Featured A study in contrast: two $75 purchases - from totally different worlds

Discussion in 'Coin Chat' started by lordmarcovan, Mar 2, 2020.

?

Which appeals to you?

  1. 1. The Roman

    31 vote(s)
    47.7%
  2. 2. The Lincoln

    10 vote(s)
    15.4%
  3. Like 'em both, for different reasons

    22 vote(s)
    33.8%
  4. Neither one impresses me much

    3 vote(s)
    4.6%
  5. Coins? Pah! I'd rather have a McDonald's Shamrock Shake.

    1 vote(s)
    1.5%
Multiple votes are allowed.
  1. TIF

    TIF Always learning.

    There is a version of the Idiot's book for advanced collectors too. A summary:

    • Buy a book related to the coin(s) you enjoy
    • Find websites which relate to the coins you enjoy
    • Read the book and websites; learn things
    • Buy more coins related to this topic, or buy a different book and try something new
     
    Theodosius and John Anthony like this.
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  3. BuffaloHunter

    BuffaloHunter Short of a full herd Supporter

    I chose both. If you forced me to pick one right now, I'd go with the Lincoln. I do not own any ancients, though have thought about dipping my toes in those waters.
     
    lordmarcovan likes this.
  4. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    The Roman coin has arrived. In hand, the "dirty cheek" is not a hit or scrape so much as a toning spot which overlays an area of slight cabinet friction. I don't think it's even deep enough to call it much of a scuff. My attempts at cellphone closeups leave a bit to be desired, but here:

    20200304_122707.jpg

    Edit: Oops. Got my Julia Maesas and my Julia Mameas mixed up in the title, there. Easy to do. There were many Roman Julias, and I often confuse them. This coin is Julia Mamaea, daughter of Julia Maesa.

    Note: for the record, I did not "Feature" my own thread (or ask it to be), so I was a bit surprised to find it atop the homepage when I came to reply to it. It seems The Great Oz himself was reading the forum and Featured it.
     
  5. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Except there's more to the Dark Side than just Ancients (ancients are a subset of the Dark Side). And while sets and competitions and slabbing are indeed all optional and not necessary for enjoyment, if you feel like partaking in any of that, go right ahead.

    Set structure can be satisfying if you're goal oriented. Collect along popular themes for sets, or create your own parameters if you want to.

    Friendly competition can also be fun if done in the right spirit and not in an egotistical way.

    And if you like slabs, then by all means, slab your coins, though it can be expensive and will certainly not bring any approval from the vocal anti-slab majority amongst the collectors of ancient coins. Slabbing comes with both pros and cons.

    Never let anyone else tell you what to collect or how to collect it, unless you just feel like following their advice.

    Have fun. Your way.
     
  6. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    That is a superbly-selected photograph, DR! Perfect!

    A pretty good alternate name, too.

    I saw the Northern Lights one summer in Maine. It was probably a rather feeble display of them, but very exciting to my Southern eyes.
     
  7. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    :banghead:

    Julia Mamaea, not Julia Maesa.

    Goof in the first header fixed.
     
  8. xlrcable

    xlrcable Active Member

    This is awesome. I’m already tall, but the handsome and wealthy part will really help.
     
    Mainebill likes this.
  9. Mainebill

    Mainebill Bethany Danielle

    I live there and ain’t never seen them
     
  10. Mainebill

    Mainebill Bethany Danielle

    Same here. I used to be good looking I guess and in shape. Got more money then I did then but due to current circumstances I don’t got squat so could use some help
     
  11. Mkman123

    Mkman123 Well-Known Member

    The penny is a 1965 penny, modern and common.
    The ancient is old, lots of history, no comparison!
     
  12. White Ger. Shep. Lover

    White Ger. Shep. Lover Well-Known Member

    I
    I look at the beautiful '65 as Cheryl Tiegs in her prime and that ancient with the cheek blemish as Phyllis Diller in her 50's with a big ole' cheek zit. Gimme that Lincoln! Picture this........Lordmarcovan's '65 Lincoln with it's reverse just as amazingly attractive as it's obverse. Lordmarcovan would have potential buyers waving wads of c-notes under his nose that would be big enough to choke a horse.
     
  13. Goldsayshi463

    Goldsayshi463 the person who says "hi" all the time

    When I start coin collecting but also love geology...
     
  14. Goldsayshi463

    Goldsayshi463 the person who says "hi" all the time

  15. dougsmit

    dougsmit Member

    Serious question: Is there any evidence that would predict what the penny will look like in another 10/50/100 years?
     
  16. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    I doubt it, but the 50- and 100-year spans are rather moot as far as I'm concerned, since I'll have shuffled off the mortal coil by then.

    In hand, the Lincoln cent is absolutely amazing. I thought it was gonna be like some RB 19th century copper proofs- the kind where the colors only "pop" at certain angles to the light. Some of you will know what I mean.

    But no, it is, if anything, even more stunning in hand than in those PCGS TrueView images.

    The canary yellows on the reverse are really amazing in hand- much moreso than in the TrueView picture. I'll have to try to shoot video and/or make an animated GIF later.

    I chuckled at myself when I spent 75 bucks on a Lincoln Memorial cent, which is something I never thought I would never, ever do, but now that the deed is done, I have zero regrets about it when it comes to this coin.

    I am content with both purchases.
     
  17. Mr.MonkeySwag96

    Mr.MonkeySwag96 Well-Known Member

    I'm primarily a collector of US coins. However, recently I've been taken over by the "Dark Side." In fact, I'm considering taking a break from US coins to collect ancients instead. I've always been a fan of Egypt, Rome, and Byzantium. I love reading about ancient civilizations. I've always wondered why I never started collecting ancients sooner. Most of my collection are US coins. However, I'm starting to get bored of US coins because they aren't "historical" enough. Sure, Morgan dollars are cool. However, looking at a Morgan dollar doesn't teach you anything about the Wild West era. In contrast, you can learn a lot about Roman history from looking at a denarius. The Romans often depict political propaganda and historical events on their coinage. Keep in mind, newpapers and Internet didn't exist during ancient times. The ancient peoples got their news from coins. Much of what historians know about the Greeks and Romans are from their coinage.

    Most of the history of US coins are covered in the Red Book or Breen's Encyclopedia. Unless you're getting into die varieties (VAM, Overton), there's not a lot of reading for US coins. In contrast, heavy reading is essential to ancient numismatics. Collectors of ancients tend to be knowledgeable about classical history. In addition, there are various reference books for the multitude of ancient coins. If you like reading, then learning about ancients should be easier. If you collect coins because of their history, get into ancient coins. If you're competitive about bragging rights and like to showcase coins in Registry sets, collect US coins.

    I would like to collect Greek staters and tetradrachms. However Greek silver can be too expensive for my budget. So I'd like to start collecting Roman Republican denarii instead. In my opinion, Roman Republicans have more interesting designs than Roman Imperials. Most of my US coin collection is slabbed. However, I would buy ancient coins raw. Unlike US coins, collectors are encouraged to handle ancient coins raw. I guess that's one advantage ancients have over US coins. The reason why US coins are meant to be slabbed is because US numismatics is a "grade sensitive" hobby. Even the slightest bag mark would bring down the grade of a US coin and lower its value. In contrast, an ancient coin's grade isn't as important as its eye appeal. Ancient collectors prefer an eye appealing coin with superior "art style" over a higher grade example with inferior "art style." That's why slabs never became popular with ancient collectors. I like how the ancient coin hobby is more focused on learning about history rather than being concerned with Registry set rankings.

    Personally, I prefer the denarius over the monster toned cent. I've never been a fan of Lincoln cents. In addition, I don't collect modern coins dated 1950-Present day. The denarius actually circulated as money unlike the Lincoln cent that spent decades sealed in Special Mint Set packaging.
     
    Last edited: Apr 20, 2020
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