. Not as rare as David's, and I'm no Flavian specialist. But I believe it's a must have in my collection, and I really enjoy it. Love seeing that coin! It's not perfect, but it's not missing a single thing, either - just a great honest collector's coin. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Atherton Posted September 16 · Member Author Share Posted September 16 (edited) 1 hour ago, CPK said: I really like cgb.fr. Though the prices on some coins may be on the high end, they can often be negotiated. Service is great, packaging is top notch, and the inventory is wide and varied and includes a lot of pretty rare types. Totally agree! CGB is one of the best out there with top customer service. I've never had an issue with them. Edited September 16 by David Atherton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Limes Posted September 18 · Supporter Share Posted September 18 On 9/16/2024 at 1:03 AM, CPK said: Love seeing that coin! It's not perfect, but it's not missing a single thing, either - just a great honest collector's coin. Thanks CPK! I think the coin is intouched, in the sense that I cant find traces of tooling or smoothing. I like the honest wear. Unfortunately there are some hard encrustations / hard stuff sticking / on the surface (light brown), that appears as corrossion in the photos. But in hand it's a minor nuisance. I'm very, very happy with the coin 🙂 I decided to update the photos and digital display. Perhaps its a bit too bright / light, its more dark in hand. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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