Coins that you really...sort of...maybe...well probably don't...want!

[kirispupis]

Thought I'd start a thread for coins that are in your collecting scope, that you've thought of picking up, but for specific reasons you just haven't, and you may never.

Here are three for me. Note that the coins are obviously not mine!

Tigranes II tetradrachm

I was intrigued by these even before the market was flooded, primarily due to the comet reference but it also falls into my Kingdoms after Alexander. Initially, I was thrilled when tons of these started entering the market, but I've recently become flustered that the prices haven't fallen as much as they should. Too many stores continue to pick these up for $1k and list them for $2k. 

If they fall to $500-$600, such as what happened with the Kamnaskires III tets, then I'll likely grab one.

 

Marc Antony Denarius

I've always loved the history and the image of the galley. It's one of the few Roman coins I've really wanted. However, I've always been set back by the number of fakes of this issue. There are more fakes than at your average 5th Avenue street vendor. Occasionally I see a nice copy for what looks like a nice price, but I just don't have enough knowledge of these issues to risk jumping, and it's not a high priority enough to become informed.

 

Eukratides tet

I absolutely love the helmet on the obverse and the image on the reverse. I just can't bring myself to pay anywhere near what these have been going for, even though they've come down in the last few years. Another issue is they don't fall clearly into my collections. I just like the look of them.

[JayAg47]

For me it's Judaea/Biblical coins. Right now I only have a Prutah of Nero and a fourree Tribute penny to speak of. I'd love to own a coin minted during the wars, coins with local imagery stamped over the Vesapasian denarii, Judaea capta issues, etc. 

Couple of things preventing me from collecting these coins:

1. Cost

2. Culture, I'm totally foreign to the Jewish religion/culture so I'm not really sure about the significance of some niche coins or if it's appropriate for me to collect certain coins from periods of struggle. 

3. Resource allocation- I already focus on the south Indian kingdoms, and Roman empire in general, so only if i find Biblical coins for the right price and if it really appeals me, I'll buy it. 

Edited November 22, 2023 by JayAg47

[Roman Collector]

My Roman emperor collection is certainly incomplete without a Balbinus or Pupienus (and Gordian I and II for that matter) ...




... but they're expensive, not particularly interesting, and well ...

[CPK]

Shekel of Tyre is one of them for me. They aren't really that rare, but the demand is enough to make even a poor specimen go for hundreds of dollars. Anything even approaching nice quality (centered, VF+, good date) will quickly get into the thousands.

I wouldn't mind adding a Cleopatra portrait to the collection, but again I'm not interested in paying $500 for a barely-recognizable slug, or $2,000 for a decent quality coin.

 

[Egry]

1 hour ago, kirispupis said:

Thought I'd start a thread for coins that are in your collecting scope, that you've thought of picking up, but for specific reasons you just haven't, and you may never.

Here are three for me. Note that the coins are obviously not mine!

Tigranes II tetradrachm

I was intrigued by these even before the market was flooded, primarily due to the comet reference but it also falls into my Kingdoms after Alexander. Initially, I was thrilled when tons of these started entering the market, but I've recently become flustered that the prices haven't fallen as much as they should. Too many stores continue to pick these up for $1k and list them for $2k. 

If they fall to $500-$600, such as what happened with the Kamnaskires III tets, then I'll likely grab one.

 

Marc Antony Denarius

I've always loved the history and the image of the galley. It's one of the few Roman coins I've really wanted. However, I've always been set back by the number of fakes of this issue. There are more fakes than at your average 5th Avenue street vendor. Occasionally I see a nice copy for what looks like a nice price, but I just don't have enough knowledge of these issues to risk jumping, and it's not a high priority enough to become informed.

 

Eukratides tet

I absolutely love the helmet on the obverse and the image on the reverse. I just can't bring myself to pay anywhere near what these have been going for, even though they've come down in the last few years. Another issue is they don't fall clearly into my collections. I just like the look of them.

 

 

 

 That's why I love coin collecting. The three you dislike are the three I really like, I've managed to acquire all but one so far.

 

 

[DonnaML]

Otho. I've come so close so many times to buying one, but then have always refrained. I just haven't been able to justify to myself spending close to $1,000 for a decent example. Or at least $500 for a less-than-mediocre specimen, or a little less for a Provincial that doesn't look remotely like him. True, it's less than a Claudius or Caligula denarius, but it's still too much.

[Kali]

Easy, Judean shekels. Way too expensive. Would love to own just one example, but I can't justify the price of them. And the widows mites do nothing for me.

[CPK]

16 minutes ago, DonnaML said:

Otho. I've come so close so many times to buying one, but then have always refrained. I just haven't been able to justify to myself spending close to $1,000 for a decent example. Or at least $500 for a less-than-mediocre specimen, or a little less for a Provincial that doesn't look remotely like him. True, it's less than a Claudius or Caligula denarius, but it's still too much.

I got a pretty cheap Otho denarius awhile back, but when the "one of each emperor" enthusiasm began to fade, so did my satisfaction with the coin. I sold it, happily for a small profit - and still at a good price for someone wanting to complete a budget "12 Caesars" denarii set.

These days I'm much more interested in a coin's story (be that from the coin itself or its provenance), or in high quality artistry, than in completing a 'set'.

Edited November 22, 2023 by CPK

[sand]

Interesting topic.

Coins Which Are Low Priority For Me

I'm a generalist. Therefore, most coins are in my collecting area. However, some coins have always been a low priority for me. Usually, it's because the price is too high, compared to my interest level for the coin.

1. Julius Caesar coins : They are interesting, but way more expensive, than I'm willing to pay.

2. Marc Antony denarius : Like @kirispupis, I'm worried about fakes. And, the price is too high, compared to my interest level.

3. Shekel Of Tyre : Too expensive, compared to my interest level.

4. Cleopatra VII coins : Too expensive, compared to my interest level.

5. Chinese knife money and spade money : Too expensive, compared to my interest level.

6. Chinese "ghost face" money or "ant nose" money : Too expensive, compared to my interest level.

7. Chinese cowrie shell money : Too expensive, compared to my interest level.

8. Very expensive coins : They just cost too much. For example, I'd like to have a Roman Republic Aes Grave Janus As, but the $3,000 price tag is way beyond what I'm willing to spend for a single coin.

9. Brutus coins : Too expensive, compared to my interest level.

10. Tribute penny : Too expensive, compared to my interest level.

Edited November 22, 2023 by sand

[El Cazador]

2 hours ago, Egry said:

 

 

 

 That's why I love coin collecting. The three you dislike are the three I really like, I've managed to acquire all but one so far.

 

 

Which ones did you get?

[Cordoba]

For baktrian kings, demetrios II falls into this category. these are pretty rare, and usually not great style wise either. I'd expect to have to pay $3k plus for a decent example. I missed out twice on ones that went cheaply, and i regret not going for it back then. this will probably be a hole in my collection for a long while, since there are other priorities i'd like to focus on (agathokles, antimachos, heroic eukratides), which are all nicer style wise, which is what i'm starting to focus on now.

Edited November 22, 2023 by Cordoba

[DonnaML]

I feel the same way as @kirispupis and @sand about Marc Antony legionary denarii. The one example I ever bought -- from a reputable dealer -- turned out to be a fake, and I've stayed away from them ever since. And now that my one Apollonia Pontika gorgon/anchor drachm -- again from a reputable dealer -- also turned out to be a fake, I don't think I'll ever again risk buying one of those. 

Julius Caesar? Too expensive, just like denarii of Caligula and Claudius. At least for the latter two, so-called middle bronzes are readily available in decent condition for reasonable prices.

Many of the others mentioned I simply have no interest in at all.

[ValiantKnight]

The tiny Greek fractional silver coins, around the 10mm and less size. I have a couple and I’d like to get more but it’s hard to see myself paying money for tiny scraps of silver. At least rare late Roman AE4s have, well, that rarity, and that history I love.

Also, new style Athenian tetradrachms. Would very much like to have one but the prices right now turn me off. Which is annoying because they aren’t hard to find.