Buying Ancient Coins    (1/22/2008)

I am considering buying an ancient coin or two. But, I don't want to pay too much.

I'm glad you care about cost. It is easy to pay too much for any collectible. Coins are no exception.

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I hesitate to give advice about buying coins. This website (go to the main page) was up for a year before I added an answer about how to buy coins. Now it is years later, in 2008, and buying wisely is more complicated than ever.

Why do you say it is complicated?

Well, eBay is the cheapest place to buy, but it is riddled with fakes offered by criminals. Many of the superficially attractive expensive pieces are actually fakes. On the other hand, most eBay coins are genuine and realize prices that are favorable  for the buyer. Almost all their inexpensive (say, under $20) coins are genuine. Most experienced collectors still buy on eBay, but are somewhat worried about fakes. eBay has become the "retail" market for coins under $100. You can find common coins in excellent condition on eBay, and at good prices.  

The best alternative to eBay is buying from specialist ancient-coin dealers. (I am not a dealer, that's just a fact.) There are numerous dealers in the US who specialize in ancient coins. The premier site for buying fixed-price ancient coins on the web is vcoins.com . It as an ancient coin "mall" with over 100 dealers. It has an excellent feature that allows you to "search all stores" and compare conditions and prices on 70,000 (yes!) ancient coins. There are numerous other dealers on the web, but I will not list them here.  100 dealers is enough to get you started!
   
Is that all there is to know -- go to eBay or vcoins.com ?

Of course there are other alternatives that are better for some collectors. Where you buy will depend upon your circumstances.

Most high-end coins are offered by major dealers who print and mail auction catalogs. Most now have websites as well. Firms like Classical Numismatic Group (CNG) in Pennsylvania offer high-quality coins to serious collectors. Such coins are rarely offered on eBay (which primarily caters to the low end). Several other firms in Europe offer superb coins. (Ancient-coin collecting is much more popular in Europe than it is in the U.S. After all, ancient coins are found in European countries and are part of their national heritages.)

How can I know what a coin is worth?

This is much easier than it used to be. Use on-line references. For any type, you can look it up. I will discuss four methods.

1)  Look it up on vcoins.com .  Use "Search all stores" to look for similar coins using the usual descriptive terms (ruler's name, Greek city, etc.)

2)  Look it up on wildwinds.com .  You can select "Roman" or "Greek" and search by the usual descriptive terms. This is most suitable for low-end and moderately priced coins. Many of the listings come from completed eBay auctions.

3)  Look it up at CoinArchives.com .  This site tracks prices at major auctions. It is suitable only for high-end coins. Inexpensive coins will not be listed here.

4)  Keep track of eBay prices of similar coins. This is much more difficult, because it requires bookmarking coins and coming back after they close to see what they sold for. Many coins double or triple in price in the last few seconds, so the current price of any on-going auction is emphatically not a good indicator of what it will sell for. You can know what the coin is "worth" only after the auction closes.

In general, cost is related to 1) issuing authority (ruler or city state), 2) denomination, and 3) condition. Note well: So-called "rarity" is NOT on this list. It plays a role, but is often misrepresented. Learn about the three major factors first. 
    Condition is the tricky factor. The same ruler in the same denomination can cost 10 or 100 times as much in super grade as in very worn or corroded condition. I suppose I could write a web page on "condition," but I won't now. Just be aware that "a coin of Nero" is NOT a description precise enough to say much about price. Even if you knew it was a silver denarius, it could still be worth from $20 to $2000, depending upon how nice it is. You need to study up on "condition" (which is a lot like "grade," but more encompassing. For example, irritating off-centering or ugly surfaces may drastically lower the condition without lowering the grade, because "grade" is defined to be a statement about wear alone). 

I have a webpage (It is long -- it was a published article) on the (over-rated) importance of rarity.

Doug Smith has an excellent webpage illustrating the factors that affect condition. However, you must be aware that many dealers grade coins more loosely than Doug -- that is to say, his "Very Fine" may be nicer than the "Very Fine" of some unpictured coin you buy. However, his grades are what the better dealers use. Grading is very contentious and you must be careful not to keep coins that are worse than the description led you to expect. Return them for a full refund. Legitimate dealers always offer return privileges on fixed-price coins.

I buy lots of coins that are overgraded -- I don't buy the grade, I buy the coin. Of course, this requires seeing the coin or at least a photo of the coin. Most of my friends do not buy unpictured coins because they know that a grade, say, "VF," does not and can not descibe the desirability of a coin to you. As for me, if the price is right for the coin and I like it, it does not matter what the grade was called. If you go to a coin show, most ancient coins will not be graded at all. There is just the coin and its price. The coin stands on its own merits. See Doug's fine page to learn about the factors that affect the condition of a coin. You will see there are too many factors for a coin to be described by a single grade. Decide what YOU like.

Do you have any additional advice?

Yes. The above advice was for people at their computers at home. If you really get interested, you will want to experience a coin show.

The best place to learn and buy is at a major coin show that brings together (usually at a convention center) numerous dealers from across the world that specialize in ancient coins. There are occasionally such shows in NY, LA, San Francisco, Chicago, Boston, and other major cities. Upcoming shows are listed in the Celator and other coin journals. The best place to learn about ancient coins and what they cost is at those same coin shows. Of course, getting out to a show can be expensive, and there may not be one near you soon (or ever - I'm in Montana!).

I got an unsolicited catalog in the mail.

If you got a glossy flyer in the mail from a mass marketeer with a few ancient coins offered among many other coins or artifacts, buy from someone else. They are almost sure to be vastly overpriced. If you see ancient coins offered for sale in a glossy mass-circulation magazine (maybe on archaeology or biblical studies) they are almost sure to be very overpriced.

What about investing in ancient coins?

Buy coins because you like them and because they interest you, but not because you think you will make money. Ancient coins are a great hobby, but probably not a great investment. If you get deeply involved, you will probably preserve your money, but most "investors" do not make money in coins. Here is a joke with a kernel of truth: What is the best way to make a small fortune in rare coins? Answer: Start with a large fortune!

Any more advice?

Yes! Please do not fall for hype! If you don't already know a coin, don't ever buy it because it is advertised as "scarce" or "rare" or "less than 10 known." Sellers on eBay regularly lie (yes, lie) about the rarity of their coins. Zillions (hyperbole) of ancient coins fall into those categories and their value is not based on rarity, but ruler, denomination, and condition.

Do not fall for hype! There are zillions of genuine ancient coins out there and the chances are nil that any one you see now is so special that you will not have an equal chance at another as good or better. I guarantee you another interesting coin will come along to tempt you to part with your money! Have patience! Do not let yourself feel pressure to buy any particular coin because of hype.

Do not assume that a coin marked way down is a good deal. I could take a $10 coin and mark it $125 (would you know it was a $10 coin?) and then mark it "way down" to $45. That doesn't make it a good deal. I think such pricing is not common, but it happens. Learn a bit first, then buy.

This week (as I write this) I found coin on eBay I wanted. The seller said a reference book listed its value as "up to $400."  I won it. My cost? $16.21 including postage!  Do not believe the price estimates on eBay!

Never buy from sellers on eBay who have "private auctions" to "protect the ID" (a lie!) of the buyer. These are part of a scam used by criminals to sell fake coins. Legimate sellers do not use private auctions. I have more advice on my page about fakes.

See if any books on ancient topics are in your local library. Ask a local coin dealer if he can introduce you to anyone who already knows about ancient coins. The collector would have to be a specialist in ancient coins to be of much help in this subject. US coin collectors and ancient coin collectors have little in common. 

Enjoy! Ancient coins are a GREAT hobby!

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