Any huge Classical History (Rome/Greece) nerds like me?

Welcome to the ancients forum on CT @Gam3rBlake

You're definitely in the right place...you will find there are many classics enthusiasts on this forum.

I graduated with a BA in classics and history this year. Though I collected years ago, my program reignited my interest in ancient coins. Most of the courses I have taken incorporated numismatic evidence for analysis (i.e. for architecture, art, history...etc.). The coin below, which I recently purchased, was referred to in two of my classes.

Roman Imperatorial:
Octavian (30-29 BC)
AR Denarius

Date: Autumn 30-Summer 29 BC
Obv: Bare head right.
Rev: IMP CAESAR on the architrave of the Roman Senate House (Curia Julia), porch supported by four short columns, statue of Victory on globe surmounting apex of roof, statues of standing figures at the extremities of the architrave.
Diameter: 20.1mm
Weight: 3.83 grams
Mint: Italian mint (Rome?)
RIC I 266
Ex: Apollo Numismatics

 

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Never too old to go to school my friend. Even those of us who went to college, can do so again. After getting a bachelors and masters a few years back I now find myself getting an Associates. Why? Because the pursuit of knowledge never stops

 

Alexander's Ragtime Band

 

Yeah it’s not so bad when you’re learning about what you love.

I figure I would be reading and learning about this stuff anyway so I might as well get a degree out of it.

However my other area of expertise is Colonial America.

I think the history of humanity is the greatest story that could ever be told; spanning thousands of years, tens of thousands of miles and billions of people.

 

Ehhh I don’t know about that .

My history professors all have Ph.Ds in very specific areas of various ancient cultures.

For example one of my professors has a Ph.D in Classical History but he has spent 30 years focusing solely on the 1st century BC.

 

Athens, AR tetradrachm, after 449 BC



Kings of Macedon, Alexander III, AR tetradrachm, Cilicia, early posthumous issue, possibly Side, c. 322-316 BC, Price 2949

 

If i may offer some advice. If you have not yet studied Latin, and yes, Greek, try to do so at once. Nothing will give you more of a feel for another people as knowing their language. I belong to a time when Latin was required for all students and Greek strongly encouraged and I was blessed by so studying them.

 

Some might be very good sir. A PhD does not mean they know any more than someone with a Master's degree, it only means they learned how to "create knowledge" by proper study design and statistical analysis. Believe me, I am finishing up Chapter 4 and 5 of my dissertation as we speak to complete my PhD.

Btw, congratulations in serving in the military and now using the GI Bill sir. Way to keep your eyes on the prize. I used the National Guard GI Bill to get through college, (serving in the Gulf War in between).

 

Welcome!
Here is a tetradrachm of Antiochus III Megas struck 223-210 BCE
Struck at Antioch on the Orontes
16.96 grams

 

I’ve been studying Vulgar Latin for 4 years .

 

@Gam3rBlake welcome to the forum!

I am a new collector as well, and my advice/observation from my limited exposure to this hobby is that it can be tremendous fun to go off the beaten track in regards to historical studies. There are areas of history aside from the usual Athens or Julius Caesar that are fascinating and culturally rich that will keep you busy for years and leave you hungry for more.

2 of the most obvious ones that comes to mind is the Hellenistic period and more specifically the history and events regarding Alexander the Great's successors, and the other one is the 1000 year history of the Byzantine empire. Both of those make Game of Thrones look like a Korean daytime TV drama.

2 of my coins from the periods I mentioned:





Enjoy your journey into the world of ancients

 

Thanks!

Oh yeah for sure I’m not just interested in the more popular Emperors like Caesar. Frankly I’m interested in collecting any coinage made of gold/silver from between 400 BC - 14th century AD. So that’s an almost 2,000 year period I’m interested in collecting.

However I can’t seem to find any golden coins to buy from that period.

please read the rules under Forums on the front page. Buy/sell/trade is in a different subforum and has a few more rules.

Sadly so many of those coins were “lost” (aka: remelted into bars/ new gold coin) over the years and few remain in decent condition.

 

As a Greek I am obsessed with Greek history
I mainly focus myself in the Greek islands (each island created it's own myths and it is widely reflected on the coinage) and the Seleukid Empire. Epeiros as well since my familly is from there and also Mithradates VI Eupator, in my opinion the third best military general in Ancient Greek times.


Islands of Caria, Rhodos. Rhodes. Circa 250-229 BC. AR Didrachm. Mnasimachos, magistrate
Obverse: Radiate head of Helios facing slightly right.
Reverse: Rose with bud to right; MNAΣIMAXOΣ above, P-O flanking stem; to left, Athena Nikephoros standing left.
Reference: Ashton 208; HN Online 395; HGC 6, 1439.
6.70g


Seleukid Kingdom. Antiochos III Megas (223 - 187 B.C.). AR Tetradrachm. Antioch mint. Series 3, circa 204–197 B.C.
Obverse: Diademed head of Antiochos III to right.
Reverse: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ANTIOXOY. Apollo seated left on omphalos, holding arrow in his right hand and resting his left on grounded bow; to outer left, bow in bowcase.
Reference: SC 1044.5a; Le Rider series 3-4, obv. A12; BMC 27; HGC 9, 447u.
17.07g

Talking about remelting/overstriking, even in Ancient times it was done, especially for rivals. An example in the Seleukid Empire: When Philip I Philadelphos came to rule Antioch, he started to recycle the tetradrachms of his predecessors and reissued them with his own types, so there were barely any tetradrachms of his competitors circulating. Besides propaganda, he reissued them with a lighter weight of around 0.35g (hence the low eight of ~15.5g). By doing so, Philip’s treasury profited by about half an obol every time an older tetradrachm was recoined.


Seleukid Kingdom. Philip I Philadelphos (circa 95/4-76/5 B.C.) AR Tetradrachm. Antiochia on the Orontes mint, lifetime issue, circa 88/7-76/5 B.C.
Obverse: Diademed head of Philip I to right.
Reverse: BAΣIΛEΩΣ / ΦIΛIΠΠΟΥ - EΠIΦΑΝΟΥΣ / ΦIΛAΔEΛΦΟΥ Zeus seated left, holding Nike in his right hand and long scepter in his left; to inner left, O.
Reference: SC 2463
15.52g

 

Wow, I think you are being too generous there! Your wallet deserves some love too you know! You don't need to spend that much for a decent gold ancient. The solidus in my post cost me under £500. There is a thread in this forum that discusses that kind of thing:

https://www.cointalk.com/threads/post-pix-of-gold-ancients-you-can-get-for-less-than-1-000.366143/

 

Well I mean that was my maximum offer depending on the coin. Obviously I would pay more for an Aureus minted by Julius Caesar, Trajan, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius or Antoninus Pius that I would for one from say Claudius.


They are all valued different based on mintage date, emperor and condition and I was just saying I’m willing to pay up to that price but I wouldn’t pay that price for any gold solidus or aureus I saw.

 

Before you spend that much I would suggest buying assistance from a representative who would find humor in your ranking of Trajan over Claudius. Most high end collectors I know use auction agents to help them avoid big mistakes like paying too much for common coins. Many aurei seem to trade hands by private treaty and don't make it into online lists. The problem is finding the person you trust. Within the last month, on of our higher end collectors offered to help suggest appropriate dealers. I am not in the price bracket that makes this desirable and I enjoy the hunt as much as the capture. Were I considering spending $3k or $30k on one coin, I would first find help from someone who does this sort of thing daily.

 

But if it comes in an legitimate NGC or PCGS holder doesn’t that mean they’ve already authenticated it?

I know APMEX sells them like that and they seem to be reputable dealers considering they hit $1 billion+ in yearly sales I can’t really see them risking their own reputation to defraud someone out of a couple hundred/thousand or even $100,000.

 

Last I heard, whilst NGC won't slab anything dubious, they don't guarantee authenticity. Things might have changed?

 

If you are comfortable limiting yourself to only slabbed coins and making your own decisions on the market value of the item based on your own experience, that is your choice.

 

This probably will be of no help to you just now (with the virus), but my experience is that the best way to purchase ancients is to do it at coin shows where reputable and known dealers set up tables. You can examine the coins yourself, have them in hand (very important) and best of all, the prices are below what you can expect for most retail purchases. It's also enjoyable just to walk around and peruse the offerings. Great way to get an education in numismatics, the kind you will get nowhere else.