Silver stackers who also collect ancients.

Well, now that it is 1939 all over again, might as well stack some silver...

I cannot resist a lovely crown from way back when - Portugal:




And to keep it ancient - I am so thrilled with this one - my first Aelius silver:


Aelius (Caesar) Denarius
(137 A.D.) Rome Mint
[L A]ELIVS CAESAR, bare head right / TR P[OT C]OS II, [C]ONCORD in exergue,
Concordia seated left holding patera, resting arm on cornucopiae.
RIC II, 3 Hadrian 2625;
(old RIC II, Hadrian 436a).
(2.73 grams / 17 x 15 mm)
eBay Feb. 2022

 

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I used to stack silver on the side, with my main focus being Numismatics. Every now and then, I’ll stop by the LCS and purchase some generic 1 oz silver bars that I have no emotional attachment for. This was during the dip before spot prices shot up in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

I used to be quite active on the “silver stacking communities” on YouTube, Instagram, and Reddit. However, I’m a numismatist at heart. I’m more interested in talking about the history of coins than speculating when spot price will “shoot to the moon.”

When silver stackers talk about “numismatics”, it’s mostly about flipping the latest Perth Mint coin for a profit. An example is this Zeus coin:



Seriously, these Perth mint coins that the YouTube silver stackers fanboy over look like cheap toys with clip art designs. I prefer owning an actual Ancient Greek coin depicting Zeus over this overpriced Perth Mint coin. Of course, I’m guilty of collecting these Perth Mint coins in the past.....

 

Wow, that's an awfully dramatic portrayal of Zeus! I agree, a bit trashy, "cheap toy" looking.

Workout routines among the ancients didn't really produce such veiny, high-definition muscles like you get nowadays. A denarius of Commodus with Jupiter, fit, but not ripped:


Commodus Denarius
(185 A.D.)
Rome Mint
M COMM ANT P FEL AVG BRIT, laureate head right / PM TRP XI IMP VII COS V PP, Jupiter seated left, holding thunderbolt and sceptre.
RIC 117; RSC 486.
(2.53 grams / 17 mm)
eBay July 2019

Although the Romans tended to be less shy about full frontal nudity; Roman lightning bolts are more stylized too (actually, I like the Perth mints lightning bolt):


Gordian III Antoninianus
(238-239 A.D.)
Rome Mint
(1st issue, 2nd Officina)
IMP CAES M ANT GORDIANVS AVG, radiate bust right / IOVI CONSERVATORI Jupiter stdg. with scepter & thunderbolt, Gordian left w. attributes of Spes.
RIC 2; Cohen 105
(3.83 grams / 20 mm)
eBay Mar. 2018

Both of these are pretty low grade silver, so I am not sure they'd qualify for "silver stacking." But I still prefer 'em.

 

When I was a kid in the mid-80's I stashed a bit of silver. Sold it in the mid-90's for a mild loss. In my mind I'm still stuck in that 20 year period from 1983 to 2004 silver and gold did nothing but go down and sideways. I can't bring myself to use it as an investment.

 

Ripped? That Perth Mint Zeus looks like he's been skinned!