Aelius Caesar Denarii.

Interesting,and thanks Chris ,anyone feel free to give any advice.

I'd go the first one. Everything is (marginally) 'crisper' and cleaner.
Coins are not photographs and although I agree with Med that coin # two bears a better likeness, I would still stay with Ski and go with # one.

(Story deleted in the interests of 'Political Correctness', and my sincere apologies to anyone who may have been offended.)

I would have to go with #1 also.

I can see your point. At least the portrait looks like him on that coin.

I think I will pick up the second coin in the following weeks. Thanks guys , my collection would not be as big as it is without you. Ironically Aelius Caesar died on 1 January 138 , 1876 years ago tommorow .

How come nobody has asked about the weight of these coins? Just a suggestion to help. First, do as much research as possible before posing the question to others about whether a coin is good or not (not sure if you know the weight or not, so no disrespect, just trying to help everyone out here). The unbroken rule in ancient coin collecting, when buying online, is, never buy a coin online without a given weight or size unless your 100% sure of the coin. Die axis is not as important as it was, as forgers figured that part out long ago and many coins were not struck to an axis standard. By doing this, you reduce your chances by 50% or greater of obtaining a fake by buying a coin of an accepted weight. Fakes are probably no more than 20% of the market and mostly come from the same places and same sellers. To not check weight and size, is at the risk of the buyer. Any respectable dealer will provide the weight when asked when it is not provided. The Aelius (Hadrian, group B) will typically weigh in the 3-3.6 gram range (mostly around 3.2gms). Some can weigh lower depending on the condition of the coin. We have seen genuine coins as as low as 2.6 gram range but those are not the standard and need to be further evaluated. If needed, the seller will also be able to provide the provenance of the coin (where it came from) and provide it in writing. Having it in text or email is fine. If the coin has been consigned, some consigners, due to policy, do not allow their identity to be known. In most cases a dealer/seller will help you out. We have sold/sell many coins from museums, which due to policy, we can only say they came from a museum if asked. For other coins we can say came from X, Y or Z. Ground finds are almost always a concern. Some come from auctions and collections and often there is no provenance mentioned, which is ok, unless needed. Sellers should also provide a lifetime guarantee (Certificate of Authenticity's are basically worthless unless from a select few and unless every dealer accepts them) that if the coin was to be found not genuine it is returnable for a full refund regardless of how long ago it was purchased. Anytime a listing says no returns, its best to pass. Regarding price, The Aelius coins average well above $300 for a denarius on average and the price on these appear to be at 2012 prices. Rare coins appreciate in price and dredge does not. I can't comment on authenticity though. You should be able to contact the dealer directly and make the decision to buy or not to buy together. Get the weight, get some further info etc. FYI, the RIC 436 is probably the most common of the Aelius silver issues so the other is rarer. Which to choose, it's a matter of preference but rarer is typically better when it comes time to sell. Disclaimer, we do not know the seller and have not ever dealt with them but one would think being on VCOINS is good with the code of ethics. Hope this helps and hope the point gets across that nobody should ever purchase a coin online before knowing the weight, ever. Happy new year, everyone!!!!!!!!!! May your Ancients rise in value in 2015. It should be another good year as there are not that many great collections coming to market next year. Just look at the NYINC auctions compared to years past. Although, CNG has some powerful coins.

ancientgalleon: good stuff.
also, to the CCF!
To make the reading your posts easier, paragraph into no more than about 4 lines each, if you can.

Interesting comment ancientgalleon and correct to point. Weight is very important and as you say should be one of the questions asked when buying on line especially on the more rarer types.