NGC-certified Roman Rarity Realizes More Than $200,000 in Heritage Sale

Three ancient rarities certified by Numismatic Guaranty Company™ (NGC®) sold for more than $100,000 in a recent Heritage Auctions sale. The Central States World Coins & Ancient Coins Platinum Session and Signature Auction concluded May 7, 2022.

The top lot among more than 550 NGC-certified coins and medallions that sold crossed the auction block was a Roman Empire Constantine I, AD 307-337 Gold Festaureus graded NGC Ancients MS★, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface (lot 30135), which realized $204,000. The obverse of the coin displays a portrait of Constantine I, the first Roman emperor to profess Christianity.

Roman Empire Constantine I, AD 307-337 Gold Festaureus graded NGC Ancients MS★, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface.Realized: $204,000 Click images to enlarge.

Another strong result in the sale was a coin from about 600 years earlier: a Calabria, Taras c. 280-272 BC Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients MS, 5/5 Strike, 4/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 30001), which realized $132,000. Struck during the time of Pyrrhus of Epirus, a Greek king and a cousin of Alexander the Great, the coin’s obverse depicts Heracles, a divine hero in Greek mythology.

Calabria, Taras c. 280-272 BC Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients MS, 5/5 Strike, 4/5 Surface with Fine Style.Realized: $132,000 Click images to enlarge.

Other NGC-certified highlights in the sale included:

• an Ionia (?) c. 500-494 BC EL Stater graded NGC Ancients Ch XF, 5/5 Strike, 3/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 30037), which realized $102,000
• a Roman Empire Claudius II, AD 268-270 Gold Medallion graded NGC Ancients Ch VF, 4/5 Strike, 2/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 30129), which realized $93,000
• a Roman Empire Pertinax, AD 193 Gold Aureus graded NGC Ch MS Ancients, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface (lot 30111), which realized $81,000
• a Lydia Croesus, 561-546 BC Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients Ch XF, 4/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 30047), which realized $57,600
• a Roman Empire Carinus, AD 283-285 Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients Ch MS, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 30131), which realized $50,400
• a Cyrenaica, Cyrene Ophellas, c. 322/1-308 BC Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients Ch AU★, 5/5 Strike, 5/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 30081), which realized $50,400
• an Achaemenid Empire late 6^th century to early 5^th century BC Gold Daric graded NGC Ancients MS★, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 30064), which realized $43,200
• a Roman Empire Caracalla, AD 198-217 Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients MS★, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface (lot 30115), which realized $40,800.

Prices realized include buyer’s premium.