I have no idea what to order next

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I periodically bookmark coins of interest, so I could always trawl through that, but I just realized that I have no idea what to order next, or from whom.  Does that ever happen to you?

I still have 1 1/2 weeks to decide, but unless I go back to the same ol', same ol', I have no idea.  Perhaps I could go back for that A2 anonymous follis that I wanted?  But the other large one, which I wanted to purchase with it, is gone.

London Ancient Coins was my go to during much of last year, until the postal strike made shipping take forever.  There's more strikes, I heard.  Will that affect coins? Savoca was another go-to, but there's not much at the moment which I really love.

I like a wide array of coins, but the only ones I don't like are (no offense to those who collect them): LRB's, Chinese (and I heard that it's hard to tell a fake), Celtic/coins with abstract designs or bad imitations, modern (post-1700s) coins.  Per 'modern', I like coins up to the 1600's.  I really like the huge German ones, but they're expensive.

I really do like: Sasanian, Byzantine (up to 700), Roman (up to about 265), Seleucid, large coins of most types, large Alexandrian Drachms, etc.

I've always wanted a Spanish cob of some decent size.  However, they're also expensive.

There were a couple of coins from a dealer whom I don't buy from often which were otherwise just ok but had very nice patinas. I wonder if I should try that? They're probably still around.

[kirispupis]

I'm in a bit of a slow point myself, too.

Most of the auction houses I buy from don't have much interesting right now. There are a couple of coins at the upcoming Roma, but I'm getting fed up at the high prices there and I'm doubtful I'll win anything at their next auction. Of all the auctions on Biddr, there are exactly two coins that intrigue me. I guess it's good since I overspent at the recent Leu.

It seems to be a slow time right now. Nothing interesting has come up on VCoins or ma-shops recently either.

[ambr0zie]

I have decided to slow down my acquisitions in 2023. The first months were still (kind of) rich in new coins but I noticed that my interest to buy new coins decreases, this was good according to my plan.

Some personal trouble really killed my mood for new coins and in the last 3 months I have acquired exactly 1 coin, this was more to celebrate my birthday. 

So yes, I am in the same boat - sometimes I feel the urge to buy some new coins, but I can't find anything interesting AND budget friendly - let's be serious, if we had some obscene amounts to spend, we'd find some perfect coins 🙂

I have some coins on my short list - and I mean coins that I can afford and I am sure they will appear sooner or later - rather sooner, I must say ...

I keep browsing auctions hoping something will raise my interest but this doesn't happen. Either a) coins I am not interested in b) I am interested but the condition is below my (indulgent) standards c) I am interested but the prices will not be justifiable for me. Mostly a). 

In the past I bought some coins "just because". And even if I don't have a single coin in my collection that I don't like, I decided to wait and buy only coins that are really important for me. Perhaps you should try the same strategy. 

[Salomons Cat]

Is it mandatory that a collection is always growing? 🤔
I will never be able to own all of the ancient coins anyways. So at some point I believe that I must be happy with the size of my collection and stop buying. 
I enjoy looking at my coins - for me, that's the aspect of collecting that shouldn't stop.
And I cannot imagine that I could lose interest in my coins. That would be like losing interest in visiting museums or something like that.

Edited July 23, 2023 by Salomons Cat

[sand]

My coin buying is way down in 2023. Partly because I've been trying to spend less money. And partly because I have almost all of the coins that I ever wanted, that are under my price limit per coin. For some reason, I refuse to spend more than a certain amount per coin. And that amount has dropped way down this year. In 2023, I've only bought 12 coins in 6.5 months, an average of 1.8 coins per month, all ancient coins. In 2022, I bought 58 coins in 12 months, an average of 4.8 coins per month, mostly ancient and a few medieval. I probably bought even more coins in 2021, mostly ancient. There are still a few coins, that I would like to have, but they are all either scarce, or usually too expensive, or usually not pretty enough. Therefore, I bide my time, and wait. But, every now and then, I'll suddenly become interested in a new coin area, and I'll buy a coin or 2. Or, I'll happen to see a coin that I want, for some reason, and I'll buy it. I started collecting ancient coins and medieval coins 5 years ago. Maybe it's a common pattern. One starts collecting coins. One buys lots of coins. One learns about all of the various areas of coins, and buys coins from those areas. After X years, one has learned about almost all of the areas of coins, and one has acquired almost all of the coins that one can afford, from all of the areas of coins. After that, one's coin buying slows down dramatically. This can take a few years, or many years, depending on how much time and money one spends, on coins. Nowadays, I spend more time taking photos of my coins.

Edited July 23, 2023 by sand

[Qcumbor]

I'm not bothered : I have phases where I buy coins frequently and others where I can wait 6 months without any acquisition. There are specific coins I "need" for my Principality of Dombes project, and when they pop up I try to snag them, even though there are been three in a row (I will pass only if I'm completely broke), and coins that appeal to me, mostly ancient, that I will buy if I have the money at the moment. Since I've not seen anything suitable for my Dombes collection lately, I bought something at the last Leu auction just because when I saw it, I knew I had to have it (call me crazy...)

Q

[JeandAcre]

I'm on the same page as everyone else here.  Since joining the forum, I've hit several slumps in the collecting.  First and worst in the case of French feudal, you end up running into the same dozen common types over and over, even from most of the established dealers.

But there have been two distinct silver linings to this.  One, thanks mainly to the Cabinet offerings and kind advice of several members here, I've gone a ways toward expanding from Medieval into certain ancients, including ones I've always seen as particularly iconic.  All of them besides the (really solid) LRBs are essentially representative one-offs (a Persian siglos, an Athens tet, etc.), but the collection itself is richer for them.

On the other hand, most articulately during this latest phase, I'm really fine with acknowledging the obvious and taking a breather.  I still have a good chunk of the COVID-era Federal largesse in savings, and that feels pretty good!

[akeady]

I suppose you could throw in a bid on the N&N Mystery Lot and who knows what you'll get 😄

ATB,
Aidan.

[Hrefn]

I just acquired my 14th coin of the year, so I am running at the same pace as last year to acquire about 20 coins for the year.   I have been in a bit of a hiatus, though, with nothing over the past 2 1/2 months.  The exception being my most recent accidental buy.  Twice this year I have placed a low-ball bid on a coin being auctioned, as an easy way of following a coin I have some interest in, to see what price it eventually commands, and to my surprise have won the coin.  With two unintentional winning bids, I need to reconsider this  strategy of gathering information.   On the other hand, I won two nice coins at much less than I thought they would hammer for.  

 

[ewomack]

There is nothing wrong with taking a break from buying. If you find yourself buying just to buy something, then it's really time to slow down and do some thinking about why you're collecting.

I ordered a coin a week or two ago and, now that I look at the picture again, I think it's only "okay." I think I rushed into it. I consoled myself that I didn't pay that much for it, but then I was smacked with a $50.00 import duty on it. Though I vacillated, I ended up paying it, but now I feel like I overpaid for a coin that I only consider "okay." I hate those purchases and I would rather buy nothing than make even a single one more of them. I really try to save up for when a coin really strikes me, so I'm now trying to buy fewer higher quality coins. After that last experience I really think that now I need an extended break. I do have other things to do, after all (and a few other projects remain unfinished).

Have a breather. Take a break. Read a book. Do some research.

[ominus1]

[JeandAcre]

@ewomack, you nailed another part of the dynamics.  I'm just starting to follow your sage advice, starting with making a dent in cataloguing some of what I've bought during the deep days of COVID, when there wasn't much else to do than to spend money.  For a lot of what I wound up with, I'm now regretting the condition I thought I could live with, over the longer term.  A lot of what happened was that I'd see something for sale that I'd never noticed before, online, and I'd pull the trigger and ask questions later.  ...Sometimes a Lot later.  To wallow in the obvious, collecting has its own set of techniques.  Whether or not you want to elevate them to the level either of art or science, that much irreducibly holds.

Edited July 24, 2023 by JeandAcre

[CPK]

Good advice from @ewomack. Sometimes there can be an impulse to order something, anything, especially if I don't have anything currently in transit, just to fill that void of not having any coins to anticipate! But at times like that it's better to just sit back and take a breather, focus in on the coins you already have, and maybe broaden your interests with a good book. There will always be coins to buy later. 😉 

[robinjojo]

Personal interests, finances and personality are key determinants for buying patterns.  Obviously buying just for the sake of buying is not good, unless you're Charles Foster Kane (Citizen Kane - 1941) and look where he ended up.  

An important question is are you a generalist collector or a specialist collector?  This is not a black or white choice since there are degrees of variation.  In my case it is generalist with a focus on selected areas.  For a few decades that was world coinage, with a smattering of ancients.  World coinage started with German thalers, lion daalders and Spanish crowns, and eventually evolved to Spanish crowns with a focus on the hammer struck 8 reales, but also more limited, 4 reales.  For a while I was also collecting 20 piastres crowns of the 1890s from Sudan, sparked by my interest in the fall of Khartoum in 1885 after a siege by the forces of the Mahdi and the death of Major-General Charles Gordon.  

Eventually I lost interest in the hammered cobs and other world crowns, at least with regards of new purchases.  Prices have increased dramatically from the 80s and 90s for these coins, and I have a broad representative collection of those coins.  So, starting around 2015 or so I shifted back to almost totally ancient coins, with a focus on the imitations of the Athenian owl design in the Eastern Mediterranean and further east.  I have a less focused interest in Roman coinage from the 1st through 3rd centuries AD.  My interest in Byzantine coinage, almost entirely bronze, was  also revived around 2015.

So, like the rest of life, interests grow and recede, to be replaced by other interests.  So my advice is go with the flow of your interests; that could be a very interesting and fulfilling journey.  

Edited July 24, 2023 by robinjojo

[Ancient Coin Hunter]

My pace this year has been slow to medium. To be honest, I haven't seen too many coins I love. My avatar coin is probably the one I am most happy with. It checked off a couple of boxes - upgrade of Probus, helmeted type with spear over shoulder and Sol on the reverse, not the quadriga but a standing Sol in an interesting posture of acclamation of the emperor. Haven't seen any Gordian I and II that I really like. Picked up a completely silvered follis of Galerius as well. Whether things pick up in the remainder of the year I will have to see. One of the things I did do was consolidate my coins entirely in paper envelopes, so I got rid of lots of flips and a couple of slabs. Sort of did an inventory as well. I came across several coins I had completely forgotten about such as a Domna with Isis on the reverse.

[kirispupis]

Well, partly from the "pressure" of this thread 🙂 I've purchased two more coins! These aren't random pickups but are targeted coins for my Cities of Philip II, Alexander III, and the Age of the Diadochi collection. I had been watching both for about six months and finally bit. One city is rather rare - with only six examples recorded on ACSearch and this particular coin came from the collection of the expert in that area.  I have one other very rare coin from this collector and I paid the same amount for it, so I'm not sure why I hesitated so long. The other coin I'd waited on because I felt the price was a bit high, but it's not exactly common (30 examples on ACSearch), none have come up at auction in the last six months, and this was a rather nice example.

Overall this has been an extremely productive year for me coin-wise. In fact, to cut down on my purchases I recently added a rule that I may only purchase coins now targeted for my three main collections. In 2022 I added 212 coins, which I felt I wouldn't top in January. I'm now at 206 coins for 2023. I've made terrific progress on my main collections.

People of Philip II, Alexander III, and the Era of the Diadochi - 119 coins identified. 114 acquired (although only about 10 this year)

Cities of Philip II, Alexander III, and the Diadochi - 360 cities identified. 295 acquired - a fair number of them this year

Kingdoms After Alexander - 32 coins identified. 31 acquired - most last year (FWIW, I've bid on the last coin three times this year and lost three times...)

Note that there are some coins that count for multiple collections.

The remaining coins are now scarce enough that I should finally have some time to work on my website to display them.

[KenDorney]

Branch out with your collecting interests.  That will free up other possibilities for collecting.  Last couple years I have not collected very many ancients but a few months ago I started collecting large base metal world coins (18th Century and earlier).  Its a whole new world to me and it a bit like when I first started with ancients.  Its all new, exciting, and I have no idea what will be around the corner to collect.  

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I'll figure out something.  Perhaps I can use the opportunity to double up the time after and perhaps get a common gold coin.

[JayAg47]

Here is an idea, rather than buying for yourself, order a coin as a gift for your loved ones. That way you're not actually buying for your collection but can still scratch the itch. The coin doesn't even have to be from your area of interest but says something about the giftee, their favorite animals/flower/ historic figure/ or simply any designs. 

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

There's an ugly Justin II Sear 378, but perhaps I should wait for one which I like more.

 

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

About how much does a not terrible Constantine IV follis from Constantinople average nowadays? I don't need super nice, but no BD and not totally dreadful.

That's a bucket list coin.

Broadening my collecting horizons is a fine idea, but there were some genres that I like which I didn't mention.  It's already pretty broad; pretty much anything pre-1700 which is cool.

Even if I just stuck to Roman and Byzantine, that's a lot of collecting area.  I would be more into Seleucid, but the Tetradrachms have become more expensive.

I also collect by patina.  If something has a beautiful patina and is outside my area (within reason) that's also fair game.

 

Edited July 25, 2023 by Nerosmyfavorite68

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I think I figured it out. 

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

I think I might give Biga another go.  Back in 2022, my only Biga order to date, it took forever and a day.  However, I was quite pleased with the coins.

I thought it might have been customs, but my orders from Tom Vossen came relatively quickly.

I'll go in with expectations of it taking a month plus, but I hope to be pleasantly surprised. Perhaps they were at a coin show, or something came up.

[Ancient Coin Hunter]

Just got this one. I'd been following the Epic Byzantine thread and this one I got from Aegean Numismatics yesterday as the coin spoke to me across the centuries. I think the portrait and the lettering on the reverse are delightful, unlike some ragged Byzantines that you find out there.

Leo VI 889-912 C.E. 

Type: AE Follis 6.00g, 25mm - Constantinople mint

Obverse: Facing crowned bust, holding akakia. "+LEOn bASILEVS ROM"

Reverse: "+LEOn/En T?? bA/SILEVS R/OMEOn"

Reference: RIC 1729

[Nerosmyfavorite68]

That's quite a nice example of the type; the above average condition and the highlighting. That's close to as nice as those get.  I might have an example of the type, but it was back from my Allen Berman junk box days.

I also ordered from Aegean fairly recently, and was quite happy with the results.  I wanted to follow up, but sadly the large module A2 follis which I wanted sold. I want a 34+mm., heavy one.  Both Aegean orders have been quite pleasant.

I asked the other dealer to not send lots via priority, with splendid results. It was nice not to have a mauled package.  Priority = destroyed coins.

I think Negan and Lucille must work at the post office.  "it's another priority package!"  Whack! Whack!  Somehwere along the process the conveyor belts just maul the flat, stiff mailers.