And then there was one: The 12 Caesars Imperial Budget Project

As most of you may be aware, I've been working on completing a 12 Caesars set...but not just any set. The coins all have to be imperial sanctioned mint products (no unofficial provincial denominations such as tets, drachms, etc, though officially sanctioned provincial minted denarii, sestertii, etc. is ok), must have lifetime portraits, no coins with two emperors or more on them (must be one emperor per coin, and all come combined must come under $3,000.00.

When all the restrictions are added together, it's not such an easy feat, especially when a Caesar portrait alone can set you back easily over $1,200.00, and that still leaves pricy emperors such as Caligula, Galba, Otho, and Vitelius. As of today I had 2 missing emperors, Nero and Galba, and a limit of around $550 to complete the set without violating the $3000.000 challenge limit. Well, scratch one emperor off, Galba, and I've still got a little over $300 to make the Nero happen. For the first time in a long time I actually have hope my project goals will all be met. However, to accomplish this feat some sacrifices needed to be made.

It has uneven toning, some porosity, some scratches, and other small defects, but it is what it takes to stay on track and prove that my challenge was possible. Despite whatever flaws I can point, the coin does have three good things going for it....(1) a decent little portrait, (2) it is my first quinarius (a denomination which I long neglected), and (3) it is not a common coin.


Galba (April 3, 68 CE - January 15, 69 CE)
Silver quinarius, RIC I 132 (R2), King 1, RSC I 317, BMCRE I 244, BnF III 63, SRCV I 2112, F, bumps, marks, scratches, uneven toning, porous, obverse a little off center, 1.587g, 14.8mm, 240o, Gaul, probably Lugdunum mint, Nov 68 - 15 Jan 69; obverse SER GALBA IMP CAESAR AVG P M T P, laureate head right; reverse VICTORIA GALBAE AVG, Victory standing right on globe, raising wreath in extended right hand, palm frond over left shoulder in left hand; ex Beast Coins; very rare.

Post any relevant coins.

 

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CONGRATS @Sallent ! Welcome to the Quinarius Clan! VERY very nice!


GALBA AR Quinarius ; Lugdunum mint
Ox: SER GALBA IMP CAESAR AVG P M TR, laureate head right
Rx VICTORIAE GALBAE AVG, Victory on globe standing left
A scarce denomination from a very scarce Emperor. 15mm, 1.5g.
Ex: @Brian Bucklan

 

Congrats with the Galba, must be a piece of cake to get a nice Nero for $300.

Same project, same budget:

 

I like the Galba. The portrait on these is interesting. Congrats on your progress. I hope you find the Nero soon.

 

a worthy excursion big O... that's a fine addition! i still lack a JC and Otho just to have the 12 and those plus Caligula and Claudius for total silver. Galba denarius Rome mint

 

Fantastic progress, Andres.

One of the problems I ran into is that I got fantastic deals on some coins, like Caesar for example, but instead of settling for more modest examples for some of the more common emperors, I went a little pricier, which left me struggling looking for fantastic deals on more expensive emperors. That's the one thing I would caution others about, but other than that, it's been smooth sailing. $3000 is definitely doable for official imperial lifetime portraits.

Here's my progress up to date

1) Caesar



2) Augustus



3) Tiberius



4) Caligula



5) Caudius



6) Nero (MISSING)

7) Galba



8) Otho



9) Vitelius

 

10) Vespasian



11) Titus



12) Domitian

 

Sallent, I certainly need some luck with the 5 denarii still needed , your Julius Caesar,Vespa and Caligula are awsome.

I already have a 12 Caesar set in bronze , now I want a silver denarii set.

I bought my Nero Salus denarius yesterday for 150 euro, its on its way from Austria.
sellers pic:

 

I think Nero before the end of the year is doable. Then once I finish the 12 Caesars Set, I only have two other sets to complete. I'm still missing Nerva for my "Good Emperors" Set, and Allectus and Vaballathus to complete my "Crisis of the 3rd Century Sessesionist Empires Official Rulers' Set". That last one I'm skipping usurpers that lasted so little on the throne or whose claims were so dubious as to not be considered "official". There are probably a dozen of those obscure semi-rulers with rare pricey coins, but I'd rather get the usurpers and rulers which made a real impact as to be considered "official" by historians, such as Posthumous, Marius, Carausius, Vaballathus, etc, etc.

 

While I agree with the concept, I doubt we would agree on who is 'official' and who was meaningless. A Nero of the grade to look right with the set could be had for well under $100 if you stick to the common coins. The one you won't get is Vaballathus. His solo coins are very pricey and your rules won't allow the one shared with Aurelian.
As far as I'm concerned the Nero of choice is the Temple of Janus as. I overpaid for my most recent one because it was a scarcer version I did not have but it still came in well under your limit.

 

very nice on Doug..i lack a temple coin of his yet..

 

The "one ruler per coin" limit is only for 12 Caesars. I didn't want to take the easy way out by getting a Nero with Claudius denarius, or a Flavian triple-combo coin with all three Flavians on it. I suppose it would have made the hunt easier, but not as enjoyable.

You know, I'm also really proud of myself for getting a super budget Fine condition coin that only a year ago I would have overlooked as "ugly" or too "plebeian" for my tastes. Just goes to show how much my collecting habits have changed.

2015: This coin is lower than an XF? Yuck!
2016: Well, maybe VF is not so bad, but that's definitely the bottom for me.
2017: Ok, maybe an aVF is acceptable. But no way will I ever get and enjoy some junky Fine coin.
2018: Well, maybe Fine coins are not so bad in certain occasions.

I wonder what 2019 will bring? Maybe I'll be saying then " I know this coin has a nail hole in it, but man, look at that sweet portrait of (blank) emperor on it. I've definitely found it hilarious just how much I'm looking at coins now that I would not have given a second glance to not that long ago. And in many cases its not even an issue of money or rarity, as I could probably get a "nicer" coin if I wanted. It's just that I've learned to appreciate even the "ugly ducklings."

 

2019? You might have the Nero and decide that you want to upgrade the Galba with a cheaper type in higher grade. Otho not having AE makes a matching set difficult. That makes it possible to be creative. I'll be interested in seeing the Nero.

 

Here is my Nero...


Antioch, Syria
Nero Regnal year 8, Caesarian year 110, (AD 61/62)
AR Tetradrachm 25 mm x 14.05 grams
Obverse: NERWNOS KAISAROS SEBASTOU, Laureate bust right, wearing aegis.
Reverse: Eagle standing left on thunderbolt, palm branch before, H/IP behind.
Ref: RPC4182

 

That cracked me up, thank you.

 

Here is my (recent) Nero:



Head of Nero right, reverse, Serapis right.

I actually don't mind obtaining provincial coins for the 12 Caesars because it exemplifies the diversity of the empire and the flourishing of local cultures at that time. I don't have a strict spending limit but like you I'm thinking $3,000 could do it - so far I have obtained four of the cheaper Caesars for about $450.

To complete the set, and I'm planning on buying a tribute penny of Tiberius, a JVDAEA coin of Vespasian and a good quality Caesar himself which may blow the budget.

Hopefully I'll acquire the last 8 coins before the end of the year @Sallent

 

Nice addition to your set!

I don't own a quinarius myself.

 

Nice pick up!

I literally have $300 cash in an envelope set aside for a Galba ae as. (Gentlemen prefer bronze ) Still haven’t found the right one. It needs to have one of those distinctive bent-nosed portraits and decent surfaces.

Can’t get them all in bronze, but Galba offers a surprising number of options considering his short rule.

 

Nice, my only Galba is a tetradrachm from Alexandria:

 

Here goes my Otho. This is enough for my budget, unfortunately..

AR Denarius - Rome mint- 69 AD. Obv: IMP M OTHO CAESAR AVG TRP Rev: PAX ORBIS TERRARVM RIC I 4, rare.

And this is my Nero denarius: all that @Sallent likes: poor condition, fourrée...

Nero as Caesar (under Claudius). Fourrée denarius. 50-54AD. RIC I 79 (Claudius). R2

I think that I never really had concerns about the coins grade. If the coin is rare or completely off my budget, and there’s no possibilities to replace it by upgrade, it will always take a place in my collection.