My two teenage sons found my coins cool when I first started collecting, but have since lost interest. My wife does enjoy the stories behind many of the coins. Her favorite is Julia Maesa, since the two are kind of alike. When I take my coins out to show guests, she always asks me to show that one. Another coin that she labeled "stupid" is a stater I have from Thebes. I haven't photographed it yet, but I'm sure most here know the type. I find it fascinating since it was minted between Thebes' victory over Sparta and their annihilation by Philip II - a period that was pretty much their peak. However, she just sees a vase and says "WTF." Her favorites in terms of beauty are my owl and my Ptolemy I tet (already posted several times on this forum). Her opinion of the Ptolemy I coin soured when she realized how much I paid for it, then changed when one went for 3x what I paid at auction.
My wife doesn't collect coins but she is thankfully enthusiastic about them (a history lover) and we regularly go through auction catalogs together. I consider myself very lucky!
LOL, better yet: Just CALL her “Stupid” Please do that, but invite me to your house so that I can watch the show with a tub of popcorn.
It's a video game token from an arcade chain known as Aladdin's Castle. I once held the high score on Donkey Kong there. Must have been about 1983.
That is probably the most specific and improbably identification I've ever seen. Congrats on the high score RC!!
Yes! Had it not been for all that hanging out at the mall in the 70s and 80s, I would have never become the flâneur I am today.
Well, she does not call them stupid, but she sighs every time the mailman bring another package She tolerates it though and enjoys seeing me enjoying this hobby. Shes the best i could wish for. Yup, disinterest works many ways. I wonder if coins will ever interest my kids. I wont push it, its up to them to explore what they like in the end. But I do hope so of course.
In my time in the hobby, I have met two couples who both collected ancient coins and only one of them was what I would call equals. She collected Greek; he Roman. Both had really wonderful coins but my favorite was her rather worn Athenian dekadrachm. Show me yours in any grade. His were more ordinary things like high grade sestertii. Before video games, we had our fantasy heroes from the Arthurian legends. We knew they were not 'history' but they were literary figures our parents were happy we appreciated in addition to knowing about baseball giants. My generation has trouble accepting video games as the equal. My grandson is in college studying computer programming concentrating in game design. The guy that wrote Minecraft sold it for $2 billion. I am afraid to show any disrespect for my grandson's chosen field just in case he sells his game for more. I know I am a dinosaur who collects coins but there are characteristics of dinosaurs I would rather be known for other that brain size. I do wonder what will happen to all these coins when the last collector checks out of this life. While sorting through my attic looking for books to recycle I came across a binder of color slides showing my collection as of the late 1980's. The 2x2 pages they were in would have a current value certainly exceeding the slides. I also found my old Leitz slide projector. It works. Who still watches 35mm slide shows? I also found my glass lantern slide projector that was antique when I got it. I really am a dinosaur. My grandson has a scholarship from his school funded by Tencent. We enjoy telling people he got a ten cent scholarship. This is a dinosaur detection statement. If you think Tencent is a small coin, you are a dinosaur. Some of these things are easier to read than others. What do you see here?
I'm quite happy my wife has no interest in my collecting. I enjoy just sitting quietly looking at my coins, thinking to myself about their history and reading about ancient coins. It's like an escape from the real world when I'm with my coins. I have two young daughters. At the moment they are more interested in dancing and dolls, but I've let them handle some of my cheaper coins, and they know daddy loves ancient Greek coins. We'll see what happens as they grow up. Interesting coins in this thread too. Love seeing unusual and new things.
Years ago my wife would go with me to coin shows. She went either because she loves me or because she can slip out to do shopping for expensive clothes in a metropolitan locale without any argument on what she spent. Maybe some of both. She doesn't remember the coins but she remembers the names of dealers we sat down with all those years ago, when I have forgotten many. I made a deal with her about 50 years ago that I would stop smoking if I could spend my cigarette money on coins. She agreed as long as we could sell the coins in 20 years and use the proceeds to travel around the world. I've only followed through half-way on that agreement, so I still have my collection. Besides what would we do on vacation if we didn't search out the local coin shops? I know she doesn't really have genuine interest in coins, but she still eagerly asks to see the new arrivals when the postman brings them, so I think it's because she loves me.
No pics, but I own a five figure coin that I bought at auction whilst I was overseas in E. Europe - I got a call at 3am with my lovely wife in the USA who saw the bank statement with the electronic transfer to pay for it and wondered what the H E double hockey sticks could be worth so much that I would pay that much for a dumb coin. I still own the coin, but my wife still owns me.
These perhaps relevant to the post: "are those ancient?", "why do you have these?" or perhaps "why should money be only round and flat with pictures of rulers and gods".
Aladdin is from North Africa. I saw the Robin Williams colorized Documentary so I know stuff. Arcade comes from an Ancient Greek word I googled it so I know stuff. Your name is Roman Collector and Rome conquered both North Africa and Greece so it all makes sense. Based upon my undeductive logic I now have to ship my “ancient coin” (1983 BCE or the other thing) to get it graded. Thank you Donkey Kong Master.