Guys i had received some coins and need help with evaluation. I do not shop auctions or coin shops. So getting a rough ballpark price can be kind of hard especially looking at one dealer to the next who's prices vary significantly. I will post 12 coins. Any information given would help alot and be greatly appreciated. #1 constantine I bronze - guy is asking $15 #2 valentinian bronze $12
Very common coins. You can find plenty of Valentinians in much better condition for less at auction or even on fleebay. And the Constantius is kinda fun. Again, you'd get it for less and better condition at auction.
Ryro thanks for the reply. I suppose you are correct. I may look around for others in better shape and better price. I may post a few more here shortly
The question is not what we think but what you consider important. I have very few coins that have the mintmarks all or partly off the flan or with rough surfaces that make reading the legends difficult. This is worse, IMO, if the other details on the coin, style for example, are not sufficient to ID the coin completely. The ones I do, tend to have some extenuating circumstance like rarity or provenance (who owned the coin before I did). A new collector may not care or even know that there are mintmarks on the coin or that there are coins that are clear in the details. Ryro pointed out that there are better available for less. Unfortunately, it is equally true that there are worse being sold for higher prices both online and in stores to people who do not know or do not care. I have coins no better in my collection. One is below. It is not an exact match. I bought it in 2000 from Victor Failmezger who wrote a book on late Roman coins. He bought it from an auction that was selling a collection that was assembled by a German soldier (probably disabled) from WWI in Bavaria. Each coin was contained in a paper envelope he had handmade from envelope scraps with labels made from parts of business cards. I would not have bought the coin alone just for the Rome mintmark (RS) or the palm between the Victories but I considered the combination worth having and keeping all these years while I have sold off most of the coins I had in lower grades. Coins can be interesting for several reasons. I thought mine was worth having and still do. Victor had so many of them that he was selling off the less interesting, common or low grade coins for $5. Today that number would be a bit higher but still the provenance, the envelope and the coin together share what the coin is 'worth'. I wish I had bought more but many of the coins were really ugly. Do you see anything especially interesting about the coins you are considering that makes them worth the price? If not, I agree with Ryro that you can do better. I don't have a picture of this coin's envelope but this is another one selected to illustrate my web page on the collection because it had part of a postage stamp on the envelope. A few did and that made them more interesting to me. https://www.forumancientcoins.com/dougsmith/feac16.html
Dougsmit, thank you for your insight. I consider condition very important, but also other factors come into play for me as well like the overall look of the coin and appeal. Even some ugly very well worn coins still look good to me
Jaw dropping penmanship And what a fantastic back story Great point about, it's what's important to you, when looking at a coin. If a coin sings to me then sometimes I certainly go harder when it comes to bidding. Or times where a tiny monogram turns something into a rarity. The only thing cooler than getting an old provenance is getting one from a friend
Hello @Rockymountaincoin If you look at www.vcoins.com, then you can compare prices, for the various types of coins. And, you can see, what's out there. You can look at ancient Greek coins, ancient Roman coins, Byzantine coins, ancient coins from the Middle East, ancient coins from Asia, Medieval coins, modern coins, US coins, etc. At Vcoins, you may find coins, that you like better, than the coins in your original post. For new collectors of ancient coins, it seems like Vcoins is better than Ebay, because Ebay has a lot of fakes, especially for certain types of coins. I always prefer, to shop around, before I make a purchase. I rarely buy, the first coin, that I see.
There is nothing wrong with the prices being asked - you're not being ripped off. You can probably find them for $5-$10 cheaper on eBay but have to pay shipping, etc. If you really like the coins buy them... learn from them and enjoy them. If you want to browse VCoins and see one really nice example for maybe $35 - then save up for that - which is probably the best advice (not that I followed it when I started). But if you're here just here to see how much you can flip them for.. well good luck, I guess.
I would stay away from the Valentinian bronze. The patina is broken and may still be crumbling away further. It is a common coin in highly unattractive (uncollectible) condition. If you took it to a coin shop (let alone an auction house), they would probably refuse to buy (auction) it.
I wouldn't be interested in re selling coins of such a low grade as there's nothing to be made. An older collector sent me these with not much knowledge of value etc. He sent me twelve different pieces that all have been there and are well worn. I appreciate the history and time behind them more than anything. I suppose i will pick out the ones i like best that do appeal to me and make him an offer. Some are in absolutely terrible condition hardly being recognizable. I will have to take my pick. I love to learn about the history more than anything. Maybe grab a few , learn and upgrade when i can to better examples. I do appreciate the replies and opinions and advice given very much.
Realistically, what's the most money you could save if you looked around for a better price? How much is your time worth, and do you enjoy looking for bargains? If you enjoy the hunt, like I do, then hold out and you'll probably be able to find examples of both coins for a few dollars cheaper. If you just want a couple of really cool ancient coins, is it really worth 2 hours of your time to save $5?
I really disagree with this post. The question is not so much whether you want to save $5 finding a cheaper coin like this or whether you want this coin at any price when you could find one that is not so much of a wreck with a little shopping. That is especially the case with this Valentinian despite it having no wear. Terrible surfaces don't heal. Buying such a coin at such a price encourages the seller to sell worse coins for more. Another story: At a show a dealer had many boxes of coins all clearly marked with prices. He was not a negotiator but offered decent coins for decent prices. One coin was marked "25 cents to you if you take it." I was buying several coins from him and added it to my stack and took his quarter. I now regret not adding that coin to my collection and photographing it so I could show it here. Honestly, I don't know what ever happened to that coin but I suspect it was given to a kid who would be forty-something by now.
