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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Sallent, post: 3537391, member: 76194&quot;]I used to have around 150 coins before downsizing to re-adjust the focus of my collection. I currently have 128 coins. The main reason for my readjustment was coming to the realization that ancients is such a broad field (spanning 1000 years and hundreds of kingdoms and empires) that no matter how hard I try, I will never have it all. So I stopped chasing one of each emperor and instead decided to buy whatever coins speak to me. I sold off the ones I didn&#039;t care for, and purchased stuff I actually wanted.</p><p><br /></p><p>Lesson #1: This hobby is not about ticking off boxes or filling holes, but rather a wonderful journey that will take you to places and historical events you never knew existed. All you have to do is set aside your US coin collector type of thinking and let your own conscience, passions, and sense of aesthetic take you to discover things you never expected. This is an adventure,&nbsp; not an accounting seminar.</p><p><br /></p><p>Lesson #2: This hobby can be as expensive or as cheap as you&#039;d like, if you only do your research and get the best value for your budget. There&#039;s plenty of choices at every budget level to satisfy pretty much everyone.</p><p><br /></p><p>Case in point, here&#039;s just a very small portion of the coins which I paid less than $100 for. If you learn and shop wisely, less than $100 can get you some sharp and legible beauties. No need to settle for almost illegible coins that are barely identifiable. </p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]940188[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]940189[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]940190[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]940191[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]940194[/ATTACH] [ATTACH=full]940195[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;ve probably spent $15,000 in 5 years collecting ancients, but that&#039;s because I have expensive tastes. In all honesty, I could have had a collection just as nice and big as the one I have now for less than $5,000. Sure, I wouldn&#039;t be able to have my Julius Caesar, or Marc Anthony, or Seleukos I tetradrachm, etc...but trust me when I say there are tons of beautiful and interesting coins that cost a fraction of any of those coins I mentioned, and far more coins than any of us can count would fit that bill.</p><p><br /></p><p>Which brings me to lesson #3: This is not a competition.</p><p><br /></p><p>No matter how much money you have, there will always be someone out there who can outspend you and make your budget seem insignificant. But we&#039;re not here to compete with each other. Most of us are extremely diehard ancient coin fanatics, and we love it when members share anything from a $5 coin to a $20,000 coin. I&#039;m speaking from personal experience when I say that as much as I enjoy seeing the ultra expensive beauties some here have, I&#039;ve also sat there and drooled over some $30 or $50 coin someone posted in a tread. We are coin junkies, and we love seeing and sharing coins no matter how cheap or expensive they are.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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