The Owl and the Autocrat
Athens Owl Tetradrachm Alexander the Great Tetradrachm Ancient Greece 449 B.C./330 B.C. As is the case today as it was in ancient times, trade brings growth to nations. A key […]
Bugsy and the Flamingo
Flamingo Hotel $5 Casino Chip Las Vegas, Nevada 1946-47. As a result of the terrible economic effects of America’s Great Depression, gambling in Nevada became legal in 1931. The state […]
A Family of Caesars
Vespasian silver denarius Titus silver denarius Domitian silver denarius Rome, Italy 69~96 A.D. Most of what we know of the first twelve Caesars of Rome came from the writings of […]
The Stuff of Dreams
Natural Gold Nugget Western Australia 56 gms. Gold. It’s the noblest of elemental metals. It can be stretched into a wire one atom wide. Scientists think our gold originated from […]
A Day in the Afterlife
Faience Funerary Figurine Ancient Egypt Late Period. 3380-343 B.C. In Ancient Egypt, death was not the end of existence. It was a crossover to the afterlife. Up until the end […]
The Destitute Quintillionaires
10 Quintillion Pengo Hyperinflationary Note Hungary June, 1946. Inflation is a marching increase in the general price of goods and services over a period of time. It’s caused by an […]
30 Pieces of Silver
Phoenician Shekel Tyre, Phoenicia 103~102 B.C. In ancient times, the Phoenicians were skilled seafarers and traders. Tyre, the port city from where they sailed was the largest in Phoenicia (modern […]
The Mercenaries of Alexander
Socketed Cast Bronze Arrowheads Greece/Persia 600~300 B.C. Crete is the largest of the Greek Isles. In ancient times, men on this island were expertly trained in the bow and arrow. […]
Pirates and the Treasure Ship
1679C Cob 8 reales clump Potosi mint, Bolivia 43.44 gms. Beginning in the mid-1500s, Spain arranged up to 50-ship convoys to sail between Panama and Spain. The convoys carried gold, […]
Once the Rarest of Them All
Glory of the Seas Seashell Conus gloriamaris Chemnitz, J.H., 1777. When we talk about seashells, we’re discussing beautifully-packaged marine snails. These creatures inhabit all the oceans of the world, and […]