How our collections evolved - shifting interests leading us to our present collections

I've been in a reflective phase lately. I suppose retirement leads one to think about the past, with the dictates of holding down a job and dealing with many of life's stresses in the rearview mirror.

Ever since I joined CT, I have been more focused on the individual coins in the collection, often often based on many of the excellent CT threads and posts. Many of the posts are of coins with impressive provenances, while many have been held in collections for many years, even decades.

The foundation of my collecting coins has been a life-long love of history, going back to at least the third grade, when we were studying ancient Greece and the wars with Persia. American history followed, of course. Perhaps the single greatest influence on my interests has been the eleven volume set titled The Story of Civilization, by Will and Ariel Durant. That set, spanning the evolution of western civilization, written in an engaging and sometimes eloquent style, opened up many windows for me, particularly in Roman, Byzantine, medieval, renaissance and modern periods, from the Age of Enlightenment forward.

That was back in the early 1980's (brain fog does not allow me to give specific dates or years any more). At that time I had pretty much liquidated most of my US coins, particularly Morgan and Peace dollars. I still have some US type coins. This was the start of collecting modern world coinage, generally 18th century and earlier, of Europe and Spain's colonies. It was also the start of collecting ancients, in earnest.

Here are some examples of acquisitions from the 1980's - 1990's.

Attica, Athens, tetradrachm, acquired from Haran Berk in 1983.



Double mining thaler, Brunswick-Luneburg Celle, 1662, acquired in 1983.




Oxford, half pound or ten shillings, Charles I, 1643. Acquired in 1985.



AE As, Caligula, Vesta reverse, 37-38 CE, acquired in 1991 at my local coin shop.




30 nummi, Tiberius II Constantine, Cyzicus, 578-582 CE, acquired in 1992, CNA XIX.



8 reales, Philip II, Segovia, 1590, acquired locally in 1992.




From around the mid-90s through the 2010s I my focus changed almost entirely on Spanish colonial and mainland coinage. Additionally, the purchase of the house in 1993 meant the liquidation a a good portion of the collection, particularly Roman coins and world crowns, to help raise funds for the down payment.

8 escudos, Ferdinand VI, Lima, 1750, acquired in 1994.



50 reales, Philip IV, Segovia, 1635, acquired from Superior Galleries in 1997 (note: acquiring this coin required more coins from the collection to be sold. Ironically, this was the year that both my wife and I were fired from our positions. This happened after winning the lot at auction!)



Come around 2017, a change in focus again. I guess I was getting bored with the Spanish colonial coins. Unless you are a specialist, collecting by variety/date/mint, it is fairly easy to grow a good, representative set of these coins. So, back to ancients, with an emphasis on owls....

Attica, Athens, tetradrachm, Starr Group V, acquired in May 2020.



Attica, Athens, archaic tetradrachm, circa 500-480 BCE, acquired from Kirk Davis, 2021.




Please share your story about your collection, and how it evolved over time.

Thanks

 

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Such handsome coins,
robinjojo you should be very proud of this collection.
Très bon,
J.T.

 

Very nice indeed

 

@robinjojo - great coins, but would love to see more of your Greek Silver Tetradrachms, i think you shared Arethusa and Hieron Tetradrachms before, anything like these to share that we haven’t seen earlier?
Thanks

 

Thank you.

I am interested in how other collections changed, or more or less stayed the same over time. Lots of things happen that causes us to focus on areas of interest. I am giving a broad brushstroke in my case. Other collectors have a much more specialized focus, in specific areas. It would be interesting to see other accounts.

My case I guess is somewhat typical, starting, actually with the purchase of a 50 pesos bullion gold coin in 1975. My first world crown purchase was at the coin and stamp department at Hudson's Department Store in downtown Detroit. It was a rather common 8 reales, Ferdinand VII, 1821 (I think) of Mexico. That got the ball rolling for me. US coins followed, replaced by world and ancient coins in subsequent decades.

I have found that returning to ancients is a very fulfilling pursuit. In terms of history, artistry, variety and "new frontiers" to explore, this part of numismatics is hard to beat.

 

Thank you.

I might have one or two more Syracusan tetradrachms to photograph, and the owls are numerous to say the least.

I would love to see other examples of these beautiful, iconic and historic coins.

 

The Arethusa and Hieron that you shared earlier are superb, particularly toning. Is this a result of coin-cabinet storage in Cupertino, CA in the last 15+ years?
Any Other Tetradrachms to share? PTOLEMIES OR Seleucus? Thank you

 

I almost think your Attica, Athens, tetradrachm, Starr Group V is a group IV with the slight upward curve in the hairline above the eye.

 

robinjojo, I think the numismatic road we traveled is very similar . Anyone who has been a coin collector/numismatist for a long time, & I'm thinking 20 years or more, will experience an evolution & changing interests. My interest in ancient coins has changed in the last 5 years, from classical art & portraiture to the abstraction of Celtic & Barbarian coinage. I think change is a good thing . You have a lovely selection of coins . That 50 reales coin from Philip IV is breathtaking !

 

The Agathokles tetradrachm came to me somewhat toned. It was stored in a yellow, cotton lined 2x2 envelope for probably about 30 years, so I guess the present color of the coin is due to air and moisture. I live in a pretty arid climate. There used to be really wet winters with pretty good humidity, but now every season is more or less dry.

I did take some snaps of a Ptolemaic tetradrachm, a recent acquisition.

Ptolemaic Kingdom, 285 - 246 BC
Ptolemy II Philadelphus
AR tetradrachm
Cyprus Mint
Obverse: Diademed head right, in aegis.
Reverse: Eagle standing left on thunderbolt.
Reference: J. N. Svoronos, plate 18a, 6. # 401.
Good centering, minor scratches obverse.
Scarce.
Good VF

13.6 grams

 

I'm not much in a mood to type too much (a bad car day today), so feel free to ask whatever if I'm not too clear.

I've made great connections and learned many things (mostly from folk here, and my own intuition) but specifically, my view of this hobby changed intensely in late 2019, mere months after my joining here.

@dougsmit - bless his heart, sent me a gift. This gift, was actually many gifts in one box. In fact, I received TWELVE roman coins, something which I had not delved into earlier because the inconsistency of flan quality, etc made it hard to judge authenticity as a know-nothing like I was at that time. I've picked up a bit since

Here are two of the coins from Doug I have photos of right now.. all ten coins I treasure immensely and plan to keep forever. The generosity of men like him is seldom seen nowadays, it appears.

First is Trajan Decius, second Septimus Severus. Thanks for reading.

 

Very nice coins, Al.

That Hellenistic tetradrachm at the lop is absolutely beautiful!

Ancients coins are truly individual. No two coins are exactly the same, and the styles, from period to period and region, range from the classical to abstract renditions resembling abstract and expressionist art.

 

My experience and trip certainly mirrors my own back story. I finished the last of what I wanted to accomplish by completing a US type set in the hand brown folder.
I too was fascinated with history especially ancient Greece and Rome. I couldn't wait till I too would get the world history book in the 4th grade. Collected US right out of circulation in the 50s and on ward into the 80's

After the type set adventure I discovered ancients and most importantly, Byzantine bronze coinage punched my ticket to new adventures in numismatics. What a hobby that opens such journeys. Robinjojo, thank you for your story and post.

 

..i have to say that my collecting horizons broadened when i became a member of CT also...their knowledge, coins, kindness and even sense of humor have made it much more enjoyable..thanks gang! ..here's one example(of many) of their influence on me..heck ..before CT, i really didn't care about reverses..or hippos..and a 'thanks' to @Roman Collector esp on this'un!.

 

To me it truly invested me in Rome and it's reach. Particularly in the second century. Really enjoying learning more. My new favorite.

 

It is sort of difficult to, in a few words, try to discuss the changes in my collection a process that has continued for almost fifty years and counting. Like many I started collecting Roman imperial antoninianii, denarii, as well as late Roman aes. Over time I amassed a reasonable number. In 1984 I began to purchase coins from the Roman Republic and in 1986 started collecting Greek coins. I remained a generalist, however over time I started a series of sub collections. The first was the Colonial mint of Carrhae in Mesopotamia. This ended in 2005. However I began to study a rather diverse range of subjects which included
1. Roman Denarii and Antoninianii minted in the east
2. Roman Colonial mints of Nicopolis ad Istrum, Marcianopolis, Petra, Tarsus, Amphipolis, and Aelia Capitolina.
3. Roman Colonial silver issues minted at Rome for circulation in the east
4. The coinage of Constantine I (at one time I had over 200 coins) Generally speaking I was not all that interested in scarce Roman emperors but was a lot more interested in the coins whose reverses celebrated important political or military events. In 2015 my collection peaked at something like 3500 coins. At that point I had a major change of focus. A number of factors more or less came together at the same time that forced me to reevaluate what I was doing. So I decided that I would dispose of most of my coins and create a smaller collection. The best coins I kept and the rest I let go using the money raised to buy more iconic coins. This group I refer to as my "teaching collection" and I use them when I give educational seminars. Currently the collection is now about 600 coins divided more or less evenly between Greek and Roman coins. However I have no t given up on all my
specialist enquiries. Those of you who follow the "Saturday Night Free for All" will note that I have been posting a rather large number of posts on the coinage of the Macedonian Kings. Currently I am attempting to fathom the massive issue of drachms minted in the name of Alexander from the mints of Asia Minor. I am also looking at the Mass coinage Athenian Owls from the period covered by Flament III. However I still buy books on any and all areas of research on ancient numismatics. I feel that perhaps in the future it might be possible that I might wish to delve into another area of ancient coins in more detail.
Tetradrachm of Alexander III Babylon 325-323 BC Obv Beardless head of Herakles in lionskin headdress. Rv. Zeus Aetophoros seated left. Price 3629 17.14 grms 25 mm Photo by W. Hansen This is not a tetradrachm the first issue which is covered in detail by Lloyd Taylor in the AJN 2018. However in his article he does indicate that the first issue may have taken a very short period of time to strike. If this is the case then this issue may not have commenced until 324 BC. The monogram below the throne as well as the M are also seen on the issue of Dekadrachms minted at Babylon as well.

 

Thanks for sharing your story @robinjojo
It's interesting how the wind blows our needs and desires this way and that.
I started out a traditionalist:




Then moved on to the next generations:



To the end of the line...


And beyond:


Jk, I started out with coins my dad kicked down to me. Most of the twelve Caesars, my first ATG Drachm and English coins.
Much like him I love most all ancient coins, with a eye for artistry and historical meaning.
Or more simply, anything that catches my eye

 

Thank you, Terence. That's an impressive background and scholarly as well. I well understand the issue of being over-diversified in your holdings, and I admire your discipline and focus.

The whole study of eastern coinage is one that I find fascinating, due to the diversity of coinage, kingdoms and rulers, along with the relationships the eastern Mediterranean had with the west, notably Rome. Sometimes I pick up an interesting Roman provincial coin, but with no overall "game plan". I guess someone down the line with scratch his or her head and try to figure out the panoply of coins constituting my collection. Good luck!

Trying to collect the complex and extensive coinage of Alexander III and his successors is a very challenging undertaking.

I really like the tetradrachm. It is quite similar to one that came recently from Israel, which I think is from Babylon, that's the coin on the left. This coin is porous from burial and it weighs 15.3 grams. It is a later issue, with Zeus's right foot bent back behind the left. The other coin is an owl, of course, possibly imitative, acquired from a German dealer.




Where do you conduct the seminars?

 

Thank you.

Nice coins, and I clearly see what you mean by traditionalist.

My dad used of operate juke boxes at various restaurants in Detroit, mostly burger joints like Big Boy. His arrangement with the owners was on a 50-50 basis for the money out of the boxes. I remember helping him count the coins, all of them silver back then, except for the nickels of course. I was really interested in the old dimes, and quarters, but we didn't keep any of them, they were, in part, some of the money that put food on the table. This income was a sideline for my dad, however. Both he and my mother were full time teachers.

I guess, if there are roots to an eventual collection, that would be it.

 

Thank you.

Yes, Byzantine coins provide a window on a world in which the west was in decline, the so-called dark ages. How "dark" they were is a subject of much discussion, but clearly literacy was on the decline. The Byzantines inherited the torch passed on by Rome, as reflected by their bronze and gold coinage.

I have collected Byzantine coins, admittedly on and "on and off" basis since the late 1980s. Lately, I have enjoyed the group lots of Byzantine bronzes coming out of auction. Some very nice coins are to be had, if you know what to look for.