Unwanted Advice for new Ancient coin collectors

Who wouldn't want a cheap coin that's 2000 years old? It's different. That's why I think everybody should have at least one ancient in their collection.

 

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Lol I thought the same when I bought a Septimius Severus but little did I know that one coin would change my focus from U.S. to ancients.

And its the longtime ancient collectors here who have helped keep my interest in them going.

 

I'm going to keep purchasing ancients the only thing that bothers me about them is that there are so many coins to choose from. I need to be able to purchase what I want and when I want. With US you can complete a set fairly inexpensively. With foreign the amount of coins that can be acquired are nearly unlimited.

 

What you wrote, I think, is the advantage of collecting and studying Ancient numismatics. Unlike modern coins, ancient coins don't lend themselves to silly things like registries. Ancient collectors don't feel the the need to slab (entomb) the coins and to "complete a set."

Initially, at least, focus your interest in collecting. Find a theme you like and pursue it.

Possible ideas: emperors' wives, animal or military themes, a specific emperor or era, etc.

I personally like to study the numismatics from a more obscure time period, the Third Century Crisis of Rome.

The real collectors on this site can offer some collecting themes, I am sure.

Read Ancient Doug's numerous posts on the web. Don't be afraid to ask questions here. Although there are several experts on this site, most people are like me--novices who enjoy Ancient numismatics and try to learn more about areas that interest them.

I also advise learning the history behind the coins. Join a non-numismatic site with an Ancient history focus and explore your interests. (I recommend http://www.unrv.com/ but I'm partial.)

Good luck and enjoy,


guy

 

Ways to collect coins follow fashions and the current US fashion need not be related in any way to the current ancient fashion. When asked what I collect, my favorite answer is 'Coins I like at prices I can afford.' After collecting a while (about 50 years), I have been through several changes in fashions. I have completed a set or two (the best being the Legions of Septimius Severus) but I really suggest you all buy coins you like when you see them since there are coins I passed up that I did not see again for years. That happens when there are a million choices. Don't buy something because someone tells you to (that includes me) but because the coin itself speaks to you and says 'buy me'.

 

Yeah, I wouldn't worry too much about finding a specialty early on. Most people don't really find a particular area that really interests them until they've been collecting and/or studying a bit. I started going for the usual one coin from each emperor set*, and as I got more, I found myself particularly drawn to the coins of Vespasian, Gordian III, and Diocletian's tetrarchy.

*If you really feel like you need some framework for collecting ancients, this is actually a pretty good one to start with, at least for the Roman Imperial period. You'll get yourself exposed to range of styles, imagery, fabrics, and denominations (particularly if you set a secondary goal of getting one coin in each denomination like I initially did). Of course, the downside is that if you decide really want to complete it, there are several emperors, like the first two Gordians, that are really, really expensive.

 

they was actually in a little 8X10 frame but they was "released" so I could look at them. May I post them right here? Is that OK? I'll post them in a new reply below and mods if this is an inappropriate please move it or inform me. Thanks!- Jay

 

If you need higher resolution images let me know I'll re-scan them. or maybe an actual camera photo would be better? You tell me. Thank you.
Here are the 2 coins I was talking about. The smaller one (first 2 images) is really thick and looks layered or something.
here is the information tag that was on the back of the frame.





This one looks like it might me an impression of Christ maybe? Not sure. I don't even know front fro back concerning these ancient coins..lol


The information card on the back says BYZANTINE and depicts Constantine S.1853-Fine
Not sure what that means although I am knowledgable about the Byzantine empire & Constantine.

 

The first is a bronze tetradrachm of Alexandria Egypt with Hercules on the reverse. The obverse legend is not very clear. EDIT: I can't read the legend in the photo but if Sear said it is Maximinianus there is no reason to doubt that.

The other is a Byzantine follis with Christ on one side and the two rulers on the other. Again condition makes it less than certain but I'll guess Constantine X and Eudocia.

Neither is rare and coins in poor condition are worth little. The Hercules reverse would make that a slightly better item but I have concern about the light colored areas in the cracks which should be checked to be sure they are not bronze disease which will eventually destroy the coin. Bronze disease is powdery and will flake out easily if poked with a pin. More stable forms of corrosion are harder and will not dislodge easily when probed.

 

Thank you. I am grateful for your knowledgeable information as I am totally clueless on this stuff. I got them for free so I can't complain. I might sell or trade them but unsure as of yet what action to take as they really have no place in my collection.

How old are these? do you know?

 

Is there any website that shows every designed coin of a certain emperor?

Edit:Actually found a great source www.wildwinds.com

 

This is a good page too.

http://www.dirtyoldcoins.com/roman/Roman-Emperors.html

 

Maximianus is late third century AD while Constantine X is 11th.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximianus_(emperor)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constantine_X_Doukas

 

Awesome! You guys/gals RULE!!

 

I still like this link for beginners like I am. This site is useful in identifying late Roman bronze coins from AD 317-498:

http://www.tesorillo.com/aes/home.htm


guy

 

Yeah, Wildwinds is probably the closest site to that, but there are so many different varieties for the vast majority of emperors that it would be almost impossible to to have pictures of all of them. You can also check out AC Search, and there's always dealer sites like Vcoins. There are sometimes sites by people who specialize in certain emperors or periods, such as this one devoted to coins of the tetrarchic period, but it's hard to recommend those unless you give us an idea of which emperors you are particularly interested in.

 

Another resource is www.cngcoins.com. They have their sold coins available for research. Not as large as wildwinds, but you can trust the attributions, something not always true on wildwinds.

 

This thread has turned out to have so much awesome info. Thanks everyone.