The second public display of a portion of the extensive numismatic treasures in the recently revealed Tyrant Collection will include examples from the origins of coinage, including a rare example of the world’s first gold coin. 

“The Tyrants of the Tigris & Euphrates” exhibit will be displayed at the June 14 to 16 Long Beach Coin, Currency, Stamp & Sports Collectible Expo.

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The exhibition will showcase more than 350 important ancient to modern coins of the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, including rulers of the Mesopotamia region from Cyrus the Great in 546 B.C. through Saddam Hussein in 2003. Many of the coins in the display are the finest known of their kind, according to the auction house organizing future sales of the collection, Ira & Larry Goldberg Coins & Collectibles.

The owner of The Tyrant Collection wants to remain anonymous while he shares the collection’s coins with the public for their educational value through a multi-year series of displays at the Long Beach Expo, according to the promoters. 

“The owner has assembled an unprecedented private collection of coins of tyrants of every age and every major civilization,” the firm said. “Each section of the far-reaching collection is named after the principal water source of the civilization.”

The second exhibition in the series will focus on coins from well-known early civilizations, such as the Lydians, Ionians, Parthians and Ottomans, as well as lesser known coin-issuing empires and tribes, such as the Abbasids and Ilkhans.

“The inaugural Tyrant Collection exhibition of English coins, ‘Tyrants of the Thames,’ this past February was a tremendous success and we heard many compliments from collectors, dealers and the general public,” said Ira Goldberg, president of the firm, in a press release. 

“This next display will feature nearly 2,600 years of superb condition coins from Ionia, Persia, Turkey and Western Asia. In Greek, Mesopotamia means ‘(land) between the rivers.’ Mesopotamia is the land between the two great rivers, the Tigris and the Euphrates. Mesopotamia spawned the earliest civilization, which included writing, mathematics, metal working, the wheel, and spectacular wealth,” explained Goldberg who provided guidance in assembling The Tyrant Collection.

“The Tyrants of Mesopotamia is the longest collectible series of coins. Quite a challenge!,” he added.

Goldberg said, “These exhibits with different coins displayed at upcoming Long Beach Expos will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many collectors, dealers and the public to see in person some of the world’s most significant rare coins. Visitors to the June Long Beach Expo can receive a free, illustrated booklet about this latest, amazing exhibit.” 

The June 2018 Long Beach Expo will be held in the Long Beach Convention Center in California. Additional information is available online. 

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For more information about the Tyrant Collection, visit its website.