I tried a half dozen times to get a better picture, but that's the best I can up with... It's probably about 8-12 mm in diameter and near impossible to photograph. Here's a slightly cropped version... What is a bankers mark?
It's priced at 20 euro, which is likely over priced for what it is unless there's something remarkable I'm missing.
A bankers mark was made to test the coin for purity and/or to see if it was solid. If you really want the coin, that is a good price. However, you may have "Newbie" fever where you are looking to buy any ancient coin because your are so excited about this hobby. I know - I had it. I bought whatever ancient I could afford.
I would step back and find an area you are interested in and start from there. It is ok to buy what you can afford, but when making the purchase think about if it would be something that needs upgrading later. Often times, if you wait a bit longer and save, you can get a coin that will be in your collection for years.
Thank you very much for the advice and suggestion. I completely agree with you. I collect in other areas ( I also buy and sell a lot); my areas of buying and selling are steins, chess sets, playing cards, zippos, and south east Asian lacquer. I've also played with some other areas...
The thing is, living in Rome, I come across a lot of things outside of my area... Coins are one of them. I own literally two numismatic coins, the Nero and 1800 large cent that I posted on this site. I think I got both for a very good price. I am doubtful I will delve too deep into coins, but I like learning about new areas and, if the financial investment isn't much, it's interesting to hold a piece of history. Does that make sense? If picking in my normal areas is slow, it's nice to have something else (coins etc) to spice it up. 20 euro ($23) for an interesting 2000 year old coin intrigues me. I don't think I'll want to be 500 euro into a much better coin; the sensation and experience of the coin seems about the same for me ...
Although, if I saw a few beautiful specimens in person at much higher prices ... I might feel differently &
He does great videos. I have watched a few of his. I completely agree with his premise. As I mentioned in a few posts, I buy and sell a lot . . . and I have seen the short term gains from doing this. I also have a number of collecting areas that I cherry pick items and keep for the permanent collection so to speak. I understand that idea that 1 item worth $10,000 is much better than 10 times worth $1,000.
I guess I am just thinking out loud here, but I am not sure I want to add ancient coins to my more expensive hobby set.
To make a long post thread longer . . . I suppose the utility I receive from such an item is less the monetary gain - although that is nearly all the utility I receive from other areas of collectibles - and more the unquantifiable enjoyment of something. An example is a small late-Roman ceramic serving dish I found while scouting here. I had the item verified - not certified - but verified by two archealogists of Roman era sites; it is one of my favorite pieces. It's worth more than I paid, but certainly not worth a lot. It is intact and has black varnish and paint remenants; I enjoy holding it and feeling a connection to the long ago time. The monetary and investment potential is less than that connection; I would also feel differently if I paid $150-200 for the item vs finding it and 'discovering it' so to speak.
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Posted 12/30/2021 08:37 am
. I bought whatever ancient I could afford. 
