Byzantine - Ancient coin auction
catalogs
N.B. Most of the major firms regularly have Byzantine gold coins
in their catalogs. 50 or 100 pieces would not be unusual for any of the
top firms.
The catalogs listed below are different in that their
emphasis on Byzantine coins is especially strong.
See
my "catalog contents" webpage for the numbers
of Byzantine coins in other catalogs of each firm. You may assume that
the
number given will be almost all gold coins (maybe with a few silver
coins)
unless I specifically mention AE.
I am sure this list is very incomplete. I welcome contributions
from
more-experienced collectors who can add to this list.
Write me, Warren Esty, at 
Green means important. Bold Green means very important. Return
to the main page "Ancient
Coin Auction Catalogs - Contents" to find the meanings of the other
abbreviations
used here.
Note: Byzantine gold is common, and there are very many sales
with a large selection of Byzantine gold pieces. I will list some of
them, but have mostly emphasized sales with outstanding selections that
include AE as well.
Berk-England
1989, Dec. 7. 368 Byz AE, well photographed. This
may be the best sale catalog for Byz AE.
Byzantine AE (368)
Kovacs
mail bid sale XIV (10/98) 496 ancients. 99 G, 42 RP, 9 RR,
96 RI,
244 Byz AE.
An amazing group of AE rarities: 7 Constantine IV, 4
Justininian II (1st reign), 18 Leontius, 6 Tiberius III, 5 Juntinian II
(second reign), 14 Philippcus, 11 Anastasius II, 4 Theodosius III, etc.
244
Byzantine AE
Elsen, Jean (Brussels,
Belguim)
53
14 March 1998 "Collection G. W. de Wit: Les deux Rome de Diocletian to
the fall of Constantinople." MLV. MQP.1209 ancients among 2046.
562
Diocletian through Byzantine, mostly AE, on 16 ppl, plus another 21 ppl
with 84 G, 125 RR, 184 RI before Diocletian, plus another 254
Diocletian-Byzantine.
Late Roman AE
and Byzantine AE (among 800)
CNG
19 (2/92) mbs. 588 Byzantine, mostly AE, and 27
closely related. [Perhaps second best for Byzantine AE.]
Byzantine AE (all but a
few among 588)
28 (12/93) 699 ancients among 759. 212 G including 32
Athens new style, 31 RR, 78 RI, 14 RP, 289 Byz, 75 Turkoman bronze
(Spengler/Sayles I)
Athens new style (32),
Byzantine (289), Turkoman (Artuqid, 75)
29 (3/94) mbs. 1395 ancients among 1753 (+ numis
literature). 404 G, 107 RR, 399 RI, 146 RP, 264 Byz, 4 DA, 69 Turkoman
(Spengler/Sayles II, Artuqid) 17 Celtic England, 18 England
Byzantine (264, including
AE), Turkoman (Spengler/Sayles II, Artuqid, 69)
Leu
13 (4/75)
VHV. HQP. 785 ancients on 39 ppl + 4 E. 345 G, 220 R, 220 Byz.
220 Byzantine
NAC (Numismatica
Ars Classica)
"Arcadius to Constantine XI" (5/93) HV. VHQP. A specialized
collection of Byzantine and related coinages, in English
29 late Roman, 492 Byz (mostly gold), 31 Vandal, 12
other DA, 31 Papal-Byzantine silver
37 ppl, Papal-Byzantine life-sized and 2x in
B&W, plus 5 ppl of very large enlargments. 4 additional ppl of
color
enlargements
Byzantine gold,
late Roman gold, Vandal, Papal-Byzantine silver
This is the primarry offering of Papal-Byzantine
silver, with the hoard throughly written up and extensively expounded.
D (3/94) 1329 ancients on 65 ppl. 623 G, 542 R, 166
Byz
Byzantine (166, including AE)
NFA
18 (March 31 and April 1, 1987, in two parts) VHV. VHQP. Two
thick volumes. Part I: "Ancient Greek coins
and
coins of the Seleucid Kings" 402 G. Very extensive commenary on
many. Spectacular catalog. Plus many enlarged in the text plus 2
ppl in color plus two ppl of a single coin hugely enlarged.
Seleucid (Seleukid)
Greek [no Byzantine in part I]
Part II: "Roman and Byzantine" 591
ancients. 208 R, 383 Byz. Very extensive commenary on many. Spectacular
catalog. Plus many enlarged in the text plus 1 color ppl.
Byzantine gold
Sotheby's
1990, 5-6 Dec. (New
York) VHV. QP. Hardcover. "The William Herbert Hunt Collection
of Highy Important
Byzantine Coins" 961 Byzantine on 67 ppl. (the photos are okay, but not
as
good as most catalogs)
Byzantine (961)
1991, June 21 (New York) HV. QP. 646 lots, 114 of individual Byz gold,
the rest multiple-coin lots of Byzantine gold, most not illustrated.
"The William Herbert Hunt Collection of Highy Important Byzantine Coins"
Byzantine (114 + large lots)
1998, 2 Nov. (New York) "An Important Private Collection of
Byzantine Coins" HV. VHQP. 599 Byzantine gold + 1 E + 11 color E
+ some enlargments thoughout. Very long coin descriptions.
Byzantine (599)
Spink
2000, July 13. The Dr. Anton C. R. Dreesmann Collection of
Ancient Coins, Part II: Byzantine and Early European Gold Coins.
HV.
HQP. 573 ancients + 7 color ppl. 364 Byz gold, many DA: 94
Ostrogothic, Lombard, etc., 20 early Arabic gold, 31 early
Italian gold, 4 crusader, 12 florins, 37 Aksumite
Early
European gold (512) including Byzantine (364), Dark ages (94), Aksumite
(37)
Sternberg
8 (11/78)
MV, HQP. 1015 ancients. 339 G, 41 Aksum, 374 R, 238 Byz including
AE, 18 Arab-Byz, on 50 ppl + 2E
Aksumite (41),
Byzantine AE (among 238)
UBS (Zurich, Switzerland)
45 (9/98) 1235 ancients among 3225. MV. MQP. Very thick
catalog. 318 G, 382 Roman Republican, 346 R, 153 Byz.
Aes grave (among 62),
Byzantine gold (153)
Vecchi
4 (12/96)
738 ancients on 43 ppl plus 4 E. 417 R, 321 Byz,
including AE,
sestertii, Byz AE
8 (12/97)
MV. HQP. 675 ancients illustrated within + 10 E + 6 ppl of enlargments
in color. 157 G, 237 R, 282 Byz.
Byzantine and Byzantine AE
(282)
Berk
4 (Spring 1976) "All Byzantine Bronze" 345 Byz AE
(surprisingly poor
photos, but good coins)
345 Byzantine AE
Bonham's (London)
3 (Dec. 3, 1980) 404 Byz gold on 19 ppl. + 22
ppl. of B&W enlargements. Good photographs, some with slight
glare problems.
Byzantine gold (404)
Freeman
and Sear
6 (10/00)
663 ancients among 701. 181 Byz AE, 182 G, 72 architectural RP,
210
R, 18 Byz AV.
Byzantine AE (181),
architectural Roman Provincial (72)
Baldwin's
(London)
5 (11 Oct. 1995) "Byzantine Gold Coins from the P. J.
Donald Collection" 285 Byz gold on 12 large ppl. Photos okay but not as
good as most.
Byzantine gold (285)
fixed price list #37, Nov. 2001. 77 Byz, well
photographed, 1/3 AE
Other:
Byzantine Seals
Spink 127 (7 Oct. 1998) "Zacos collection, part I"
Spink 132 (25 May 1999) "Zacos collection, part II"
Spink 135 (6 Oct. 1999) "Zacos collection, part III"
Books:
Byzantine Coins and their Values,
second editon, by David Sear
Byzantine Coins by Philip
Grierson (published by Methuen in
London and University of California Berkeley/Los Angeles in USA).
[A large hardcover
book, not the v+67 page perfect-bound booklet with almost the same
name, Byzantine Coinage, and
by the same
author published by D.O. A highly-organized scholarly exposition, with
1527 coins photographed life-sized in black and white.]
Byzantine Coins by Philip
Whitting , published by G. P. Putnam's Sons. [A large hardcover
scholarly work with 457 photos, almost all enlarged and many in color,
directed toward people with a deep interest but not a lot of previous
knowledge.]
Eastern Roman Successors of the
Sestertius by Harlan J. Berk. [This is a comprehensive
list and price guide for AE, competing with Sear. It may have slightly
more realistic prices, but Sear suffices, in my opinion.]
He also has a volume on Byzantine gold.
"
Dumbarton Oaks" 5 volumes in 9
books, plus 1 pre-Byzantine:
Bellinger, Catalogue of the
Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore
Collection: Vol. 1, Anastasius I
to Maurice, 491-602
Grierson, Catalogue of the
Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore
Collection: Vol. 2, Phocas to Theodosius III, 602-717, 2 vols.
Grierson, Catalogue of the
Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore
Collection: Vol. 3, Leo III to Nicephorus III, 717-1081, 2 vols.
Hendy, Catalogue of the
Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore
Collection: Vol. 4, Alexius I to Michael VIII, 1081-1261, 2
vols.
Grierson, Catalogue of the
Byzantine Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore
Collection: Vol. 5, Michael VIII
to Constantine XI, 1258-1453, 2 vols.
Grierson and Mays,
Catalogue of
Late Roman Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore
Collection: From Arcadius
and Honorius to the Accession of Anastasius [perhaps
pre-Byzantine by coin-collector standards]
Coinage and Money in the
Byzantine Empire, 1081-1261 by
Michael F. Hendy, published by Dumbarton Oaks. A monumental early
study, now largely superceded by his "Volume 4" above.
Moneta Imperii Byzantini by
Wolfgang Hahn, (published by
Veröffentlichungen des Instituts für Numismatik und
Geldgeschichte der Universität
Wein). [a comprehensive list, in German, with varieties and photos, of
all early Byzantine coin types.]
Money of the Incipient Byzantine
Empire, by Wolfgang Hahn, a revision of the first volume of the
above, and in English.
A Private Collection of
Palaelogan Coins by Simon Bendall
(privately published in an edition of only 250 copies, but absolutely
essential for study of Palaelogan series).
The Later Palaeologan Coinage,
1282-1453, by Simon Bendall and P. J. Donald. Paperback.
Enlarged line drawings for identification of these poorly-struck
types.
An off-site annotated list of
books
and catalogs on late Roman, Byzantine, and Imitative coins.
Return to the main page "Ancient Coin Auction
Catalogs - Contents".