Beginner Sets: Share your Ideas

As a new collector I find myself beating my head against a wall (or desk while at work) trying to build my collection. My initial focus has been a 12 Caesars set, but this has become less enticing as I have learned more. I've only been learning about ancient coins for the last month so I am very new.

I wanted to start this thread for newer collectors such as myself. What are some good sets recommended by the veteran members? Rulers, Dynasties, Mints, Eras, Gods/Goddesses, Animals, etc... Let's hear some ideas. Even a way to mix Greek, Roman, Persian, and Indian together would be neat to hear.

If you don't mind @dougsmit I copied this list from the 12 Caesars thread to get everyone thinking:

• any Republican
• any Imperatorial
• Augustus
• Vespasian
• Trajan
• Marcus Aurelius
• Septimius Severus
• Valerian
• Aurelian
• Diocletian
• Constantine I
• Theodosius I

Don't hesitate to show you collections like @stevex6 barn yard animals from the same 12 Caesars set.

 

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To add one more thought to this thread. As a Deacon at my church I'd be interested in hearing about biblical related sets.

 

It's important to mention budget. Personally, I collect quite a few coins in the $20-$50 range, with an occasional splurge on a $100-$200 coin, and a rare venture into $200-$500. A lot depends on what you're willing to spend.

 

Good point. I'm in the $20-$50 range and would be willing to splurge to $200 for a coin or two per year. As a beginner I don't want to invest large sums until I am 100% sure I will keep with the hobby.

 

I find interests quite fluid, all depending on mood, budget and most importantly research. What is conspicuously important in my view is doing as much research as possible before venturing into something as expensive as 12 Caesars.

 

There is a large variety of ancient coins you can buy in high grades at the $20-$50 range. These include...

1. Coins of the Constantinian Dynasty
2. Coins of the Valentinian Dynasty
3. Coins of the Theodosian Dynasty
4. Coins of various provincial cities that were prolific minters, ie. Nikopolis ad Istrum and Marcianopolis, to mention a couple.
5. Various common (but very attractive and interesting) Greek coins. Look at the issues of Pontos/Amisos and Pergamon, for starters, along with the Macedonian issues of Phillip II and Alexander the Great.
6. Numerous Eastern/Indian issues - I will defer to my colleagues better versed in these for their suggestions.

The issue with collecting Biblical coins is one of definition: what exactly does that mean to you? If a certain ruler or city is mentioned in the Bible, does the coinage of that city or ruler make it Biblical? The only coins specifically mentioned in the Bible (to my knowledge) are the widow's mite, tribute penny, and thirty pieces of silver. Those would make for a very small (and expensive) collection.

 

You chose a quite expensive set for that kind of budget! Although on the other side, you don´t have to complete it NOW. You have time, so you could buy the cheaper ones first and a expensive one from time to time. Caveat for fakes.
As a beginner´s first collection I always recommend something easy, very affordable and not usually faked: "Constantinian Dynasty". It can be filled with a few coins or with a lot (depending on the collector´s will/budget) and may cost a dollar or less a coin while still collecting ancients!
If doing this fullfills you, then you can move on to something else, surely more confident and wise than before.

 

One that I have really enjoyed is collecting as many of the Greek cities/mints as possible. It will never be complete, but it is fun to collect one of each and add it to my map. Another set that I'm slowly working on is Hasmonean kings of Judaea. It is going slow as I have high standards for coins that are usually not struck very well at all, and on top of that a nice example can cost twice as much from a US dealer as an Israeli dealer, but nonetheless they are some really interesting coins to collect and to learn about and the standard text on them, Hendin's "Guide to Biblical Coins" is much cheaper than some of the specialized texts for other areas of collecting.

 

One of my long time personal favorites for that budget range is a 1 coin per century set starting at, maybe the first century a.d. It should be easy enough to find decent, average copper and some silver coins from most centuries in the $50 price range from Rome, Parthia, China etc.

 

Possible way to mix the different regions - collect by time period.

 

My suggestions apply to bronze. Silver is a different ballgame - in fact, silver is very pricey where the bronze is cheap (on my list). For high-grade Roman silver, look at the antoniniani of Gordian III and Philip II, and denarii from the Severan dynasty.

You can certainly spend a dollar a coin, but that's too low by my reckoning. Personally I prefer to collect coins in VF grades and higher. You get what you pay for, and a dollar won't buy you more than a very worn, corroded coin that's barely attributable, if at all.

 

I have a beginner set of Sassanian Era Coins.

 

That's beautiful - I love your virtual trays. I don't like the penny, though. Let's get rid of the damn pennies, people!

 

My idea of a set is not one. Sure, I have ideas of coins I would consider related, but that is my idea. The beauty of ancient collecting is there are so many coins, so many ways to collect there truly is no right and wrong way.

If someone wanted an inexpensive set to pursue, I would recommend getting a copy of Guido Bruck's book, (new English translation), and find a series in that that you like. His book goes over the massive varieties in many late roman bronze coins. Just picking out something like wolf and twins reverse and putting together a set with 25 different varieties would be a worthwhile, inexpensive, and decade long quest.

However, the bottom line is its very personal. Its your hobby, pursue and put together a collection that YOU find interesting, and simply do not care what anyone else in the world thinks about it. Many collectors here do not really understand why I pursue what I pursue, and that is great. We all have different tastes, thankfully. Ancients are such a narrowly traded field that if many of us pursued the same coins we couldn't afford them at all.

 

I began by trying to put together a set of Marcus Antonius Legionary denarii. I'm still working on it many years later. There are a lot (23 legions, praetorian cohorts and the cohort of speculatores of which Antony's army was composed plus coins struck for his navy). Generally, these coins have a lower silver content than the standard of the time. As a result they were rarely hoarded, heavily circulated and are most often found in very worn condition. However, in decent condition these coins can go for upwards of $100 each, some much more.

 

Your Shapur II is listed as Shapur I man.

Nice set. I have a few to add, but like we said, combined we would have a pretty killer collection.

 

Another idea is to build a set of reverses for an emperor or even empress you like. I have a soft spot for Lucilla & Crispina and set out to build a reverse set of them. It took a few years to assemble but it's one of my more enjoyable things I have done with side sets.

Lucilla


Crispina


One of our posters also collects everything Hadrian:

All Hadrian provincials coins

 

My first set. It's a little, uhm, different .




Fancy presentation

 

Shernan30 since your a church going man, you might want to start with the Jesus coins, which you can share with many at church. many of these coin are pretty inexpensive in bronze. silver can go up, Gold will cost you, but you can get a good scyphate Gold of Christ for around $300 to $400.


You can get a bronze example for around $50 to $150..




They have what they call cup coins bronze, some with a heavy silver wash.



Most of these are around 1000 to 1200 AD. many here won't even call them ancients, but it was part of the last leg of the Roman Empire.

 

That's cool! And my favorite album of theirs.