Want To Start Collecting Roman Coins.

You've picked an awesome area of coin collecting! I would suggest buying from reputable dealers with 100% positive feedback and a clear return policy when buying off ebay. There is so much to Roman Imperial coins that I can understand it being a little overwhelming at first, so picking and going after a partIcular series of coins may be helpful, but you don't have to do this. And one of the best parts of collecting ancients: you don't need a huge budget to make a large and impressive collection; many nice ones can be bought for cheap. Good luck in collecting Roman coins

Welcome, not only to Ancient coin collecting but to this discussion forum as well. The advice already provided is good advice. I would add that you shouldn't feel overwhelmed by the prospects. I might suggest if you plan to buy off ebay, find a coin you like within your budget and post it here for others to comment. We all have opinions (like certain body parts), but we will give you honest straight forward opinions. Ask if the coin is authentic, good value, rarity, etc. Just ask questions. You'll soon find you can select coins and have a ton of fun while you're at it. There are those on this forum who will tell you to buy books and study up, and you should get some good reverence materials. But, for the fun of the game, find a coin you like first. That's how I got started, as did many others on this forum. I, we, will be watching for your posts. Good luck.

Stick around, and you'll get plenty of helpful advice from collectors here!

Zenoctilles: Welcome to the CCF! There are quite a few friendly guys here in the CCF who are ready to help you when it comes to ancient coins.

My first ancient coin was a denarius bought from a reputable dealer in Sydney.
My first Greek coin ia a gold stater of Philip 11 of Macedon which came from Spinks in London.

For my early purchases I never trusted my own judgement regarding authenticity. With the experience I now have, I can buy ancient silver and bronze coins with confidence, but I still do not trust myself when it comes to ancient gold coins.

When it comes to ebay, Sap is 100% correct, both positive and negative. Know your seller by his established reputation first.

So how do you find out about ancient coins?

Read as much as you can on the subject first. I borrowed all of the library books I could find and I read them all. With the first two coins, I had some hardware to relate to, while I read. That makes the reading very interesting, rather than a dry academic subject. Borrowed library books won't cost you anything. If you want a particular book and the library hasn't got it, get it on an inter library loan.

I then started buying cheap late Roman bronzes, and my collection has grown from that. One of the highlights of my collecting experience was to spend a day in the safe room of the Coins and Medals Department of the British Museum. A written application for an appointment had to be made for that, but I was living in England on an extended two year holiday at the time.

My ancients collection numbers about 200 pieces, most of them of relatively low value, studded with a few 'stars'. It has taken be over 30 years to build it to this point, thus far, I have about a dozen or so good quality reference books on ancient coins.

There quite a few good websites on ancient coins: VCOINS, WILDWINDS, and FORVM ANCIENT COINS. There is also some very good information to be had on the forgery of ancient coins, CALGARY COINS and TESORILLO being two of them.

If you wish to start your collection off with a nice coin for not too much money, an antoninianus (double denarius) of Gordian 111 would be a good way to start. A quite attractive example of one of these could be had for around $30 t0 $40. As Sap has implied buy it from a dealer. He would be able to explain much more about it for you than an ebay listing could, and you could examine it in hand before deciding to buy. You can't do that on ebay!

Wow--I cannot begin to imagine what that was like! No doubt, an unforgettable experience.

Zenoctilles .........

Here is a link to a hub where you will find links to many, if not most of the best sites about ancients coins on the web.

http://www.cariboucoins.com/linkhub.php

Vcoins is probably the best list of dealers around the world. If you do decide to go to ebay anyhow, there are a few good, trustworthy, honest dealers there as well.. I would recommend Den of Antiquity, Mastermust, Lucernae, Forum coins, Palma Collections, Ancient Treasures, romae_aeternae_numismatics, Frank Robinson, and HJB Coins to name a few. I have never been disappointed from any of the above, nor have I ever had any doubts about authenticity. Everyone of the above guarantee the coins they sell to be genuine. Good luck.

as everone has said, you've come to the right place. I don't think I would have really got into ancient coins if I hadn't come by this forum.