Octavian Rarity Among Over 500 Coins Certified by NGC Ancients in Heritage Sale

Rarities from the dawn of coinage and the end of the Roman Republic are among over 500 ancient coins certified by Numismatic Guaranty Company™ (NGC®) being offered in a Heritage Auctions sale. Online bidding is already underway for the World & Ancient Coins Platinum Session and Signature Auction, which will be held August 25-28, 2022.

Leading the ancient coins in the sale is a Roman Imperatorial, Octavian & Divus Julius Caesar Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients Ch VF, 3/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface, and pedigreed to the Historical Scholar Collection (lot 32082). Julius Caesar's portrait in gold is exceedingly rare in comparison to silver and bronze. This coin was likely struck upon the assumption of the Consulship in 43 B.C. by Octavian, Caesar’s grandnephew, who later became Emperor Augustus. It has an estimate of $100,000 to $150,000.

Roman Imperatorial, Octavian & Divus Julius Caesar Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients Ch VF, 3/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface and pedigreed to the Historical Scholar Collection Click images to enlarge.

Another top coin in the sale is a Lydia, Croesus, 561-546 B.C. Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients Ch AU★, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface (lot 34036). King Croesus ruled the Lydian Kingdom from 561 to 546 B.C. He was a pioneer of standardized purity for general circulation coinage as we know it today, being the first to issue coins of high-purity gold and silver as part of a bimetallic coinage system. This coin has an estimate of $60,000 to $100,000.

Lydia, Croesus, 561-546 B.C. Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients Ch AU★, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface Click images to enlarge.

Other NGC-certified highlights in the auction include:

• a Ptolemaic Kingdom, Arsinoe II, Gold Octodrachm graded NGC Ancients Ch MS, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 34059), with an estimate of $50,000 to $60,000
• a Sicily, Syracuse, c.405-370 B.C. Silver Decadrachm graded NGC Ancients Ch AU, 4/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 34001), with an estimate of $50,000 to $60,000
• a Mysia, Lampsacus, c.395-350 B.C. Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients MS, 4/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 34033), with an estimate of $50,000 to $75,000
• a Roman Imperatorial, Marc Antony and Octavian Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients AU, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface and pedigreed to the Historical Scholar Collection (lot 32086), with an estimate of $50,000 to $60,000
• a Kingdom of Macedon, Alexander III 336-323 B.C. Gold Distater graded NGC Ancients AU, 5/5 Strike and 3/5 Surface with Fine Style (lot 34009), with an estimate of $40,000 to $50,000
• a Lydia, Croesus or later after c.561 B.C. Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients Ch MS, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 34039), with an estimate of $40,000 to $75,000
• a Cyprus, Salamis, Pnytagoras c.351-332/1 B.C. Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients AU★, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 34048), with an estimate of $35,000 to $45,000
• a Lydia, Croesus, 561-546 B.C. Gold Stater graded NGC Ancients Ch AU, 5/5 Strike and 5/5 Surface (lot 34035), with an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000
• a Roman Imperatorial, Cleopatra VII and Marc Antony Silver Tetradrachm graded NGC Ancients Ch XF★, 4/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 34079), with an estimate of $30,000 to $40,000
• a Roman Empire, Caligula, A.D. 37-41 Gold Aureus graded NGC Ancients XF, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 32103), with an estimate of $30,000 to $40,000
• a Lydia, Croesus, 561-546 B.C. Gold Stater graded Ch MS★, 5/5 Strike and 4/5 Surface (lot 34038), with an estimate of $30,000 to $50,000