Tab 04
From ancient forgery to today's treasure hunter, from the language of science to whose eyes history is written through: in Tahberer's work ethics is not a separate chapter but a question running through every chapter.
The line that begins with “The Practice of Forgery in Ancient Times” (1999) runs through the Turkish presentation “Forgery in Ancient Coins and the Development of Coinage” (2021) to the paper “Silver Plating of Coins in Antiquity: New Evidence” (2026). Tahberer reads the abundance of plated staters struck at Tarsos under the Persian satrap Datames as a deliberate satrapal policy for paying mercenaries from western Anatolia — and yet adds that, although once used to deceive, they are exceptionally beautiful examples of miniature art. Two bronze coins of Tarsos prepared for silver plating and never plated are the newest evidence in that debate.
The presentation “Treasure Hunting in Türkiye” (2022) and the story “Defineci” (Treasure Hunter, 2014) enter the same question through two doors, one documentary and one fictional. Every coin torn from its archaeological context is a line erased from a city's history. In the introduction to the Herman Collection catalogue (2020), Tahberer describes the collector as “only a custodian” and praises the donation of the collection to a museum — a summary of his ethics of collecting.
“Linguistic Imperialism and Turkish” and “The Importance of Language for Social Development” (Bilim ve Ütopya, 2007) argue that science should be done in one's own language rather than in borrowed terms. The argument takes concrete form in the 2021 Sikkeloji series and the 2026 Nisibis study: the proposal to say “geçer” instead of “sikke” for coin, and a new approach using Turkish alternatives against what he calls the one-sided, Western-centred interpretation of ancient history.
“A Critical Perspective on the General Notion of Ancient Greek Civilization” (Bilim ve Ütopya, 2006) proposes rebalancing the dominant narrative that treats ancient Greece as the sole source, by weighing the contributions of Anatolia and the Near East. His talks “Rethinking the Historical Divide: Relations of Turks and Greeks” at Western Washington University (2006) and the Turkish-Canadian Society (2008), and his notes on the history of translation, continue the same question: can history be an instrument of mutual understanding?
Even though they were once used to deceive people, they are exceptionally beautiful examples of miniature art.— on “The Practice of Forgery in Ancient Times” (1999), from the sandanart.com archive
Like many collectors, Mr. Herman knew he was only a custodian to the collection.— from the introduction to the Herman Collection catalogue (2020)
This is a presentation without the speaker's narrative. Coin photographs are courtesy of www.coinarchives.com, www.cngcoins.com, www.acsearch.info and http://wildwinds.com/coins https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gRXxWAcAjI&t=8s Please feel free to contact me if you would like the original PowerPoint presentation. Last update: April 2026
The subject of this study is two bronze Tarsos coins—one measuring 1/10 of a standard stater and the other a full stater—which have recently emerged online and, to date, have been cited by all sources only as silver examples. These bronze coins were likely prepared for silver plating. Whilst countless examples of counterfeiting using the plating method can be found from early periods onwards, bronze coins prepared for plating that have survived to the present day without being gilded are extremely rare.
Treasure Hunting and Metal Detecting in Turkey
Tarih boyunca kalpazanlar değerli metalden yapılmış dolaşım araçlarını piyasaya sürenleri hep bir adım geriden takip etmiş ve her önlem karşısında yeni çözümler üreterek sahteciliğe devam etmiştir. Bu çalışma sahteciliğin geçer tasarımı ve darp yöntemlerine etkilerini tartışmayı amaçlamaktadır. Sunumun kaydına aşağıdaki bağlantıdan ulaşabilirsiniz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSdbg1mmdsk&t=1285s&ab_channel=SikkelojiSikkeloji
UBC Museum of Anthropology collection catalogue, 2020
The David and Rachel Herman Byzantine Coins Collection that comprises over 1800 coins, took approximately half a century to form. There are coins representing more than 17 mints, struck within an enormous time span of almost one thousand years, from the end of AD 5th Century to the 14th Century. Mr. Herman’s fascination with ancient history and the Late Roman Coinage began during the early 1970s when his career took him to work and live in different countries, including Germany, Greece and Turkey. Recognizing the importance of research in forming a collection, he acquired reference books and catalogues, which were very limited during those years. He started to collect late Roman coins when…
Türkiye'de define avcılığının öyküleştirilmiş anlatımıdır aslında bu çalışma. Her ne kadar isimler değiştirilmiş olsa da romanda anlatılanların çoğu gerçek olaylardan esinlenilmiştir.
Interpretation and translation must have become popular professions as soon as cultures with different languages came in contact with one another. Although it is hard to determine when people began to interpret, it would be safe to assume that translation started right after the invention of writing.
Bilim ve Ütopya, January 2006
