SPINK NUMISMATIC CIRCULAR 39:ANCIENT COINS, FEATURING THE LITTLE BUSBYHOARD OF ROMAN DENARII ANDTHE “VEITCHII” COLLECTION
Spink London, 26th March 2025
Spink’s first Ancient Coin sale of 2025 started things off with a bang, building on several years of great results in the category. Comprising 453 lots from across the ancient world, the sale opened with the Little Busby Hoard of Roman Denarii, a group of 392 Roman silver coins found in June 2021 by a metal detectorist and his grandson in North Yorkshire. At the time of the find, the denarii had fused within a clay pot, leaving the hoard in a kind of clump, which the finder was instructed by the British Museum to wrap in clingfilm and leave in the fridge, as lockdown restrictions delayed the treasure process. The contents of the hoard ranged from a set of legionary denarii of Mark Antony (lot 1001) to the coinage of the Severan dynasty (lots 1098-1104), with the group likely being deposited at the time of Geta’s accession as Caesar. Other highlights include examples from Hadrian’s ‘travelling’ series, with lot 1046, of Aegyptos, reaching £260, and some nice groups of Commodus, with lot 1092, hammering for £320. The undoubtable highlight from the hoard, however, is lot 1096, an example from the short-lived coinage of the usurper, Pertinax, which boasts a lovely portrait and tone, seldom seen in a hoard find. This piece shot above high estimate, reaching a marvellous £1,900. Overall, the hoard fetched an impressive £27,427.75 including Buyer’s Premium.
Lot 1096 – Denarius of Pertinax from the Little Busby Hoard – £1,900Lot 1167 – Didrachm of the Aetolian League, from the Veitchii Collection – £2,700
Elsewhere, and leading the Greek contingent of the sale, was the “Veitchii” Collection, a property of a botanist, assembled through Spink in the 1910s, and held with us since 2010. Of modest size, the Veitchii cabinet includes examples with terrific provenance: most of the coins are illustrated examples from British and European auctions, apparently bought by Spink on behalf of the collector, as opposed to Numismatic Circular purchases. Lot 1162, a Pharsalos Drachm with great portraiture, came to us via the Frank Sherman Benson Collection, sold at Sotheby’s in March 1909, and soared above high estimate to reach £2,400. Lot 1167, a handsome Didrachm of the Aetolian League, came from a 1912 Hirsch sale, by way of the 1905 Rhousopoulos Collection, reaching a mighty £2,700. From the Roman contingent of the “Veitchii” Cabinet, lot 1277, a Romano- Campanian Didrachm, purchased from Bourgey c. 1910, leapt to £4,200, while lot 1335, an exceedingly rare ‘Desultor’ issue of Mark Antony and P. Sepullius Macer, eclipsed all estimates and hammered for a spectacular £7,500.
Other properties yielded some of the sale’s most notable results, with high-level material taking off from Classical Greece to Imperial Rome. Lots 1180 and 1181, both ‘land tortoise’ varieties of Aegina staters, fetched £1,600 and £2,000 respectively, showcasing the evolution in style of this beloved series. A bewitching stater of Lykia, portraying King Mithrapata (lot 1193), graded Choice Extremely Fine by NGC, achieved £3,800, while a Tetradrachm of Mithradates VI (lot 1187) fetched £2,000. A good day for legendary Anatolian kings, but the major highlight of the Hellenistic coinage was surely lot 1257, a gold Oktodrachm of Ptolemy Philadelphos and his sister-wife Arsinoe II, which reached a phenomenal £24,000, obliterating its pre-sale estimate, and building on Spink’s great run of form for Ptolemaic gold.
Lot 1267 – Oktodrachm of Arsinoe II and Ptolemy Philadelphos – £24,000
“At the time of the find, the denarii had fused within a clay pot, leaving the hoard in a kind of clump, which the finder was instructed by the British Museum to wrap in clingfilm and leave in the fridge, as lockdown restrictions delayed the treasure process”
Lot 1371 – Aureus of Caligula and Agrippina the Elder – £21,000
In the Roman world, a few classic types of the Republic led the way, appropriately given that the sale passed through the Ides of March: lot 1329, an ever-popular elephant type of Julius Caesar hammered for £900, while lot 1318, an example struck by his assassin, Marcus Junius Brutus, reached £850. These examples sat upon an extensive run of the Republican and Imperatorial eras, with enthusiastic bidding throughout, but the best was still to come.
The run of imperial gold saw some splendid results: lot 1369, a ‘Tribute Penny’ aureus of Tiberius, along with lot 1373, Claudius’s ‘first citizen’ type, and lot 1385, a lovely ‘Genius’ type of Hadrian, each hammered at an impressive £14,000. From the later Empire, a Treveri Aureus of Maximian, lot 1410, reached £5,500, while a Ravenna solidus of Valentinian III, lot 1422, soared to a dizzying £2,500. Unsurprisingly, the leading highlight from the imperial section was lot 1371, a very scarce aureus of Caligula and Agrippina the Elder, subject to fierce gladiatorial bidding, the winner finally bagging this rarity for £21,000.
Overall, the sale showcased a varied yet consistently popular run of ancient material, demonstrating particular strength in the Hellenistic, late Roman Republican and Imperial Principate eras. While there was perhaps a paucity of material from Archaic period, Magna Graecia and Ionia, we hope to give these sections more attention in October’s ancient series, which already includes further coins from the “Veitchii” Collection and a terrific Carausius denarius.
For further information about Spink’s forthcoming ancient sales, or if you are interested in consigning your collection, contact Axel Kendrick at [email protected] or (+44)20 7563 4089.
