Sadigh Gallery

For some people, coin collecting may be a journey in their life that dates back to when they first found interest in loose change in their pockets. Others may have inherited a love for the hobby from their parents and grandparents. Image source: thesprucecrafts.com Regardless of how one developed their affinity for coin collecting, the hobby proves to be a long and lucrative expedition. For beginner coin collectors, starting small and simple is the best move to get going. Humble coin purchases and coin sets can teach beginner collectors how to correctly assemble a collection. Sadigh Gallery, a family-owned ancient art gallery, suggests that beginners develop patience in collecting coins, taking time to learn their history to grade and price them appropriately. The next best step to keep the collection growing is for a collector to build sets that interest them. When a person is interested in something, learning about it can be quick, fun, and thrilling. A keen unders...

Image source: livescience.com A lot of new and often-intriguing findings in archeology have occurred in recent years, some proving to be historically relevant and altering. Some of these are unearthed or recently discovered ancient artifacts and sites like a new cave for the Dead Sea Scrolls found in 2017, the purportedly fake James Ossuary, and a watercolor sketch of a ship flying a British flag, seen to mean that Australian pirates had been to Japan even at a time when the Asian country was living in isolation in the early 1800s. An ancient dinosaur fossil was made available for public viewing in late 2017, first displayed in the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Canada. It is now considered the best fossil discovery of all time, sculpture-like in detail and preservation. Scientists say that it’s that of a heavily armored and spiked ankylosaur known as the Borealopelta, a species that’s 110 million years old. It was excavated in a quarry in 2011 and took over five years to separ...

Image source: en.wikipedia.org Music is such a huge part of human history and world culture. Over the centuries, songs have been written that made people sing, dance, worship, and go about their daily lives with inspiration or sadness. On the note (pun intended), let’s take a quick look at the Song of Seikilos, the song which many historians consider the first recorded song in history. Although the exact date of the composition of the Song of Seikilos is the subject of much debate, historians and scholars agree that it was written around the first or second century A.D. The song, a love song, is the oldest surviving composition featuring both notes and words engraved on a marble stone, or tombstone to be exact—known as the Seikilos Epitaph. The Seikilos Epitaph, which is now housed and on display in the National Museum of Denmark was discovered in 1883 in Turkey. Translators believe that it was written by a man named Seikilos for his wife who had died. Her name was...

Image source: pbs.org NAGPRA stands for the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act. It is a federal law passed in 1990 that states a process for museums and federal agencies to return Native American artifacts to their original, lineal descendants or tribes. These could be human remains, sacred objects, funerary objects, or artifacts of cultural patrimony. While it all sounds black and white, museums and agencies are deeply challenged by this law, making it a controversial cultural debate over the years. Since NAGPRA’s legislation, it became a common belief that American Indians were happy about its passing. However, there were still some natives who felt that government was not doing enough to compensate for the damages that they have inflicted over the course of history. These include theft from the tribes and the damage that science has brought. Image source: theangryhistorian.blogspot.com At the same time, archaeologists and museum curators be...

When you’re paying a high price for a valuable piece of art, it’s important to know that what you’re buying is 100% authentic.   There are many ways to check if an artwork is authentic or not.   There’s the consistency of the age of the frame, the signature on the artwork, and of course, proper documentation.   When it comes to documentation, art aficionados and auctioneers make sure that customers receive provenance when buying authentic art.   But what is provenance and why is it so important? Provenance is a document that authenticates a piece of art.   It comes from the French word provenir meaning to come from. It shows the ownership history of the piece of art. Of course, like most documentation, provenance can be falsified.   This is why it’s important to know the forms in which provenance can take.   It can be a signed statement of authenticity from the artist or an expert affiliated with the artist, it can also be a sales receipt ...

Not a lot of people can manage the collection of rare coins. There are a number of considerations for the purchase and storage of these valuable items. Regardless, rare coins are a worthwhile investment and coin collecting is a fulfilling hobby. Image source: nationalcoins.ca In the pursuit of rare coin collection, their maintenance in mint condition is paramount to their market value. Here are some tips to care for your rare coins. Be careful when you hold them Even the smallest amount of oil the body produces can easily damage vintage coins. Avoid touching the faces of the coin. Instead, hold them by their edges. If you’re getting your hands on them, sanitize your hands first. Plastic gloves and other protective tools can also be used in handling these. Be careful when cleaning Ignorance of the proper ways of cleaning coins could damage them. New collectors commonly make the mistake of applying abrasives or acid to clean old coins. As much as possible, non-des...

Coin collecting can be a worthwhile hobby as it is an opportunity to learn history. But if you’ve been a collector of anything, you’d know that starting a collection is never an easy task. Image source: portcitycoinblog.com It becomes even harder if you want to collect antique coins. Disciplined maintenance has to be in place to maintain or drive up the value of the coins. Collectors have to know the ropes so they don’t get fooled into buying a coin for more than its worth. Here is a beginner’s guide on antique coin collecting: Handling antique coins is a precise process. People would think that because they’re made of metal, they would be tough or immune to damage. So putting them all in a box is a huge no-no. There are proper cases or storage options that you’ll need for these coins. Not only will these be ideal protections from damage, they will also be easier to label and more presentable. Handling techniques should also be learned to make sure coins are not damaged...