In my right hand I held a pair of dimes. Small change. Hard to think what they’d buy today.

In my left a small silver coin stamped “twenty cents”. As legal tender it’s the equivalent of the dimes. When it was minted it was worth slightly less than $4 dollars in today’s money and might have bought a modest meal. Today it’s worth a half million dollars, perhaps more.

A half million is what Reno coin collector and dealer Rusty Goe paid for the coin at auction recently, his second try at an elusive and expensive prize.

“I told my wife even if we have to hock the house we’re going to get that coin,” says Goe. He says he was prepared to go much higher to $750,000 and says some experts think it may be undervalued at that amount. He says one puts it at a cool million.

What makes this small silver coin worth that amount? Two words: rarity and competition.

Ten thousand of these coins were struck at the Carson City mint in 1876. Unpopular with American consumers the denomination was discontined and most were melted down. Goe figures there are maybe 18 out there. Their rarity the obvious reason for the value and in the world of coin collecting scoring coins like this are like finding the Holy Grail. But Goe says it’s much more than that.

“Once you learn the history of how they were introduced into our monetary system. And then you hear the back story of how the coins came down to us over the last 133 year, you begin to see how important they are. These are relics from the past. These are like small, little antiques.”

Goe admits to a special attraction for coins produced in the Carson City mint which operated between 1870 and 1893. “Ask any collector if they have a Carson City coin. If they don’t they’ll say, no but I’d like to.”

Goe owns Southgate Coins in Reno and as a dealer will probably eventually sell it. He’ll make a profit. Five years ago he sold a one of a kind Carson City dime for a million. Today it’s worth three and a half times that.

Business decisions like that can wait. For now Goe says, he’s just enjoying the experience.
“
Just to be able to take possession of it was just such and exciting event, You know it goes way beyond the monetary value of it. It’s such a special privilege.”

Sadly, few ever get to see coins like this. Goe’s 20-cent coin is not on public display. We were treated to a special viewing. It is safely locked away in a secure, undisclosed location.

We felt privileged just to see and hold it.

The first Olympic Games took place in 776 B.C. They were organized every four years commencing on the first full moon after the summer solstice - that is in July or August. The four-year interval between two consecutive Olympic Games was referred to as an Olympiad and was used as a means of date determination and reference throughout Greece. It is more than noteworthy that all war activities ceased during the Games under the imposed “sacred truce”. Towards this end, the area of Elis was declared sacrosanct. Thus, the athletes, their relations and in general anyone whose desire was to enjoy the spectacle the Games offered, could travel to Olympia in safety. The sacred truce was to be strictly kept by all cities and its violation meant disqualification from the Games. The athletes and spectators arrived from every corner of the ancient Greek world including the most distant and remote colonies.

Athletic Events and Coins

The very first Olympic Games of 776 B.C. featured one sole event, that of the one stadium race (a stadium equals to 192,28 m.) but later more events were introduced. Such was the importance of the Games that the ancient Greeks depicted certain events on their coins.

Hoplitodromos

The earliest of events was the stadium race but gradually more races were introduced such as the hoplite race (hoplitodromos), which was a 2-4 stadium race and the athlete competed in full copper armour - helmet, shin protection and shield. 25 such shields of the same weight were kept in the temple of Zeus in Olympia and were given to athletes to ensure competition on equal terms.

Wrestling

Wrestling is one of the most ancient events, also mentioned in Homer, in the “Funeral Games for Patroclos” (Athla epi Patroklo). As an individual event and part of the Pentathlon it made its first appearance in the Olympic Games of 708 B.C. The event took place in the stadium, inside a specially coated square sandpit. There were two distinct versions of the event: the Upright Wrestling (Orthia Pale) which required that the athletes stand up and the winner would be the one who managed to bring his opponent to the ground three times. There was also Ground Wrestling (Kato Pale), which went on until one of the two wrestlers admitted defeat.

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