Ancient Coins - Where To Start? - Coin Community Forum

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

Author	Replies: 10 / Views: 1,367
dar76124 Valued Member United States 395 Posts	Posted 07/28/2022 1:39 pm I purchased a lot of German and French silver coins and a few ancient coins came along for the ride, I know nothing about ancient coins so where do I go to start identifying them? Is there a website or book you would recommend? In addition I think some may be repro since they are in excellent condition (lower left in the photos). Thanks in advance for any advice. Report this Post to the Staff

John1 Moderator United States 56855 Posts	Posted 07/28/2022 1:49 pm https://www.vcoins.com/en/coins/ancient-2.aspx Report this Post to the Staff
Kamnaskires Pillar of the Community United States 7066 Posts	Posted 07/28/2022 7:59 pm These should all be easily identifiable. May I ask how much you paid for the lot? The Celtic - Queen Boudicca of the Iceni - typically go for good money. Report this Post to the Staff
sel_69l Bedrock of the Community Australia 21786 Posts	Posted 07/28/2022 8:26 pm I started into Roman coins a very long time ago, even before computers. I was was curious and so read a few specialist books on the subject, from a large public library. I then bought my first Roman coin. All of that info is now on-line, but even now I would not be keen on reading a book length PDF file on screen, buy I would still rather pick up a good book on the subject, sit in an easy chair and read it, sipping many cups of coffee along the the way. Now that you already have some coins and on-line info is available, it would be best to make VCOINS your first place for identification of the coins pictured. THEN read a good general book on the subject of Roman coins. You may have to use the inter library reference and transfer system to get in the best book for your needs. All those years ago, the first library book I read was Roman Coins, by Harold Mattingly. He was a past curator of ancient coins in the British Museum Become familiar with fakes and build skill in knowing how to identify them. Newbie collectors of ancient coins need to do this, before even considering to buy via ebay. Report this Post to the Staff
Sap Moderator Australia 16806 Posts	Posted 07/28/2022 9:40 pm Most of these coins are Roman, and most of those Roman coins are "Late Roman bronzes", dating from within 50 years after the coinage reform of Diocletian in AD 298. Late Roman bronzes are probably the most common "ancient coin" you're likely to encounter, especially in Europe. The Romans churned out ridiculous amounts of these coins in an effort to prop up their failing economy. The only two that are not "Late Roman" is the one in middle row far right, looks like a dupondius of Marcus Aurelius, sometime around AD 140. And the Celtic one, bottom row, second from right, with the stylized horse on it. I don't know my Celtic coins well enough to ID them by sight, but if BobL says it's Boudicca of the Iceni, you can believe it, and it's certainly a valuable coin, due to Boudicca's prominence in British history as "the most successful Anglo-Celtic rebellion against Roman rule". They all look genuine to me; at least, nothing there shouts "I'm a fake!". They also look better-than-average condition; they are, as BobL said, all identifiable as to emperor, type and mintmark. Most of the Late Romans appear to be from the Siscia mint. Siscia is in modern-day Croatia, and coins from Siscia tend to be very common these days, ever since the fall of Communism and the resultant Yugoslav Wars. Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. - C. S. Lewis Report this Post to the Staff
pilegicvs Valued Member United States 66 Posts	Posted 07/29/2022 03:38 am The DECENTIUS in the lower left corner is a beauty. He was the brother of the usurper, MAGNENTIUS (350-353AD). (If genuine, it also had good value.) Report this Post to the Staff
dar76124 Valued Member United States 395 Posts	Posted 07/29/2022 08:25 am Thanks for all the replies. To answer Bob L's question I paid $300 for the lot which I thought was a good price for the French and German coins. The ancient coins were just a bonus to me. It appears that I got a good deal. I will spend some time today at the vcoins site to try and identify all of these. Thanks again. Report this Post to the Staff
Kamnaskires Pillar of the Community United States 7066 Posts	Posted 07/29/2022 4:04 pm You did very well indeed! Report this Post to the Staff
oriole Pillar of the Community Canada 5238 Posts	Posted 07/31/2022 05:23 am I would also decipher the inscriptions, for those that have them. That will make it easier to check Vcoins. Report this Post to the Staff
JohnConduitt Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 725 Posts	Posted 07/31/2022 07:16 am The websites you need are Ocre https://numismatics.org/ocre/identify and Wildwinds https://www.wildwinds.com/coins/ric/i.html That does indeed look like an Iceni coin. From the photo it doesn't look in top condition, which might explain why someone would sell it in a lot. Note that although it is often called a Boudicca coin, the association is tenuous (although put forward by Van Arsdell). Even so, the association adds value https://www.vanarsdellcelticcoinage...30_ccb3.html I agree the Decentius is beautiful https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.8.lug.139 The radiate next to it is Constantius Chlorus https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.6.cyz.18a Top left seems to be Licinius II with Jupiter, like this https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.7.ar.128 It's not hugely common. The Marcus Aurelius seems to be this PIETAS As https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.3.ant.1240A_as Second middle left is Maximian II https://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.6.anch.167b Edited by JohnConduitt 07/31/2022 08:56 am Report this Post to the Staff
Kopper Ken Pillar of the Community United States 3402 Posts	Posted 07/31/2022 08:18 am Nice pick-up. KK Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 10 / Views: 1,367

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

All Forums Category: World Coins and Currency Forums Forum: Ancient, Greek, Roman, and Medieval Coins

The First Dollar, your premier source for bullion and rare coins. See our bullion list on the site and the coin inventory on ebay.

Silver Gold Bull US is the United States leading bullion dealer. We deliver gold coins, gold bars, silver coins, silver bars and precious metals to your door. Order today!

View Last 100 New Topics

View Last 100 Active Topics

Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited.
Contact Us | Advertise Here | Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

Coin Community Forum

It took 0.33 seconds to rattle this change.