Roman Denarius

I was wondering if anyone had any information regarding ancient Roman Denarius coins. I see lots of different emperors, obverse and reverse designs from all different centuries. Where can I get a little info about the history and how much they are worth and such, I don't want to start bidding on ebay if I don't know the value. Thanks.

 

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Hey great info thanks a lot! I just bid on a couple Denarii on ebay, end in a few days so let's see what happens.

 

Be careful bidding on ebay so you don't end up with fakes. One of the better places to buy would be VCoins or bid at VAuctions.

 

I agree with AnemicOak, if you are starting out in this field stick to VCoins. Even your local coin shops may not know what they have or how to price them, unless they specialize in ancients.

 

Yes, I like VCoins as well. If you'd like to, post links to the ebay auctions you're looking at and others can give you opinions of them.

 

vcoins all the way

 

I'll just let myself get outbid on ebay and check out the vauctions

 

Please do post if you have any questions. Some of us have been handling ancients for a while & will be glad to answer questions etc.

 

My question would be, well, I see many Denarius coins going for under 20 dollars, some around 50, and some in the hundreds and thousands! I noticed that coins with the emperor Nero are worth a bundle. I know the value depends on supply and demand. If I can get one of these denarii for under 20 bucks that dates in the 3rd century AD or older, regardless of the emperor, VF+, would this be a good deal? A coin thousands of years old for under 20 bucks? I would not bid on a coin before checking the feedback of the seller. Any info is helpful, thanks.

 

Here is an example of what I bid on

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEBTOX:IT&item=290170161366&_trksid=p3984.cTODAY.m238.lVI

If I were to get something like this for under 20 bucks, would that be a good deal? Thanks

Edit: Take a look at this one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...item=320168624224&_trksid=p3984.cWAT.m240.lVI

Went for under 15 bucks, condition is not bad at all.

 

I'll be honest with you, I don't really like the texture of those denarii. It looks too rough to me.

Yes, you will find that certain emperors, such as Nero, will command more money because they are more popular. Lots of things figure into the cost of ancient coins, popularity of the ruler, supply, rarity of the actual coin, rarity of a certain aspect of the coin (such as a left facing portrait on certain sestertii where normally they face right or an uncommon reverse type, etc.), and many other things. But these things don't work the same all of the time.

For example, say you have two coins:

-coin 1- a popular coin from Caligula where 1000 of the coin are known to exist.

-coin 2- a coin of a not-so-popular 4th century emperor where 50 of the coin are know to exist.

You may be able to get coin 2 much cheaper than coin 1 because Caligula is very popular so there is more of a demand for his coins.

 

In that case, I may as well stick with the cheap ones. What determines the popularity of an emperor seems to be random, such as Nero (murdered is own mother, persecuted Christians, is popular why?). I may as well get the cheap ones now since all I am looking for is a piece of history. Who knows, maybe in the future they will become the popular ones or perhaps their rarity will become a factor.

 

Some of the popularity has to do with age, earlier coins are generally not as available. The coins of early emperors (like Nero) are available in much lower quantity. A lot less survived than someone like Severus Alexander. Also more people simply know who Nero was. He may have been a psycho, but his deeds are much more well known.

You seem to be going for Severus Alexander. He's a good emperor for getting a quality coin for a lower price. $15-$20 for the ones you linked to isn't to bad I guess. Not sure about the textured look, some of it could be the photos, some could be a lot of porosity from some kind of chemical cleaning.


Keep in mind for maybe $40-$60 you can get a really high quality coin for Sev Alexander. Here's one I paid $50 for...

 

Just curious, where'd you get it haha? I typically spend no more than 15 dollars on a coin, but something you have shown me there will get me to think otherwise, so I would definitely pay the money for something like that.

Edit: Oh and thanks for the tips

 

I bought it on VCoins. I don't remember which dealer, but can look it up if you want. You can get stuff in your $15ish range. It may be a more worn example, but stuff is out there. My thing is I'd rather have fewer coins of a nicer quality (quality over quantity), but that's just me. There is no right way to collect. It's a matter of finding what you like and not worrying to much about what anyone else thinks. It's your collection after all.

Here's a nice example for $45 http://www.vcoins.com/ancient/kendorney/store/viewItem.asp?idProduct=1539&large=0

 

All good points!

JHar4330, I'm so excited that you are interested in Ancients! They're very cool! You'll have a lot of fun. Don't get discouraged. Buy a few reasonably priced examples and find out what you like. We're all still learning here (as you will see with my other thread about patina colors). If you don't have a dealer nearby that is knowledgeable and reputable in ancient coins, the nice thing about VCoins is that it's much safer to you than ebay, especially when you're just getting started and learning what to look for. Whatever you do, good luck and post your coins when you get them!

 

Hey thanks, I may wait until the next coin show to see what is there. If nothing, then I may buy something from the internet. That is a nice one for $45, I will see.

 

Severus alexander is a good choice. For $100 you can get a really stunning example .

 

Mark Anthony Legionary denari are also very affordable, (albeit in poor condition) if you want something of a more famous character.