Beginner question = What are the commonest Medieval coins that are interesting to collect?? I am looking for the medieval equivilents of "Late Roman Bronzes", that is relatively inexpensive and diverse & COOL!!. Thanks, Bill
Austrian pfennigs, but they're a bit ugly. English pennies of Edward I are also quite affordable. But there really is no equivalent.
This. If you want something that's really unusual to modern eyes, try getting youself some Byzantine trachys. I always find it amusing to get the "...is it supposed to be all bent like that?" reaction when I show them to people.
I have been into Byzantine bronze coins for some time, but I don't yet have any trachy. I was thinking about european coins from 1000-1650AD. On another board I was told to look into Venetian "dogs" & medieval deniers. Any other suggestions or photos of these coins?? Thanks again, Bill
Don't bother to collect late Roman bronzes, waste of time in my opinion! A common king for medieval hammered would be Henry III/Edward I/II/III and all reasonably cheap! EDITED - Read the rules
Frank is right. Late Roman bronzes are ugly. Nobody should collect then. They lack an artistic essence that is only truly captured in the repetitious, modular portraiture of 13th and 14th century England. *sarcasm* Licinius I AE 3 – 20mm, 3.1g Siscia, 319-320 AD IMP LIC-INIVS AVG Laureate bust r., bit of drapery on lr. shoulder VICT • LAETAE PRINC PERP Victories inscribing shield with VOT PR on altar with “I” ASIS * in ex RIC VII 96 var. - Just kidding. I love medieval coins too. They're equally as artistic, but in entirely different ways. Alexander III Kingdom of Scotland AR Penny, 1280-1286 AD + ΛLЄXΛNDЄR DЄI GRΛ Crowned head l., scepter to l. RЄX SCO TOR VM + long cross; mullet of six points in each angle Burns 44 (fig. 178); SCBI 35 (Ashmolean & Hunterian) 216-9; SCBC 5054 Unfortunately, decent looking medieval coins from interesting periods tend to be well out of the "cheap" price range. One may still find some okay coins in the $50-100 range though. Also, I've noticed that those cruddy, low price hammered coins tend to bring higher prices than they should in the US. UGLY HAMMERED PENNY Elizabeth I AR Penny London mint, 1560-1561 AD Queen crowned facing left E D G ROSA SINE SPINA Square shield on long cross fourchée dividing the legend, Martlet mintmark CIVITAS LONDON Spinks 2558
Thankyou, I think you could make a decent amount of money over a few years if you invest in hammered and you can pick up a nick condition hammered for £10 and I've seen VF Roman bronze going for £10, there just not worth it! English hammered silver all the way!
Don't you Blaspheme!!!!!!!! I have ordered my 1st Spinks' English coin book and I'll contact you after I do some studying.
While I'm not suggesting anyone specialize in a set them by mints and varieties, collectors located in the New World and seeking an old coin might want a blanca of Ferdinand and Isabella. These are common and cheap unless you find one that is full legend and well struck. The date of c. 1500 may be a bit late to be called medieval. Russian wire silvers are available cheap if you stick to the common ones (and very expensive if you go for the rare stuff). - Ivan the Terrible If one is interested in the world outside the home continent, there are a lot of interesting Eastern coins in the low price brackets including pre-Islamic Asian silver much cheaper than things of the same period from Europe. - Kumaragupta Well made and dirt cheap are coppers of Kashmir c.1000 AD - Didda Rani (a very interesting lady)
I forgot to mention that there is what I consider a good book for beginners (like me) in early world coins. Early World Coins and Early Weight Standards by Robert Tye is a very edited overview of coins that circulated in Europe and Asia before the advent of machine made coins. Its catalog section only has about 5 pages of ancient Greek and Roman and a half page of medieval English so those who think those are the only coins worth collecting will want to avoid the book like the plague. More of the coins are common and selected because they played a part in history but that includes, for example, five listings of low end English gold. Listings are coded according to price so looking through the book for things marked 'L' will guide the cheap collector to his coins. In addition to the catalog section, there is a lot of very good text explaining the economics of the world as it related to coins. It is more for the student of numismatics than for the collector trying blindly to fill his penny book. The book was published in the UK but is available in the US (about $30) if you look hard enough.
I collect coins because I love them for what they are but the point of investing in something goes into it as well.
I find that money spent on coins doesn't get spent on more depreciative assets (like computer games) and overpriced drinks (which are about as depreciative as an asset gets!!!).....