Choosing One Ancient Coin?

Hi Ben, Roman for sure and silver. Main reason I say graded is because of my inexperience and there are some very deceptive fakes these days. Looking for a good coin with character and eye appeal. I am used to high grade ms and proof examples, but I do see that ancients are much different.

I know normally the advice would be to study the coins first, much as I have done with jeffersons over the years. However I am looking only for one good example

We can generally help you avoid the fakes. With your budget, you can afford to buy from a respected dealer which will not just assure you that the coin is real, but it will also assure others that it is real if you need to sell up in the future.

Roman silver comes in many forms. The earliest coins are decidedly graecian in style and in good grade fall outside your budget, as do the earliest romanising coins. However, the republic produced many very inventive coin types and these can be had in mint state for such money. Heres a run down of typical republican denarii:

This sold for $45:


This sold for $480:


$85:


$140:


$95:


As you can see, there are quite a variety of designs for the republic and quite a variety of prices. Take a look through a google image search for 'roman republic denarius'.

Augustus transformed the Republic into the empire and coinage styles would, from then on, display the likeness of the emperor (very few had been bold enough to put their face on the money in republican times). The height of artistry is the early empire, but interesting silver types are issued until the fall of the western empire. Best way to see these is to look at individual emperors (I recommend the website Wildwinds.com).

Heres a $120 of Philip I which celebrates the 1000th year of Rome:


This smiley fellow is Postumus, a usurper in Gaul in the late 3rd century whose coins are readily available in high grade for low prices, but getting it from a dealer will set you back more. This one is $100, which is probably 4-5x its actual value:


Or perhaps another layer of usurpers down - this coin was issued by Aureolus in the name of Postumus to try to convince him to come help fight the roman army which was besieging Aureolus in Milan after he revolted. $90:


And here's an earlier coin of the Emperor Domitian, listed for $225:


Later in the empire, the coins get much thinner and the artistry goes to pot. Heres an (overpriced) siliqua for $250:


There is also the possibility of getting graecian silver from the roman provinces - these can be larger and more impressive but are also typically more expensive. Here's a $450 Cistophorus (25mm, 10g or so):



Or a later empire tetradrachm from Antioch:



Heres a tetradrachm from Macedonia under Roman rule, $475:



Exactly $500, a tetradrachm of Trajan with Hercules on the back:



That's enough random coins for one post I'm sure - my point is, Roman silver is very varied! The character of Rome was also subject to a lot of change over the years. If you do a bit of cursory reading to get the gist of Roman history, you might find a period that sticks out to you or an emperor you find particularly interesting. Perhaps you'll spot an interesting coin type while reading too.

The second coin and the third from last appeal to me more than the others. The second one appeals to me more for some reason. I see lots of nice Roman coins on ebay too. I guess what I am asking is what would you choose if you could only pick one? Or perhaps what is the most significant or "typical" coin for the price point?

Kind of like Lincoln's have the 1955 doubled die and the 1909 s vdb, coins with a story. Or a CC Morgan dollar.so not necessarily a key, just more significant than others. I do prefer good detail and a good strike.

I think you are right, I need to read a bit more lol.

Personally, I wouldn't go for silver, I'd go for a really nice sestertius - they are big and demonstrate the best of roman art. Buying on ebay is much cheaper too - with patience (and my significantly-lower-than-$500-budget), the silver I go for tends to be Postumus and I try not to go over £10-15 for a crisp bust. For £500 on ebay, you could get just about anything if you are patient.

For $250 (way overpriced, but you pay for the peace of mind that comes from buying from dealers), you could get this big crisp Severus Alexander Sestertius:


$100 for this sestertius of Hadrian:


I think the most 'typical' coins aren't necessarily representative of roman coinage, but rather of a well known part of history. A popular ruler is Julius Caesar, but a good portrait denarius from a trustworthy source will set you back more than $500. Heres what $300 would get you - Julius Caesar and Marc Antony:



$420 for -the- typical Caesar denarius, with a war elephant:


The most 'typical' republican coin shows a quadriga driving right. Issued in large numbers and for a long time, so they are available in good condition, such as this for $200:


Or more typical, with helmeted Roma on one side, $385:



But if I had to choose a single type to get, I'd probably look for an 'angry' tetradrachm of Caracalla, like this $450 example from Vcoins:



This one sold for $360:



Or this one, which was only $90:

Alexander III tets are a good idea - I got this one for $200 (36mm), priciest coin I own:

I'll also agree that an Alexander the Great tet is the best intersection between size, beauty, and "wow" factor if you are interested in only one (for now!)

Ensure you do some research, because the type was minted for more than a century after his death! The posthumous issues have their appeal, but coins made while he was still breathing are much more special, IMO.

Mine was about $600 after fees and shipping, and is one of the most prized coins in my collection




But be warned! I ventured here, telling myself "I just want a few ancients" and before I knew it...

Hi Finn, I am adamant I don't want more than one lol. I have so many coins and sets that I no longer have room. I realized some time ago that I don't even know what I have anymore lol. I would be going through updating current yearly sets and find coins that I didn't remember buying.

I set out very much wanting completeness but I can no longer appreciate the coins I have because I just have too many. Going through them all takes forever even in Dansco's lol.

So I started thinking about keeping some sets and building a U.S. type set which I am going to do next. I have been kind of building a type set already without knowing it. It does seem that I need to look at a bunch and read some more first. I don't know very much about Rome or Roman coins at all.