Ok I’m more than a bit baffled by many of the truly antique coins I see shown on this forum. I see not a few but quite a number of coins with millenniums of age that look better than a 5 year old Zincoln or nickel. How? I mean where are these coins coming from that are in such great shape? I would suspect reproductions and counterfeits but I’m sure any would soon be ferreted out with this group. I can’t believe some geeky Greek or Roman kid wrapped his allowance to protect the coins for perpetuity. So somebody unpuzzle me. Where have all of these coins been for all of these centuries?
Coin collecting got a big boost when the flying eagle cent replaced the large cent. So there were a number of mid-late 19th century coins cared for by collectors. On the other hand it’s darned hard to find an early 20th century coin in mint state. The Great Depression insured that coins worked very hard. Even the commemorative strikes from that period were circulated. But yes, fortunately for us there have been coin collectors almost as long as there have been coins.
Every time a coin design changes the new coin is hoarded. If a certain type of coin is not used but rejected by the public the coins in that series are in better condition as they have not circulated. There are still Susan B. Anthony Dollar coins in mint vaults that have never circulated. That was 40 years ago, give or take a year or two. This is true for all coins that don't circulate. The gold Indian Head coins, all 3 denominations. One must also take into account the times in which the coin had. In the depression coins circulated. At other times, they did not.
Chip, with regard to ancient coins, many are found in hoards that someone, 2000 plus years ago, squirreled away in a clay jar, glass Jar, leather pouch, etc.. buried it and either died or was forcibly removed before being able to retrieve it. Also, some coin hoards are found in the bases of buildings and temples, buried there by the builders/consecrators of the building. Many gold and silver coins in antiquity were used as a store of wealth and were not circulated for daily commerce. This left them as shiny as they were when they were struck. They were packed away for safe keeping and re-found a couple of millennia later. Hope this helps.
Many gold coins were hidden by collectors to keep them from being removed by the Feds when it became illegal to own gold.
You also have to realise that the Roman Empire was around for more than a thousand years. They were making coins the whole time. So there are just millions of them to be found. And so as you find them, chances are some of them will turn our nice.
@frankjg pretty much hit it on the nose with ancients. Turbulent times, political turmoil, short reigns , short life spans, etc. As the conquerors moved across the lands, wealth was buried in the hopes of someday returning to claim it but never did. Entire families were wiped out and the knowledge of where this was buried was lost forever. And remember, in the U.S., many never trusted the banking system for a very long time. Paper money was especially untrustworthy. Wealth was stored in walls, under floor boards, in the back yard, etc. Banks went bankrupt on a regular basis, were robbed and there was no recourse for the average citizen to recover their losses. There was no FDIC and that's how companies like Brinks came into being. Ships were sunk by pirates or opposing countries, war, etc. led to the lack of trust also. So, what little people did have was hidden away for safe keeping and then the owners died and their wealth was found much later by treasure hunters or in the course of building new homes or complete towns.
