Ten-Speed Posted June 22 · Member Author Share Posted June 22 On 6/18/2024 at 8:30 PM, Theodosius said: What most people do at first is dabble in learning different cultures and time periods until they find an area that really appeals to them. Then they narrow down their focus to that area, say Roman Republican, which I believe the main types can be described in one volume. This makes the coins, history, culture much more manageable to really study and for some people, master. For some this continues to be their lifetime focus. For some the goal is to advance the numismatic knowledge in their area. There are also people who like to continue to dabble all across history and not really specialize in one area. Both approaches are equally valid and various members here represent both applications. My main interest is Greek coins due to their amazing artwork, the downside can be high prices and less documentation about the time period compared to Roman and other periods. I know most of the main Greek types but never tried to learn all the 50,000? varieties of each. I do also dabble in Roman, Byzantine, world crowns and United States to feed the hobby when no affordable Greeks I want are available. 😊 There really is no right and wrong way to collect. Knowing what others enjoy can help you find ideas that enhance your experience too. I hope this helps. 😊 John This is very helpful. I think at this point I'm a generalist [in general :-)] and have probably learned about US Large cents and have the detailed guidebooks for figuring things out. John Wright's book has been very helpful, Sheldon's is more difficult. The 1859 Canadian Large Cents have several varieties based on the stamping of the date. Yes, the Greek coins can be incredibly beautiful but they are not in my price range. I would like to learn more about the daily times themselves as some of this is a mystery to me. If I were to specialize (and as a former academic, had done so) it might be with Marcus Aurelius coins. His writings are soul-searching and pertinent to everything today. There is also the connection with Faustina. Many different coins seem to be available at reasonable prices, and it's nice to be absorbed in learning abut an emperor who was only good in ruling but appears to have been a good person. Thanks very much for responding.. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benefactor Theodosius Posted June 23 · Benefactor Benefactor Share Posted June 23 There are many attractive coins available from most of the Roman emperors for very reasonable prices. If you wanted to get a few coins from Marcus Aurelius, I don't think it would be too difficult and would be a good place to start. There are also very attractive Greek bronzes available for reasonable prices too, but they don't come up nearly as often as Roman ones. You may have seen the advice to avoid ancient coins on eBay until you really have a good idea of what you are doing. There are many fakes and many good coins too, but you need to be able to tell the difference. It's much safer to start with vcoins.com or mashops.com. I think there's been numerous threads about where beginners can find authentic ancient coins if you search. John 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benefactor Phil Davis Posted June 23 · Benefactor Benefactor Share Posted June 23 On 6/18/2024 at 5:44 PM, Broucheion said: Hi All, FWIW: Buddy Ebsen's coin collection was sold in May-June of 1987 via the Superior Pre-Long Beach Sale. Those were US coins. Ebsen's ancient coins were sold by Superior a few days later, June 7, 1987. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ten-Speed Posted June 23 · Member Author Share Posted June 23 15 hours ago, Theodosius said: There are many attractive coins available from most of the Roman emperors for very reasonable prices. If you wanted to get a few coins from Marcus Aurelius, I don't think it would be too difficult and would be a good place to start. There are also very attractive Greek bronzes available for reasonable prices too, but they don't come up nearly as often as Roman ones. You may have seen the advice to avoid ancient coins on eBay until you really have a good idea of what you are doing. There are many fakes and many good coins too, but you need to be able to tell the difference. It's much safer to start with vcoins.com or mashops.com. I think there's been numerous threads about where beginners can find authentic ancient coins if you search. John I did get fooled on eBay once so that was it. I bought an $11. coin and got back a $3. coin. Couldn't imagine why anyone would do that but then figured out if you did that enough times you might make a few dollars since no one is going to make a big deal for eight dollars.. I have found a dealer on V Coins that I like very much; he is good about answering questions and the coins go out right away with minimal shipping charge. Thanks much for the info. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ten-Speed Posted June 23 · Member Author Share Posted June 23 14 hours ago, Phil Davis said: Ebsen's ancient coins were sold by Superior a few days later, June 7, 1987. That's a whole lot a' money, as Jed might say. Thanks for the info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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