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Saw some nice coins at Long Beach - Getting Tempted by Ancients - How to start?
BryceM
Posts: 11,937 ✭✭✭✭✭
The title pretty much says it all. I've been playing around with US coins on and off for a couple of decades. Over the past couple of years I've gotten more serious. I've now established a pretty decent Peace dollar date/MM set . My next project is/was a 1900's type set that is gradually extending into the 1800s.
At the Long Beach show I briefly looked at a few of the ancient dealers' setups. My first reaction was WOW! The relief on some of these old coins is incredible. I also enjoy how each one is its own work of art. One of my turnoffs to ultra modern coins is how uniformly boring they've become with CNC-controlled die setups. The ancients generally aren't even round. What a contrast.
So, through trial and error and by absorbing lots of knowledge here, I'm gradually learning how to avoid stupid decisions on more valuable raw and slabbed US stuff. Obviously most of the ancient pieces don't reside in holders. That's perfectly fine with me as long as I can keep away from counterfeits, overpriced coins, and such. So far I've been hesitant to just jump in ignorant of the facts.
I'm not sure exactly what strikes my fancy, but I'm really drawn to the 500 BC to 100 AD era. Several of the Macedonian / Greek pieces caught my eye at the show. I'd like to eventually have a nice gold coin or two from these dates since they're just so incredibly timeless. I suppose starting with some bronze or silver coins is a smarter way to start (?).
I'm not looking to establish an extensive ancient collection - just a few representative pieces that can wow my kids and the occasional person who gets a look at what lives in the SDB. Like for my US collection, I'd like to think that whatever I purchase could be sold at a future date for something near its original price (better is good too!). I imagine the ancient market is a bit more fluid than the US market in terms of established and accepted pricing. Obviously, getting to know a couple of dealers and attending more shows would help. I live in a pretty rural area though and the Internet is probably my best tool for skipping ahead a couple of grades.
At the Long Beach show I briefly looked at a few of the ancient dealers' setups. My first reaction was WOW! The relief on some of these old coins is incredible. I also enjoy how each one is its own work of art. One of my turnoffs to ultra modern coins is how uniformly boring they've become with CNC-controlled die setups. The ancients generally aren't even round. What a contrast.
So, through trial and error and by absorbing lots of knowledge here, I'm gradually learning how to avoid stupid decisions on more valuable raw and slabbed US stuff. Obviously most of the ancient pieces don't reside in holders. That's perfectly fine with me as long as I can keep away from counterfeits, overpriced coins, and such. So far I've been hesitant to just jump in ignorant of the facts.
I'm not sure exactly what strikes my fancy, but I'm really drawn to the 500 BC to 100 AD era. Several of the Macedonian / Greek pieces caught my eye at the show. I'd like to eventually have a nice gold coin or two from these dates since they're just so incredibly timeless. I suppose starting with some bronze or silver coins is a smarter way to start (?).
I'm not looking to establish an extensive ancient collection - just a few representative pieces that can wow my kids and the occasional person who gets a look at what lives in the SDB. Like for my US collection, I'd like to think that whatever I purchase could be sold at a future date for something near its original price (better is good too!). I imagine the ancient market is a bit more fluid than the US market in terms of established and accepted pricing. Obviously, getting to know a couple of dealers and attending more shows would help. I live in a pretty rural area though and the Internet is probably my best tool for skipping ahead a couple of grades.
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I tend to stay away from ancients in slabs mainly cause many sellers seem to have them way overpriced. A common roman in a slab might be listed at $100+ while a better example raw could be $40 or so.
The main fun with ancient is all have been cleaned in some point of their life since they lived in dirt for thousands of years so we get to enjoy holding them with our hands then a U.S. collector would with a MS walker or Peace dollar.
I buy alot of coins on www.vcoins.com but Numismall.com is coming along in popularity since the new owners of vcoins is pissing off dealers.
Search something like "Greek Silver" & sort by price.
I also like www.forumancientcoins.com Excellent messageboard, research section and online dealer. Check out their catalog, easy to navigate and see what tickles your fancy.
Do check out this link to get started. Nearly every ancient collector uses it or has gotten linked to it at some point.