So, sitting in worship today, and the Gospel lesson had Mary, Lazarus' sister, using "300 denarii" worth of perfume of pure nard on Jesus' feet. Here's my question: Do ancient coins with biblical references (widow's mite, Judean denarius, a "piece of silver"...think 30 pieces that Judas received) command a premium that is more dependent on the biblical reference than rarity alone would justify? Almost 40 years ago I bought a few ancients, which must now be buried in my "stuff" because I haven't seen them for several years, but I remember enjoying the fact that I had one of Constantine's, in that he was responsible for legitimizing the Christian religion. So, do the above referenced coins sell for more because of demand than their rarity warrants? Just wondering if I want to rekindle some interest in acquiring some of them. Thanks, in advance, Steve
Absolutely, yes. There are many collectors who aren't particularly interested in ancient coins as a whole, but ARE interested in coins that have Biblical ties. Demand always drives prices. The "30 pieces of silver" are Tyrian shekels, and they sell at considerable premiums over other large silver ancients. Widows mites, the leptons of Alexander Jannaeus et al, are numerous and common - the ancient Judaeans churned them out by the millions, and they are some of the crappiest coins ever made. But you can expect to pay around $50 retail for a "decent" one, meaning not terribly crappy.
Yup, recently got lucky and got two with recognizable "sunburst" and anchor for $12. Turned around and sold one of them to a dealer for $20.
Hey Steve, I have a few of these Widows Mite coins, but I have never given them much thought. That is until I read your post. I think I learned some things about the story of the bible from your queries than anywhere else. Thank you for the message. Dave
The one that comes to mind for me is the "Tribute penny". Although there is plenty of debate as to what coin was used, many believe that the Tiberius "Livia" denarius is the coin mentioned in the bible. These are common coins but sell for a premium because of the supposed biblical connection.
I believe they have a premium as well. I like graded ancients, and I have picked up a few that have "money of the Bible" on the holder. I have been able to sell a few of those for a decent profit. I am in the Bible belt, and I think it is cool to own a coin that was around when Jesus was here, and many people I show them to agree.
As with any thread with a theme of politics or religion, keep it very tight as per the rules. thanks.
It's always been in my mind that "coins of the Bible" are more popular because of how popular the Bible is. Same for big name emperors like Nero or Julius Caesar. Because of their popularity prices are greater.
I visited a small coin shop last year and saw about 100-200 low grade late Roman coins in a bag with about 50 genuine Byzantine bronzes of the anonymous Christ types and four fake Tiberius 'Tribute Pennies'. All had been the property of one person whose 'estate' the shop had purchased. The Christ folles and the fakes were probably picked up over a period of time by the collector whose only other outing in ancients had been the lot of uncleaned that all turned out to be trash. Of all the coins I saw no fakes except for the TP's, no silver except for he TP's and no coins over AE3 size except those with well worn Christ portraits. The shop bought he bunch to get the collector's modern coins. I suspect there are many people who have collections of modern coins with a few Christian interest (real or fakes) thrown in. There are several books available on coins "of the Bible". There are some that are obvious and some that require a bit more study to understand the link. The only ones that seem to carry a premium are the big three obvious ones (Widow's Mite, Tribute Penny and 30 Pieces of Silver) where the coin itself is mentioned. Types just associated with people mentioned in the Bible do not do nearly as well.
I notice with dismay the sellers who offer "slabbed" coins with the designation of "Widow's Mite Sized Coin"
Doug--you say, "Types just associated with people mentioned in the Bible do not do nearly as well." I disagree. Pontius Pilate coins are disproportionately expensive compared to other Roman procurator coins of Judea.
I'm not sure which TPG you're speaking of, but "Widow's Mite Sized Coin" is not a bad description for many of the small bronzes of Judaea of the 1st century BC, particularly ones that cannot be identified. Unfortunately for future coin collectors, Jesus did not comment on the typology of the coin the widow donated, probably because it had absolutely nothing to do with the point, lol. It's generally accepted to be a lepton of Alexander Jannaeus, but it very well could have been any number of small bronzes of various Hasmonean kings/ethnarcs, or even a freshly-minted prutah of Herod. I routinely see slabbed widows mites selling on eBay, sometimes for over $60. Bona fide collectors of ancients are not the people buying these slabs. We know that we can get a perfectly authentic, perfectly acceptable example of the coin in the $25 range. They are not rare - in fact, they are exceedingly common. (I saw a bag of a thousand at NYINC, but didn't have the patience to sort through it.) The collectors buying the $60 slabs are collectors of moderns that just want a widow's mite, and for whatever reasons of their own, insist that it be encased in a big ugly piece of plastic.
