After finishing multiple US Sets and a few modern world sets, i came across an idea for my love of history and Numismatic obsessive compulsive disorder. Is is practical is the question. I have a few ancient coins from Roman Emperors and was seeking advise would it be plausible to assemble a set, or a coin from each different Emperor of Rome. Then place them in an air tite holder and make a nice Dansco album out of them.:smile Now i understand there was Western, Eastern, Byzantine, and other such problems to this collection. Now i just need the advice from more knowledgeable Ancient collector, weather each Emperor even had a coin? Because they got assasinate shortly after their acceptance speech:devil: Are they affordable? How many are there/much is this gonna cost me. Years of collecting US Currency and very little Ancient expertise.
The entire notion of who was "emperor" and who wasn't is subject to debate. There are lists, but the beauty of ancient collecting is you make your own idea of what you consider a collection. The twelve Caesars is a popular collection, with Julius being the most expensive. There are plenty of lists on the internet you can choose from. Heck, there is a poster for sale showing pictures of Roman Emperors on coins from www.dirtyoldcoins.com. Tell Rasiel I sent you. The basic point is many have done what you are proposing, and its a very popular way to collect ancient Romans. I would suggest a book such as Sears Roman Coins and their Values, 1988 edition. Its the last edition of a one volume book on Roman coins by him. Great resource. I also recommend Doug Smith's site on ancient coins as a start. Best of luck, and ask any questions you like here. We are glad to help a new ancient addict! Chris
I was starting to do like an ancient "type set" with a coin from each empire/ country. It sounds vague well because it is :smile I haven't decided exactly what to do yet.
The good news is that the most common gameplan by new ancient coin collectors is to get one coin from each Roman Emperor and one coin from each Greek city-state. The bad news is that none of them succeed. Even if you eliminate the guys that were only questionably emperor because the died fighting with someone else over the position, there are some rare/expensive ones. While many collectors own those coins, they tend not to be the beginners who started with that goal. Greek cities are even harder since there are many of them that you have never heard of and that even the location of the place has been lost to time. Some of these only come on the market every few years. I recommend buying ancients that appeal to you but not setting yourself up for the frustration of trying to complete a set that is not clearly defined. Like Chris said, the list of who you need is up to debate so a hard line 'complete' set including two or three guys that are super rare (there are two known coins of Domitian II but he is hardly known to history - do you need one?). Question to the well schooled among you: Who is the least common Roman Emperor who is without question a fully legitimate Roman Emperor? I'll say that Silbannicus and Regalian are not unquestionably needed for the set. Is Pescennius Niger? He never controlled Rome and all the coins were Eastern styles. How about Didius Julianus? What about the ones appointed as a co-ruler by a legitimate emperor but that didn't really last long enough to be more than a footnote? This might include Martinian and Valerius Valens (Licinius' man, not the later common brother of Valentinian). Who is legitimate?
I am not "well schooled", but when it comes to Roman emperors, I try to not set myself up for failure. My own personal definition of "emperor" is that he had to control the entire empire, or later on a recognized subset of it, and rule for at least 6 months to a year. Someone who ruled for a month, or who ruled North Africa only, to me in not a "Roman Emperor". I do not feel the need to own a Gordian I or II, a Pescennius Niger, or a Didius Julianus. There are still plenty of rarer roman emperors in "my" list, especially later, and if I got one of those other rulers I wouldn't throw it in the trash. See OP, a "collection" is what you wish it. Like Doug pointed out, many or most come into Romans with the same intention, but most stray. You most likely will find yourself attracted to Hadrian bronzes, or Tetrarchy follis', or campgates, or one of a 1000 sub specialties, (or multiple ones), along the way. This is ok, better than ok, its brilliant, since you make your collecting experience what YOU wish it to be, not something dictated to you by a coin folder manufacturer. Chris
Make your own type set Make your own type set I am new to ancients but I have a short comment. Ancient coins were not struck in collar & some are quite 3-dimensional (and beautiful). As such, some may have difficulty fitting into an airtite in a Dansco page. I suppose that most of the Roman Empire Coinage is relatively round & flat so it might work for you. The few Roman Empire Coins that I own would actually fit in a Dansco the way you have described. I only own a few so my collection is not representative of the collection you describe. Here is a Greek coin that is way too thick to fit in a Dansco page. (It is one of very few Greek coins in my collection).
Beautiful coin, (great taste). If it helps that is probably the thickest coin you will ever find in ancients. Most will never be that severe. I have a few, and know how big a PITA they can be to try to put in albums. Chris
