Campgate from Rome with windows in the turrets

[Victor]

This campgate looks like it has windows in the turrets

Licinius II
A.D. 318- 319
19mm   3.3gm
LICINIVS IVN NOB C; laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
VIRTVS AVGG; campgate with closed doors and three turrets; P-R across fields.
In ex. RS
RIC VII Rome 182

[seth]

I don't like the coin but regardless it already reached 200$ w/ 3 more days to go. Sometimes it's hard to understand the ebay dynamics on numismatics. I am alsmost certain this coin wouldn't have reached 150$ at the end of an auction on venues like cng or the likes...

[Victor]

I don't like the coin but regardless it already reached 200$ w/ 3 more days to go. Sometimes it's hard to understand the ebay dynamics on numismatics. 

I think that far too often auctions get into bidding wars and buyers pay way more than they should have. I have gotten caught up in the frenzy a few times also and usually regret it later.

[seth]

I did that too a couple of time but only on coins I just HAD to have, when it wasn't about market prices or economic sense anymore but just infatuation w/ a certain aspect of that coin - the bust type, the relative rarity, etc.
I am almost sure that at least 2 coins I got this way will not make my money back if I decided to part w/ them. And that's just another incentive to not part w/ them

PS - the Constantine II BEATA w/ half-length bust holding globe and spear I got from you last autumn is not one of them and although at that moment I thought I might have overspent a little for it, I still think it could commend at least 170$ at an auction just for its rarity and unusual bust type.

[Victor]

I did that too a couple of time but only on coins I just HAD to have, when it wasn't about market prices or economic sense anymore but just infatuation w/ a certain aspect of that coin - the bust type, the relative rarity, etc.

That is probably what is going on with the bidding of this coin. If you collect campgates by RIC number, this might be your best chance at this type for years to come and the little windows just add to the desirability, so that even if you had this number, you might bid wildly to get a variation.

[tjaart]

Hi everyone,

So after the bidding has ended on this coin, I am the sucker/idiot (choose your own description) who got this coin. I think Victor is spot on. In this case it was coin I had never before seen for sale, it is quite rare as far as campgates go and I "just had to have it". I now somewhat regret it since just two days ago I got a very similar campgate for 1/20th the price (see post in the Unlisted section).

One of the the things that drove the price up for me was the fact that 1) these are really rare and don't come up for sale and 2) I previously lost out on a rare campgate on ebay because I was too stingy and didn't realise the actual worth of the coin. I agree that this coin went for way more than it was worth but I think it makes an excellent addition to my collection.

In the end I got a nice coin and learnt a very valuable lesson: Don't get too excited when bidding on ebay. They might just appear to be numbers when you enter the bid but in the end you still have to pay...

Tjaart