Anyone collect the Roman gold Aureus?

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by Gam3rBlake, Mar 29, 2021.

  1. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    I guess one way to do it is to only buy coins you REALLY want. I’ve bought so many coins on impulse that I toss in a binder and promptly forget about.

    these days I will tend to only buy coins I would keep for at least a year. I will also buy coins that are underpriced and sell for a profit, in order to fund the rest of the collection.

    for example, my ENTIRE collection is currently about $1,000 in actual cost. Without part time dealing/selling it would be much closer to $3,000 or more.
     
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  3. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Yes, I could have returned it.
     
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  4. medoraman

    medoraman Supporter! Supporter

    Everyone can and should emulate this. There are TONS of areas where a budget collector can use superior knowledge to build a world class collection reasonably. I just saw a post on variations of A3 or Class B Byzantine coins. Brilliant. I know the Class I also is infamous for a multitude of reverse varieties most people ignore.
     
    Last edited: Mar 29, 2021
  5. Terence Cheesman

    Terence Cheesman Well-Known Member

    In 1991 I bought my first Aureus one of Antoninus Pius. That coin remained my one and only aureus until 2017 when using money that I had acquired by selling off a number of my coins I started to buy some Aureii. Even so I decided to limit myself to only a few of these coins as they are expensive compared to other coins of the same series. I also limited myself to purchasing aureii of emperors that were rather easy to acquire. However even aureii of emperors like Tiberius, Nero and Trajan can become pricy. The least expensive aureus that I had purchased in the last five years was this one. According to CNG I paid $3250 U.S. plus fees.
    Faustina Senior as Divus Av Aureus Rome 141-146 AD. Obv. Bust right draped wearing hair bound with pearls. Rv. Pietas standing left. RIC 394c(a) Beckmann daf7/PA 12 7.24 grms 19 mm Photo by W. Hansen faussnrau4.jpg Despite the plan to limit the number of these coins I had always assumed that I would try to purchase one aureus featuring the portrait of an empress and had concluded for a number of reasons that Faustina would be the one I would acquire. This came true in May of 2019 when this coin estimated at $5K was dying. It had one bid and so... I bid on it and won. I cannot say how many more of these coins I will try to acquire. At present I would like to get two more perhaps even three.
     
    Last edited: Mar 29, 2021
  6. Egry

    Egry Well-Known Member

    I am pointing my collection in the direction of Roman gold, however it will have a lot slower accumulation rate.

    I currently have only one aureus:

    unnamed.jpg

    Roman Coins from the Collection of the Late Keith Cullum (Part III)
    Roman Imperial Coinage, Tiberius, Aureus, Lugdunum, c. 14-37, laureate bust right, ti caesar divi avg f avgvstvs, rev. pontif maxim, Livia seated right, holding sceptre and branch, 7.61g (Calicó 305e; RIC 25). Some marks on edge, otherwise very fine
    Provenance: Spink Auction 132, 25 May 1999, lot 304; Dix Noonan Webb Auction 16 Lot 3084 October 2019.

    My collection currently contains five Roman Solidii and 4 Byzantine, with one histamenon (pictures to come in the near future).

    However, after seeing the prices realised at the latest auctions I think I will be taking a year off and let the prices cool a bit.
     
  7. Gam3rBlake

    Gam3rBlake Well-Known Member

    I was talking to a guy on here about a month ago and he had a Badge of Phanes AND a Gold Croessid. Those are each like $50,000+ coins.

    It’s so crazy to see people on this forum have coins like that which would be right at home in a museum.
     
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  8. Gam3rBlake

    Gam3rBlake Well-Known Member

    Well the thing is I’m actually going to university with my GI Bill from the military and I’m studying Classical History so I really want at least 1 Roman Aureus just because it would be part of my coin collection and my studies xD
     
  9. panzerman

    panzerman Well-Known Member

    Why? Collectors take way better care of their coins, then museum staff.
     
  10. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    Because I will never be able to reasonably afford aurei, I stick to the large, pretty provincial bronzes that cost a LOT LESS.

    My most expensive coin ever purchased cost $52, and is this gorgeous Diadumenian.
    Diadumenian 4 Assaria Moushmov 1367.JPG

    For the price of 1 aureus, I could get like 100 comparable provincials. I would prefer 100 provincials.
     
  11. Gam3rBlake

    Gam3rBlake Well-Known Member

    Just because when you realize they were among the first coins EVER minted.

    I just imagined that they would all be in museums or universities.

    I mean trust me when I say they aren’t exactly found every time a farmer in Europe digs a hole in the ground like the Roman stuff tends to be. They’re digging up Roman stuff all the time but it’s still expensive.
     
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  12. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    I feel like @galba68 has dug up a fair share of gold coins in his time
     
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  13. Gam3rBlake

    Gam3rBlake Well-Known Member

    I would do that also but I just don’t like the non-gold/silver stuff because it’s so much harder to see the design clearly.

    Gold doesn’t rust or tarnish or corrode so usually the designs still look almost exactly as they did when they were freshly minted.
     
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  14. Gam3rBlake

    Gam3rBlake Well-Known Member


    Hoards of Roman coins are always being found in Europe xD.

    For example:
    BDB4F710-D440-473D-AC29-63E36230C223.jpeg
     
  15. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    True, but its not like you can't find really high quality and detailed bronzes, even small ones.
    Julian II RIC Rome VIII 329 P (2020_11_18 03_38_31 UTC).JPG
     
  16. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    In fact, the smaller the bronze sometimes the better the detail and state of preservation, like this tiny 14mm Val 2
    Valentinian II AE4 RIC IX Siscia 39a.JPG
     
  17. Everett Guy

    Everett Guy Well-Known Member

  18. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    "super" is an understatement for these coins. Try "extremely" or "super duper wow that's expensive"
     
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  19. Gam3rBlake

    Gam3rBlake Well-Known Member

    Yeah you’re right but even the high quality ones are still more difficult to see.
     
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  20. hotwheelsearl

    hotwheelsearl Well-Known Member

    I don't want to be that guy who tells you how to collect, but that seems like a rather arbitrary dividing line that forces you into the most expensive coins possible.
     
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  21. Gam3rBlake

    Gam3rBlake Well-Known Member

    I understand where you're coming from but there are some relatively cheap silver coins too.

    APMEX sells random Denarii for like $100.
     
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