Roman Collectors: Your Goal?

I dont really do uncleaned coins - I'm not very good at it, if I see something that 'needs a bit of work' and I want the coin I'll have a go but thats about it.

I started collecting everything Roman, all centuries all people like a headless chicken - then realised I was missing out on the history, the real reason I'm here. I sold most of my collection and started again.


I collect 3rd century radiates because I like them aesthetically.

I collect Constantine Sols because I wanted to study in depth a single coin. I wanted to learn about mints, styles, fieldmarks etc to give me an overall understanding of the subject.

I collect barbarous coins because they're not as well studied as the official coins but possibly more interesting.

I collect 'Invasion coins' (although I only have two) because I like the history associated with them and again I find them aesthetically pleasing. When I get bored of unsuccessfully searching for them I buy a standard Genius follis to keep me happy .

I collect coins from the London Mint as much like the reasons for collecting the Sols it will give me a better understanding of how an overall mint works.

I collect Britannic and Gallic Empire coins as I'm British and its close to home.


All of my areas are 3rd / 4th century, I do intend to start working backwards in time but not until I'm happy I've learned enough to do so. I came for the coins but stayed for the history .

I've set an impossible goal and that is to collect every emperor of the Roman and Byzantine empires. I'm about half way with the Roman emperors and 20 percent on the Byzantine emperors.

I also enjoy working on umcleaned coins, but the prices have gone up so much that I haven't bought any lots lately.

Coins I like at prices I can afford:

Unlike JW I have no idea now many emperors I lack and I have never cared for the idea of collecting a ruler set. I owned a Didius Julianus but sold it in 1972 never to be replaced. I'll never have a Saturninus, Domitian II or a few others so it never seemed important to know the count.

Not long ago I discovered that I have a Falling Horseman from all the possible mints except one (Trier) even though RIC lists one type as common. Part of me wants to complete the set but I'll not be paying extra to get an ugly one. Over the years I have had sequential special interests and a few partial sets have resulted more or less by accident. That happens when you buy coins you find interesting and don't feel the need justify buying a coin because it fits some game plan. I have no idea what my next coin will be but I hope I'll still like it at least a few years after it comes. There are a million different ancient coin varieties. Complete sets don't happen.

The majority of the ancients that I have are from uncleaned lots. I enjoy cleaning them! But many are not identifiable. Moving forward I plan focus on coins with good eye appeal that have full legends. I will probably get more focused as I mature as a numismatist.

My main aim is to just get nice coins at a reasonable price, usually from very reputable dealers or main auctions.

A lesser motive is to get a complete denomination set from all Roman eras:
Republican
Imperial
Late Roman
Roman Colonial

With auctions, I put in low bids and quite often miss out. That is the strategy I use to keep costs under control. If I am lucky, I am very happy with what I get.

As an extension, I am also attempting to build a collection of gold coins, with one coin to represent each main culture, from about 500 BC to just before the Renaissance, around AD 1500. Been at this task for around 30 years.

That collection will never be fully complete, (depends on how a 'culture' is defined, and over what period), but I have a skeleton collection of around 15 coins already.

Attempting to do the same in silver and bronze as well.

My first roman coin was a Vespasian denarius. Since then I'm trying to collect every single denarius design with his bust. I have more than 40 of his coins. And it was maybe 2 or 3 years ago I realized I wanted to have a twelve caesars collection. I'm only 2 shy from this goal.

Caligula and Otho that's right :) I'll make couple of photos and post them here JW no problem