Centuries Old UFO Coin Remains Mystery

An unidentified flying object on a 17th century French coin continues to mystify rare coin experts.

Colorado Springs, CO (PRWEB) January 28, 2005 -- After decades of seeking possible answers about a mysterious UFO-like design on a 17th century French copper coin, a prominent numismatic expert says it remains just that: an unidentified flying object. After a half-century of research, the design has defied positive identification by the numismatic community.

"It was made in the 1680s in France and the design on one side certainly looks like it could be a flying saucer in the clouds over the countryside," said Kenneth E. Bressett of Colorado Springs, Colorado, a former President of the 32,000-member American Numismatic Association and owner of the curious coin.

"Is it supposed to be a UFO of some sort, or a symbolic representation of the Biblical Ezekiel's wheel? After 50 years of searching, I've heard of only one other example of it, and nothing to explain the unusual design."

Bressett said the mysterious piece is not really a coin, but a "jeton," a coin-like educational tool that was commonly used to help people count money, or sometimes used as a money substitute for playing games. It is about the size of a U.S. quarter-dollar and similar to thousands of other jetons with different religious and educational designs that were produced and used in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries.

"The design on this particular piece could be interpreted as showing either a UFO or Ezekiel's wheel, but little else. Some people think the Old Testament reference to Ezekiel's wheel may actually be a description of a long-ago UFO," he explained.

"The legend written in Latin around the rim is also mystifying. 'OPPORTUNUS ADEST' translates as 'It is here at an opportune time.' Is the object in the sky symbolic of needed rainfall, or a Biblical reference or visitors from beyond? We probably will never know for certain," said Bressett.

"It is part of the lure of numismatics that makes coin collecting so intriguing."

I am an avid coin collector with literally tens of thousands of coins.

I bought some of the leading books on how to grade them and research them.

The books alone that i own are worth over $4,000.

One of the English speaking leading publications on coins is from Krausie (spelling?) (sorry, my books are in storage, I'm shipping off to Iraq in 10 days), and they state per the French government (documentated) that this does indeed commemorate a sighting of a UFO that was seen by tens of thousands of witnesses over a relatively long measure of time.

I want to say that it was seen hovering in the same place for at least a day, if not longer, but i can't recall.

Anyways, go to any major coin dealer in any Metropolis and you most certainly will see that they depend on Krausie (Spelling?) publications/books over all other coin books.

Great post by the way. I assumed there would have been another thread on this, but never used the search engine to find it.

Hope this thread stays open. Fresh and new perspecitve untainted by previous post can sometime reveal fresh and new ideas.

heres a better pic...



and link

ufocasebook.com...

busted....

www.forteantimes.com...

I did some research on this coin, which I posted elsewhere on the web. It included looking up the words in the latin inscription on the obverse side:

Recto: Opportunus Ad Est (It is here at an opportune time)
Verso: Haec per te aucta colam

The other side, with flowers being watered by a cloud, says something like "Thus, by you, the Dove, all things (are made to grow, to increase)".

If you look at enough medieval and other religious artworks, you will find plenty of "UFOs" which are generally connected to the Annunciation to the Virgin.

The flowers which are growing under the rain on the obverse are probably white lilies, symbol of the Virgin and of France and the French Crown--three toads (crapauds) were replaced by three white lilies (lis blancs) on the arms of the French kings in the early modern period.

Consequently I conclude that this coin, or more properly "jeton", or token, was probably used to buy Holy Water or for some other religious purpose, the way that subway tokens were used at a later date.

It is only a mystery to coin collectors--it wouldn't mystify an art historian or theologian. Nice work, though.

I love a good mystery--it doesn't matter much whether it is to solve it or to treasure it unsolved. Like money, having and spending is equally good in their own way.

Good find, Netty, cause I was about to post the same mention:

Bressett said the mysterious piece is not really a coin, but a "jeton," a coin-like educational tool that was commonly used to help people count money, or sometimes used as a money substitute for playing games. It is about the size of a U.S. quarter-dollar and similar to thousands of other jetons with different religious and educational designs that were produced and used in Europe during the 16th and 17th centuries.

Odd coin baffles experts

Apparently,what is baffling experts is the saucer design, being there is only one other similar, whereas, this explanation is given:

The legend written in Latin around the rim is also mystifying. 'OPPORTUNUS ADEST' translates as 'It is here at an opportune time.' Is the object in the sky symbolic of needed rainfall, or a Biblical reference or visitors from beyond? We probably will never know for certain, said Bressett.

From the same source linked above.

Interestingly, a comment is made within the same source by another individual mentioning:

I think that the scene comes fron the roman mithology, the object represents the Jupiter's shield (Ancile) that protects the country from the storms.

The sentence "OPPORTUNUS ADEST" means something like "It is present by the way" ("Il est présent à propos" in french).

I found another Jeton with the same shield, held by an arm. In this one we can clearly see that the shield protects from the lightnings coming out from the clouds: www.sprezzatura.it...

seekerof

[edit on 3-1-2006 by Seekerof]

More discussion on the shield aspect of the coin can be found and posted most excellently by member Cicada, here:
UFOs in Works of Art





seekerof