Why arent Nero coins more valuable?>

The Roman people turned on Nero. The Senate declared him an Enemy of the State.
He killed himself and they destroyed a lot of things with his name on them( including some currency) Doesn't that mean his coins should be worth more since they were destroyed after his death? Shouldn't they be more rare?

Why aren't they?

 

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I am not knowledgeable on all areas of Nero's coinage, but I may have a little to offer as far as the denarii are concerned.You have to separate his coinage into pre reform and post reform. Some post reform denarii for example are common but there are a number of rare issues. Remember though that Nero debased the coinage in 2 ways. He decreased the amount of silver in the denarii and reduced the weight. This made the later coins less desirable. The pre reform denarii on the other hand are both better quality and much much harder to find. My guess is that people hoarded the earlier more valuable denarii. It is also possible that many of these were melted down and re- tariffed as post reform denarii.

Have you shopped for pre reform denarii lately? They are not only hard to find but are highly sought after among collectors. This tends to drive the prices very high indeed. I have 2 in my collection but I am always on the lookout for more. The are not only sought after and rare, but they are also far more interesting in terms of reverses than the ore common type of post reform denarii.

 

I always thought his coins were expensive...

 

They're pretty affordable, I have owned 3 in my collecting time but parted with them since I have several Tetradrachms of him.

But I admit I have never owned a pre-reform denarius.

 

I suspect the answer is much simpler: Nero's coins are abundant. There are enough to meet the demands of collectors and ancient coin "tourists". I wouldn't call them inexpensive though... at least not for the desirable types, well struck and in high states of preservation. The more mundane designs and coins in lesser states of preservation are among the better bargains when it comes to owning an interesting piece of history, at least in my opinion.

Look at ACsearch using the general search term of "Nero". Of course this is going to include coins which have sold more than once, some coins of Poppaea and others related to Nero, and instances in which Nero is mentioned in the accompanying attribution or writeup but it's a good way to get a rough overview of market volume over the last couple of decades. You can do such a search for each emperor. Here's a sampling:

Tiberius: 21,264
Caligula: 7,679
Claudius: 20,066
Nero: 21,936
Galba: 5,531
Otho: 3,171
Vitellius: 4,235
Vespasian: 19,781
Titus: 12,270
Domitian: 15,946 (Gosh, I would have guessed higher! We see a disproportionate number here on CoinTalk--- looking at you, @David Atherton )
Nerva: 10,735
Trajan: 38,229
Hadrian: 32,371
Antoninus Pius: 23,445
...etc.

These numbers reflect coins which have come to auction via a particular sampling of auction houses. It does not reflect coins sold privately, through online stores, brick and mortar shops, at coin shows, etc.

Here's a coin because this thread needs some pictures


Nero
struck in Rome, CE 63
Orichalcum sestertius, 34 mm, 26.7 gm
Obv: NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM P M TR P IMP PP; laureate head right, wearing aegis
Rev: ANNONA AVGVSTI CERES; Ceres, veiled and draped, seated left, holding corn ears and torch, her feet on stool, facing Annona standing right, holding cornucopia; between them, modius on garlanded altar; in background, stern of ship
Ref: RIC 98. Cohen 24

 

how do you tell the difference between the pre and post reform nero coins

 

Wasn't this one yours? I need to update my database if so.

 

It was mine.



https://www.cointalk.com/threads/an...eddy-brown-got-any.240968/page-2#post-1844831

 

Sweet! Thanks for clarifying @ValiantKnight

 

The Alexandria tets of Nero are pretty inexpensive. Zurqieh always seems to have lots of them with a variety of interesting reverse types.

 

I might use the phrase "readily available" rather than abundant, but I think it's accurate to observe that Nero denarii in better condition are not inexpensive, and even those in less-than-better condition can be somewhat pricey. Consider the following two IUPPITER CUSTOS types:





The top coin is currently available on VCOINS for $229; while it's a decent coin in many respects (centering, recognizable portrait, partly readable legends) many collectors on this site would not regard it as inexpensive for its condition. If you want this coin in somewhat better condition, the bottom one sold at auction in 2011 for $55,000 NOT including buyer's premium of perhaps $10,000.

I was fortunate to find my coin in 2008 at Goldberg's Millennia auction:



I would not want to be bidding on it today!

 

Gorgeous coin, @IdesOfMarch01.

Nero issued a large variety of coins and had, I think, some of the most artistic coins compared to the entire Roman Empire output. There are many coins of Nero I'd love to have but they are mostly out of my desired price range unless I severely limit acquisition of other emperors and coins.

 

I think @TIF and @IdesOfMarch01 are winning this thread...I love your coins you two!

 

Here is my pre-reform Nero


NERO CAESAR AVG IMP
Bare head of Nero right

TR P III P P PONTIF MAX EX SC
Legend around oak-wreath enclosing "EX. S C.

Lugdunum, 60-61 AD

3.71g

Sear 1936, RIC 22, BMCRE 24, RSC 216

Rare!

Ex-Alberta Coins

 

Nero - Salvs

 

Since I brought it up, here's my tet of Alexandria:

 

If you can date the coin to after 64 CE it is post-reform. That is not the easiest way to tell however. I simply look for younger portraits of Nero. The younger portraits tend to be pre-reform or issues as Caesar under Claudius.

Here are examples:

Nero as a young man and the presumptive heir. A denarius of Claudius.



Nero as a young augustus





Nero as "Fat tyrant" (post-reform)

 

Nice one. I've got a Nero tet reserved from the same seller.

 

A very nice summary @TIF

I suspect the numbers for Nero would look quite a bit different if you only included pre-reform issues.

 

Perhaps so. I never considered that when browsing his coins. I guess my sestertius is pre-reform, or does that have nothing to do with bronzes coins?

Have you found his pre-reform denarii to be in better states of preservation than the post-reform coins? My understanding is that when debasement occurs, the bad coins drive out the good. In other words, the finer silver coins are hoarded and the less valuable coins are spent, so his post-reform denarii would in general have more wear than the pre-reform denarii. Or have I misunderstood the whole thing?