Ancient collectors re-introduction thread

Hehe:yes:

 

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Thanks for the compliments.

One of the major differences between collecting ancients and modern coins, for which I wasn't initially prepared, is the amount of time needed to complete a desired set or theme. If a collector wants a complete set of, say, Lincoln Head pennies, essentially all dates and mint marks are available immediately if one is willing to search hard and (at times) pay a premium. This is not true for ancients. It took me over a year to collect all 12 Caesars denarii, over two years to collect all 12 Caesars aureii, and thus far has taken over two years to accumulate 12 of the 20 twelve Caesars bronzes needed to "complete" my collection.

In a way, however, the length of time, and effort, involved in collecting ancients is part of the enjoyment and reward compared to collecting modern coins. Along the way the collector learns more and more about the history behind the coins and emperors, which is something that can't be said if you're collecting Lincoln Head cents.

Somewhat unexpectedly, I find the art and beauty of ancient coins far exceeds that of modern coins. This is especially true of Greek coins (which I don't collect) but equally true of Roman coins. Every ancient coin is unique in its own respect, and reflects the personality and quirks of the individual die engraver.

And finally, there's the incomparable feeling of holding a 2000-year-old coin in your hands and imagining the history behind the coin, which is something no one does with high-quality modern coins.

For all of those reasons, I think many former collectors of modern coins become engrossed, and almost obsessive, once they start collecting ancient coins.

 

Perfectly said & how I feel word for word.

 

Hello all. I've been collecting ancients (mostly Romans) ever since April 2011. I go after any ancient (and the occasional medieval) that interests me aesthetically and/or historically (within my budget) but right now I am trying to specialize in 5th century Roman bronze AE4s and coins of the Germanic kingdoms that replaced Rome (my collection includes coins of the Ostrogothic king Theodahad and Western Roman emperor Libius Severus). Just love the history behind the fall of Roman power in the west and the rise of the subsequent barbarian states. Glad to see some familiar faces here and looking forward to meeting the rest of you

 

A big Hello to VK. Glad to see you made it. I think you're gonna like it here. A lot of us old friends and a bunch of new. :hail:

 

So wait, am I an old friend or new?

 

Yes!

 

A big welcome to VK!! Great to see you here.

Lots of new friends here!

 

Very nice entrance, Jango (oops, I mean Valiant Knight!!)

Geesh, for a second there I didn't think that the bouncer was gonna stamp your hand!!

You rock dude!! (I'm glad to have you as a wing-man!! => I Got Your Six!!)

:high5:

 

Please let us all behave so management doesn't investigate how we got in. If you say a bad word, you have to put a denarius in the jar. Seriously, lets all think about what we can do to make this place a great place for old and new collectors to exchange information and understand the hobby that we, collectively, have invested so many year enjoying.

 

Curious => what are talking about, my dear friend? ...

I have nothing but good intentions in this new environment

 

Hahahahaha......:u*meY:


No, no, seriously. :taped-shut:

 

How about we just relax and have fun. :thumb:

A lot of good posts here. I enjoy hearing about all you other people that collect. It's a nice community here.

 

I couldn't agree more!

 

Thanks Bing ... you're right

=> have a good night, "everybody"

Oh, and in case any of you are too wrapped-up in coining => "tomorrow" is the Super Bowl

... ummm, but if you're "not" interested in the actual football game, then it's an excellent opportunity to go to Safeway and avoid the crowds!!

I myself, am hosting the annual Super Bowl Party at my house ... and this year, happily my favourite team, San Fran, has managed to make it to the Big-Show!!

I love you guys

Cheers!!

x6

 

Go 49ers!

 

I would have went for the Ravens except that they completely ditched Cleveland and the Browns many years ago. Many considered this low down and tacky. For this reason, I'm going for the 49ers. Normally, I want teams without superbowl wins to get it.

 

Hey there--I'm Kurt, and I know a few of you already. :hail:Some beautiful coins in this thread! For the most part, I collect 17-19th C. coins, but I have some ancients too. This is one of my favorites:


Sicily, Syracuse. Agathokles. 317-289 BC. AE23 Litra. Period 4, circa 295 BC. SWTEIRA, head of Artemis right, in triple-pendant earring & necklace, quiver over shoulder. Reverse, Winged thunderbolt, AGAQOKLEOS above, BASILEOS below 9.58 gr

 

that is stunning!

 

Hey Kurt. Nice of you to join us. :hail: And I know I've seen this coin before, but I will say it again. It's beautiful.