Hi everyone, I am new into coin collecting and new to the forum, so sorry in advance if I did anything wrong here. I bought these two coins from Vcoins and I just wanted to know what you guys think of them on terms of legitimacy and quality. I also just want to learn some tips and recommendations you guys have when it comes to collecting as well, specifically Roman ancients. I hope the images are fine enough! Here are the coins: GETA CAESAR AR silver denarius. Struck circa 202-208 AD. P SEPTIMIVS GETA CAES, bare headed bust, draped & cuirassed, right. Reverse - PROVID DEORVM, Providentia standing left, holding wand and scepter, globe at feet. RIC IV.I 51. RSC 170. 18.5mm, 2.9g CARACALLA AR silver denarius. Rome, AD 210-213. ANTONINVS PIVS AVG BRIT, laureate head right. Reverse - PROVIDENTIAE DEORVM, Providentia standing left, holding wand over globe and sceptre. RIC 227. 18.5mm, 3.3g. I got them from Incitatus Coins and I briefly browsed some old forum posts saying how legitimate he is, so I absolutely have no worries on that end but its cool to get some opinions. Steve was great to order from and I definitely recommend.
Great start! Geta looks great. Sad story fir the little guy getting murdered by big bro Caracalla. caracalla got what was coming, by getting murdered in turn while on the side of the road taking a leak. Karma
Firstly You've come to the right place to share and view Severan coinage. We have some dedicated collectors on here. Here's my kiddo Geta before the whole being murdered by his own brother in his mom's arms thing:
I have a VERY nice denarius for Caracalla, a gift during Secret Saturn 2018. I have yet to get a good silver denarius of the lil bro, but I have this billon limes variant. For good measure, one of the dad too:
Congrats with the new old coins and a new fun hobby! I think it’s a good idea to start with the first half of the 3rd century with the denarius collection, because many of the coins from that era can be had fairly cheap. So if you make some kind of mistake, it’s not THAT bad. The coins you’ve bought now look fine, though, so no worries. Nice Caracalla! As for collecting tips and strategies, you will hear a lot of different opinions. Some are minimalists, and prefer a small collection of high end coins. Others prefer a large variety of coins, and are ok with lowering the standard on quality a little. It’s probably a good idea to consider what you want your collection to look like in 5, 10, 15 years. Do you have any specific goals?
Thanks for the compliment on the Caracalla! I dont have many goals on the collection, just like you said, a hobby since I'm in love with Roman history, I'm just about to graduate from my undergrad, so I thought to spend a little money on the side of my part time job on a new hobby. I think my short term goal would be the Severan line for the while. What do you think?
Severans are an easy like to collect. They are generally not too expensive and are readily available. My 7 Sev only cost a little over $30! The females of the line are a bit expensiver, but I think you’ll have great fun with the Severans. if you’re interested in some big bronzes, check out provincials of the Severans. They’re often cheaper and have incredible reverses!
I think that sounds like a good plan. Severus Alexander and Elagabalus are in the same price bracket, and Gordian III, Phillip I&II, and many of the later emperors are very availible too. One of my collecting goals is one silver coin from each emperor. I use the list from britannica.com: https://www.britannica.com/topic/list-of-Roman-emperors-2043294
Yup! Im sure the Severans would be really fun to collect. I have two coins out there in mind one of which is getting these two boys their father, and the other is a dual portrait of Geta and Caracalla I saw while browsing Vcoins - it was more on the expensive side of things so it might be the crown of the collection.
Those confronted bust coins are a bit expensive for my taste. I'll stick with bottom feeder ones instead, like Caracalla and Domna:
Pretty cool, is this one of the provincial ones you spoke about? And do you have more of Julia Domna?
There are lots of silver coins available of Septimius Severus's wife Julia Domna at reasonable prices. Here are some I own -- young, middle-aged, and old. (The reverses of the first two show, respectively, Domna as Isis nursing the infant Horus, and as Cybele with a lion at her feet.)
My best Severan provincial is this one, of Septimius Severus. with a nice temple reverse. My only singular Julia Domna is this rather roached example: She's too expensive for me!
These are nice! Especially the Severus, I like the natural aging and coins with the temples. Also you and me both! Her coins are pricey.
If you find Domna too pricey, you could look into a limes denarius. They're not silver (or at least not fine silver), but they were made from the same dies. Limes tend to be a LOT cheaper than an equivalent silver denarius. This limes of 7Sev is worth like $10; the equivalent silver version is worth more like $50+