Ancient Coin Collectors?

OK, I'm not talking about you guys & gals. As most of you may already know, I do not currently have any ancients & have little practical knowledge in that arena, HOWEVER, I do love seeing the incredible specimens posted, including the write ups, & follow this forum almost daily.

I am impressed by the survivors (ones which appear to have seen much service), as well as the specimens which are so pristine they look like they were minted a mere 2000 yrs ago .

Which for me begs the question, when do you think the first coins were collected merely for collecting? I'm not talking about hoarding coins, I'm talking about actual collecting for the sake of collecting specimens or sets in the ancient world. Has anyone read or seen anything that can pinpoint when it started? Is there/has there been any mention in manuscripts, ledgers, etc. which may indicate existence of an actual "collection(s) or collector(s)" back in the day?

I wouldn't know where to start looking for this info, but figured someone may have run across mention of it somewhere.

Thanks, Steve

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Augustus Caesar is rumored to have collect Greek coins, which at his time were already hundreds of years old.

 

As far back as ancient Greek times, some texts have survived from ancient writers containing exerpts that go into specific details of coins, which leads me to believe as early as 300-400 BCE there were people around with an interest in coins that went beyond just money. If I had to guess, the first numismats (in Europe anyways) began shortly after the first coins in Europe were minted around 750 BCE.

Not sure about the history of numismatics in ancient India and China. Maybe someone else can shed light on that. I wouldn't doubt it if someone told me Emperor Wang Mang was an ancient coin collector, with his unhealthy obsession with coinage in general.

 

I'm pretty sure I started the hobby and these folks are kinda just tagging along

 

@PlanoSteve you gotta get just one...

 

Wait! We have one on this very forum! Doug is an ancient ancient coin collector!

 

Unless I have lost count, we have had posts here from half a dozen people who have collected longer than I and I am not even certain what year I started. I do admit enjoying hearing modern collectors talk about ancients thinking the term appropriate for US 90% silver but that is another story.

 

In Europe the hobby really took off during the Renaissance, when collecting ancient Greek and Roman coins became fashionable with the nobility. In eighteenth century England no gentleman could be caught without a wooden coin cabinet containing Greeks and Romans.

 

@PlanoSteve , I believe collecting probly started about the same time FORGERIES were produced (Fourees). I would say 10 minutes after someone pounded out some coins! Unfortunately there are TWO sides of Human Nature...

Although the Western World started minting coins approx what, 2700 years ago, I believe Ancient China had coins from over 3000 years ago.

LOL, so my my final answer is: 10 minutes after the first coin was produced.

Wow, this is my 50th Year collecting coins. In the US (since everything is so young to History), we consider that an "Antique".

My collecting Hobby is now Ancient.

One of my Grandsons is named Apollo, and here is one of my oldest coins...


Iona Kolophon AR Tetartemorion 530-520 BCE Archaic Head of Apollo Incuse Punch 0.15g 4.5mm- SNG Kayhan 343

 

The Asyut Hoard was buried circa 475 BC and had much more variety than you would expect.

I feel it was either someone's coin collection or a reference collection for a money-changer.

 

ahaha! you crack me up ><

 

For a second I thought that was Doug talking...

 

i was reading up on that the other day and it seems like Petrarch(1304-1374) is credited with this honor amongst others

 

Very Interesting......So would it be correct to say that the first ancient collectors were into their "Modern Coinage"

 

Sorry, @dougsmit I think you often get conflated with @GDJMSP although you are a chic with the shell on its head compared to Fred Fl...uh The Other Doug...

 

David Hendin has a paper on Academia.edu discussing a Bar Kochba-era hoard found within an oil lamp that seems to have been a collection. Worth a read if you're interested in questions like this.

 

Clain-Stefanelli notes that some third century BC pots depict fifth century BC coins, as evidence of early interest in coins. There are few sources before Petrarch, but reasonable to assume coins were collected from the earliest days. Fine line between hoarding/saving/collecting. Some early coins seem to be designed to be kept and treasured, like the great dekadrachms. It's been said that some coins, like the great 'three sisters' sestertius of Caligula, are so well preserved they're likely to have been treasured since antiquity.

 

For someone in ancient times who was wealthy enough to save them, ancient coins were the state quarters of the day. Each city/govt producing its own designs under its own name. It's not surprising the wealthy would collect them, like a world coin collector or state quarter collector today.

 

And therein lies the problem...."just one"....it appears to me that's not possible! (Seriously, I plan to in the near future. I just want to see it in hand before buying the first one.)