Authentic Roman coins?
dxd1995
Posts: 45 ✭✭
Hello everyone, I'm new to Roman coins. In fact, I have just bought my first roman coins, on eBay. Could anyone please help me see if they are authentic Roman coins? Also, could you guys share with me some eBay sellers that you are familiar with and trustworthy?
Thanks a lot!!
Best Answers
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harasha
Posts: 3,079 ✭✭✭✭✭
They look genuine to me. I am hesitant to make any recommendations, but I think many members of this Forum, including myself, have been quite happy with one of our members, Civitas. For good quality bargain coins, I personally also like Marc Breitsprecher.
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291fifth
Posts: 23,936 ✭✭✭✭✭
They appear to be real. Do research before buying more. There are plenty of references available on Roman coins. The coins you purchased look like typical hoard coins with rough surfaces from being buried for a very long time. I wouldn't advise buying coins of this kind unless they were very cheap (though the ones you bought are actually not that bad)..
If there is a large coin show near you try to find a dealer in ancients who can show you a selection of coins that will give you a better feel for what "nice" ones look like.
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Kkathyl
Posts: 3,762 ✭✭✭✭✭
Those look good to me as well. With Ancients I would stay away from web as you will find way too many cast fakes replicas or damaged coins. I would search the World coin section here and buy direct from dealers. Welcome to forum.
Best place to buy !
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Oldhoopster
Posts: 2,930 ✭✭✭✭✭
V Coins is a good online storefront for ancients.
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SaorAlba
Posts: 7,475 ✭✭✭✭✭
Roman bronze coins issued late during the Roman Empire are almost as common as dirt - they can be found in hoards of thousands of them. Fakes for these coins are not really a problem because the real coins are fairly inexpensive. It is when you get into uncommon or rare coins that fakes become an issue.
Some coins are found in remarkably good condition, I have a late Roman bronze from Constantine that is AU grade - it could have come from an amphora that was buried in a dry environment.
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BillDugan1959
Posts: 3,821 ✭✭✭✭✭
Rome ran through many decades of high monetary inflation. Not having huge quantities of paper or printing plates (in the modern sense), they resorted to producing and using small bronze coins. These small bronze coins still exist in huge quantities. The advent of modern metal detectors has swelled the supply too, and places that were never hunted in the past are more open to detecting today. The supply is large - be picky about quality.
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EVillageProwler
Posts: 5,859 ✭✭✭✭✭
Definitely stay away from unfamiliar sellers on eBay.
Josh @ Civitas Galleries is known to us here and has a positive reputation.
Also CNG is well regarded for ancients.
And of course Vcoins.
Good luck!
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lordmarcovan
Posts: 43,198 ✭✭✭✭✭
Coins #1 and #2 are Maximian (286-305 AD),
Those have the CONCORDIA MILITVM reverse, which means "harmony with the soldiers". This was an important propaganda message for a third century emperor to put on his coins, since the army could "make or break you", so to speak, and many emperors of that era ended up getting "whacked" by their own troops!
Coin #3 is Probus (276-282 AD).
Coin #4 is Aurelian (270-275 AD). It has the ORIENS AVGG reverse legend. That'll be Sol, the sun god, on the reverse, there, standing over a bound captive.
All look real to me, though quite common and of fairly modest monetary value.
The first Maximian is pretty decent, though.
AS seen on the 2x2 holder for the first coin, these are of the antoninianus denomiation (plural: antoninianii). I believe that term was invented in the last few centuries, and is not what the Romans themselves would have called these.
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lordmarcovan
Posts: 43,198 ✭✭✭✭✭
As to recommendations, VCoins is a good online mall site you can browse.
I like David Connors and Incitatus Coins on that site for good cheap material.
Marc Breitsprecher is good, as previously mentioned.
So is Ken Dorney.
As mentioned, Josh from Civitas Galleries is a member here, under the username @CIVITAS.
I have done business with dozens of VCoins dealers in the last decade and have not had any bad experiences. Athena Numismatics and Zurqieh are known to artificially repatinate bronze coins, though, so do be aware of that.
Another dealer site with lots of useful resources (and its own message boards centered exclusively around ancient coins) is FORVM.
I would recommend you browse more on VCoins or FORVM and less on eBay, generally speaking. There's plenty of honest dealers on eBay, but that's like the Wild West. There are plenty of bandits, too. I think you did OK on these, but until you know a bit more about what you're doing with ancients, it's best to buy from known dealers. VCoins has a code of ethics which dealers must follow.
Usually cheaper, common coins like these are not widely faked, but it does happen.
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TitusFlavius
Posts: 318 ✭✭✭
First two coins are of Galerius Maximian, Caesar under Diocletian in the east 293 - 305 AD. First is Cyzicus mint. Second is Heraclea.
"Render therfore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's." Matthew 22: 211
Answers
I reread your post and you asked for ebay sellers, rather than online vendors. Sorry, I do not know any on ebay, but I am sure that they are there.
DPOTD
Thank all of your guys' replies! I will definitely check out dealers on this forum and Vcoins
@lordmarcovan Wowwww that is so much useful information. Thank you very much!! People in this community are so friendly and kind! My main interest is art medals (art nouveau and royal medal), but I have always been interested in coin too. So I decide to start learn more about ancient coins. So happy to meet so many learned and nice people on this forum.
I'm becoming increasingly interested in exonumia like medals myself, and the Art Nouveau period is wonderful.
This piece is amazing! I wish I could buy one of the PCGS or NGC graded medals one day. They are so much more expensive than the ones without a slab. But I really love those high resolution photos. I don't know how to take "professional" photos of my collections
I'm with you there on the photo woes. I can now take mostly adequate cellphone pix, but I let the professionals image my nicer stuff.
BTW, another fun site to browse for inexpensive ancients is http://bargainbinancients.com/
Thank you for providing me so much info👍👍