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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Only a Poor Old Man, post: 4834544, member: 111037&quot;]Something different arrived today...</p><p><br /></p><p>Normally I collect Greek and Byzantine coins. Why? Because I think that the art of Greek coins is second to none, and the Byzantine ones are attractive to me because the history is fascinating and I am also an Orthodox Christian. It was fairly evident from the start that most people collect Roman coins in this forum. I am not sure why, but I think it has to do with the Roman history being so accessible and popular due to movies and such, they are more economical than the Greek ones, and they are easier to read and research due to the Latin alphabet. If my assumptions are wrong, let me know.</p><p><br /></p><p>I often entertained the thought of getting into Roman coins, but I had trouble finding one that spoke to me. Definitely not any imperial ones. The history is fascinating, but as coins I find them a bit lacking as I am used to the Greek art. I was more attracted to the Roman Republic aesthetics and finally I found one that I fancied and at a price a lot more economical to what I am used when I shop for Greek coins. So this is what I got:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1169040[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>Very happy with it... I always wanted a chariot on a coin and there is no way I could get one on a Greek coin in that condition for that price!</p><p><br /></p><p>There was a bit of a shock when I first held it in my hands as the Greek coins I am used to are a lot bulkier and with a high relief. I display some of my coins in those cute floating silicone frames, and this was the first coin that refuses to stay in the middle of the frame as it is so thin. I haven&#039;t done much research on it yet, but it was apparently issued by a &#039;moneyer&#039;&nbsp; (not quite sure how that system worked) called Spurius Afranius of the Afranius family. They were a well known family but not indigenous to Rome from what I found. There is a bit of a debate about the &#039;S&#039; in the front, as it is regarded as a cognomen since there is no dot in front of the &#039;S&#039;.</p><p><br /></p><p>Do I like it? Yes! Will I switch to Romans? No, I like the Greek art better, but hopefully it won&#039;t be my last Roman coin either.</p><p><br /></p><p>Let me know what you think and show me your Republic coins. I am interested to know if anyone here has coins minted by that fella.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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