What Your Budget Buys - $50 Edition

$41-65 all in 2017
Antoninus Pius, Alexandria AE drachm Athena coin show $62


Trebonianus Gallus tetradrachm Serapis coin show $41


Gallienus AE 18 Iconium Marsyas $64 (somebody bid me up on this JAZ sale lot - I expected it to go lower)


Elagabalus Alexandria tetradrachm Dikaiosyne coin show $49


Herrennia Etruscilla Alexandria tetradrachm Tyche $49 eBay (worth more)


Carthage AE17 o/s on Akragas messy!!! eBay (same seller) $49

 

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That one almost didn't make the cut for this price bracket. I wasn't the one who bid you up but I did several times consider bidding on it. I like how perfectly centered it is on the obverse, with the size of the flan a perfect fit for the die... and in contrast how the reverse die, also struck dead center on the flan, is a little bit smaller. Beyond that, it's just a really attractive coin!

 

Here's another medieval Rome issue (less than $40-50 though):

Gregory XI, Papal States
AR bolognino
Obv: ·S· PETRVS· P, mitred bust facing
Rev: +DE·ROMA·, in center: ·V·R·B·I· in angles, in pattern of short cross
Mint: Rome
Date: 1370-1378
Ref: Berman 209

 

In the name of Alexander the Great. Circa 293-286 BC? 4.3g 16mm.
Obv: Gorgoneion as boss of Macedonian-style shield but with blundered design
Rev: Β-Α; Macedonian Helmet, rose to left, ΙΘΙ monogram to right.

Odd style. Unpublished monogram ΙΘΙ (that looks like a TIE fighter from Star Wars) The letter B is in poor style. Could this be an unpublished ancient imitation? Richard Ashton believes the regular rose symbol issue on shield/helmet bronzes (with no monogram) is from Sardes, based on the number of specimens in regional Turkish museums. (Martin Price had assigned the rose variety in his “Miletus or Mylasa” section.)


EGYPT, Tacitus 275-276 AD, potin 20.6mm 7.86g
Obv: A K MA TAKITOC CEB; Bust with laurel wreath, draping and cuirass
Rev: ЄTOVC A; Nike with palm branch and wreath.
Dattari 5518, Cologne/Geissen 3120
Ex Art Institute of Chicago, from the Glover collection acquired in 1978, #1424. Gemini, auction XII, April 2017, lot 487 (part)

Although the edges of this coin are rough it actually has good surfaces elsewhere and shows little wear.


Turk Yagbus in Tokharistan, circa 600-680 AD. 32 mm, 3.78 grams
Obverse: Crowned bust right, within circle, stars and crescents around.
Reverse: Fire altar, attendants flanking, within circle.
Countermarks of human head left and "PHRORO" in Baktrian.
Imitates a Balkh mint year 11 Drachm of Sassanian King Hormizd IV but it is not!
The countermarks were applied 650-700 AD.

 

This one was 64 dollars, just under the limit.



Geta. AD 200-205. AR Denarius

O: Bareheaded, draped, and cuirassed bust right R: Geta standing left, holding baton and scepter; trophy of arms to right. RIC IV 18; RSC 157b. 20 mm, 3.8 g

 

This series of threads was a fantastic idea @zumbly. It's been really fascinating and educational to read all the posts!

I got this coin for under $60 from @red_spork and it is one of my top five favorite coins in my collection. This coin is proof that you don't have to pay an arm and a leg to get a coin packed with historical interest!

https://www.cointalk.com/threads/the-first-jewish-coin-and-its-modern-descendent.292881/

 

That's a great coin! I'm glad you're enjoying this series of threads. I hope we'll soon get even more participation as we hit the $100 mark and go beyond that. I think the threads so far have demonstrated that collecting ancients can be really deep and rewarding without being an expensive hobby. We've seen plenty of eye candy too so far and I'm looking forward to seeing much more.

 

Eh, don't be shy about piling on more coins that you may have in this price bracket, folks. This thread and all the others in this series will be indexed in a separate thread when we're done and all the coins you show here will serve to benefit our current and future members. Here are two more of mine...

In the grotty condition it was in, I would have given this Germanicus as a miss, except that this denomination is a more unusual example of an obverse brockage, as heavier coins such as these were less likely to get stuck in the dies when they were being struck.
GERMANICUS
AE As, obverse brockage. 11.46g, 29.3mm. Rome mint, AD 50-54. cf. RIC Claudius 106 for obv type. O: GERMANICVS CAESAR TI AVG F DIVI AVG N, bare head right. R: Brockage of obverse.
Ex E.E. Clain-Stefanelli Collection

This bronze from Macedonia's time as a Roman protectorate was a must-have not just because of its historical interest, but also because of its sinister @dougsmit-as-Silenus obverse .

MACEDON, as Roman Protectorate
AE. 8.61g, 21.1mm. Thessalonica mint (?), Transitional bronze issue, circa 167-165 BC. SNG Copenhagen 1324-6; BMC 55; HGC 3.1, 1117. O: Facing head of Silenos, wearing ivy wreath. R: MAKE / ΔONΩN, legend in two lines; D above; all within ivy wreath.

 

$50 Fully Loaded Cost

RI Poemenius in name of Constantius II
Summer 353
AE1-2 22mm 5.14g
Maiorina-Double Maiorina
Trier XP
RIC VIII Trier 332
RARE

 

$59 Fully Loaded Cost:

RI Antoninus Pius 138-161 BCE AR Denarius

$57 Fully Loaded Cost:

Makedonon
Amyntas III 393-369 BCE
AE 17mm, 3.2g
Obv: Head of Herakles r, wearing lion skin
Rev: AMUNTA, Eagle devouring serpant
Ref: SNG ANS 100ff

 

65.00 all in. This lovely penny of Edward I.

 

Often what is impressive is not only the coin but the low price obtained! For example, here is my Macedonian Silenos:

I paid $56 for this in 2004. I believe the price to be fair. Yours is at least two grades better, and worth at least 4x what mine is worth. Maybe the beginners can tell me if it is discouraging to see great $50 coins that are only available at that price level in obscure auctions or when a seller has mispriced a popular coin at a show.

 

Admittedly, I think mine was overlooked. I won it in a Naumann auction earlier this year, at (I think) one bid above starting price. I paid $59 after fees and shipping and was thrilled at the price. I think it was a case where a few more examples than usual appearing on the market in a short span of time had temporarily exhausted demand for the type. In other words, I got lucky .

 

We can agree there is a lot of mispricing going on but we will not on who is making the error. As I recall one of our storm affected members has a nice one of these. They are not rare coins. Just because we see a coin offered at a price does not mean it normally sells for that price. There is a current fad of offering coins at very high prices and hoping some one will bite. Beginners and old timers alike need to decide whether they want a specific coin at a specific time and are willing to pay whatever the asking price is or whether they want to wait and see if something they want turns up at a price they want to pay. I have paid ridiculous sums for a few coins because I wanted it and wanted it NOW. I will go to a show later this month and see what I would not mind having at the price then quoted. The first technique gives you control over what is in your collection. The second gives coins you did not plan on buying but that seemed good at that moment in time. You can often control two but only two: What, When and How Much. Finding all three 'your way' together is more often a matter of luck.

I paid as much 20 years ago for some types of coins as I do today. I was more impatient then. Depending on what I see, I may be impatient later this month.

 

I've been watching these threads and I have to say that their benefit to new collectors is potentially enormous.

So many times we see threads by novice collectors asking about where to start, whether such-and-such coin is a good value, should I shop eBay auctions, etc., and many times the new collector neglects to mention his/her price range for coins. These threads can provide immediate guidance and specific examples, with specific dealers, prices, etc., and will alleviate the need to rehash all the sage advice that has been previously provided.

While it's true that some coins were bargains and others were a bit overpriced, in the aggregate my impression is that for each of the price ranges, the expectations for coins and associated prices that a novice collector should explore are fairly accurate in the current market. The more coins and prices posted, the more statistically accurate the sample. These threads are by far the best resource on the Internet for comparative information.

Congratulations to the original idea and all the participants!

 

Thanks for the thumbs up, Ides. There are so many threads here on CT that offer a wealth of useful information to newbies. We may not have a system of stickies on the forum (nor am I suggesting we have one), but at least we have a search function, and I notice that at least a few members are using it or their own bookmarks to reference old 'resource' threads when such information appears appropriate to a newbie question. I intend to do the same with this series.

 

35.50 Euros

 

Seems that about a third of my coins fall in this price range. I'll offer a variety of coins from different time periods and cultures. I'll post in dollar amount order.


Caracalla, AD 198-217
AR denarius, 3.01g, 20mm, 6h; Rome mint, AD 210-213.
Obv.: ANTONINVS PIVS AVG BRIT; laureate head right.
Rev.: MONETA AVG; Moneta standing left, holding scales and cornucopia.
$41


Time of Constantine, 330-333 AD
AE, follis, 17mm, 2.2g; 6h; Trier, AD 333-334
Obv.: VRBS ROMA; helmeted bust of Roma wearing imperial mantle left
Rev.: She-wolf standing left, with Romulus and Remus suckling beneath, two stars above, wreath between
In Ex.: TRS
$45


Manuel I, AD 1143-1180
Billon trachy, 30mm, 2.7g, 6h; Constantinople mint, AD 1167-1183.
Obv.: Christ, bearded, seated facing on throne without back, wearing nimbus cruciger, pallium, colobium, Gospels in left; no stars; in field / IC – XC
Rev.: MANYHΛ ∆ECΠ; the Theotokos (Virgin Mary) standing facing at right, crowning the emperor standing at left, holding labarum and globus cruciger; M above Mary's outstretched hand.
$47


Olbia, Sarmatia
Æ25, 10.5g, 12h; 3rd-2nd centuries BC.
Obv.: Horned, bearded head of river god Borysthenes (Dnieper) left.
Rev.: Bow in case and battle axe; OΛBI to right, API to left.
$60


Apollodotos I, Backtria, 174-165 BC
AR, drachm, 14mm, 1.4g
Obv.: BAΣIΛEΩΣ AΠOΛΛOΔOTOY SΩTHPOΣ; Elephant standing right, MI monogram below
Rev.: Maharajasa Apaladatasa tradarasa (Karosthi script); Zebu standing right, Karosthi legend around, MI monogram below
$61


Octavian, 27 BC - AD 14
AE32, 16g, 6h; Colonia Celsa.
Obv.: II VIR COL V I CELSA; bare head of Octavian right.
Rev.: Bull right; L.POMPE.BVCCO above, L.CORNE.FRONT (moneyers).
$65

 

Beautiful coin and great detail, what a bargain.

 

Earlier this winter, i got 4 great denarii fairly cheap all from the same seller on eBay, (Septimius, Faustina, Marcus Aurelius + Antoninus Pius) the pics were fairly bad but I was able to check them from when they previously sold at auctions since 3/4 had provenances i could see on Acsearch..

I was the under-bidder on another 3 or 4 nice coins from the same seller.. I should have bid higher

here is another one of those coins that fits the price range for this thread..