Roman and Greek bronze, what do y'all have?

So I'm not a high dollar collector, but I have bought a few lots of uncleaned coins that I have cleaned up, and these are some of the best I've found (A lot of them are just slabs). What have you found from them dirt encrusted lots?

Top group are Greek, probably 200 BC or earlier ( the rounded one with just punches is probably around 500 BC I guess just from the type of stamping). Bottom group is Roman, probably 300 AD or newer.

Curious what other people have!

My two Romans were coins I received for free with another purchase from a dealer looking to offload them. Being mainly a post-1795 collector, I have no interest in Ancient coinage, but I wasn't about to turn down free coins either. :)

How much did you pay for those lots? The coins look great!

Cita: "CassTaylor"Being mainly a post-1795 collector, I have no interest in Ancient coinage

I've got nothing between these and 1828. And a few Olbia dolphins as well

Cita: "redsmithstudios"​How much did you pay for those lots? The coins look great!

Thank you!

They're roughly $1 or $2 a coin, but probably 50% of them are junk underneath the dirt, so I guess more like $3 per good one. The greek's were a bit more but I only bought 5 (one was complete garbage). Just go on ebay and search "roman uncleaned coins", there's loads of them there. It's a fun diversion while watching TV or whatever to clean them up, usually takes me an hour or two per coin, kind of like playing a scratch off lottery ticket :)

My collection, or more accurately accumulation is along the same lines, although it's a bit bigger as I've been gathering them for several years. I've never been brave enough to drop $50 on a pile of coagulated mud which is rumored to contain coins, plus I don't think I'd have the time, patience or energy to dissolve the crud, soak them for an extended time and finally clean them. Glad it worked out well for you though.

Whenever I see a well preserved example I snap it up, take it home and put it in my slowly filling box of ancients. I reject any which are not fully round as I just dislike the ones with large parts of the rim missing. A half a coin isn't very appealing. When I have had such coins, usually from buying hem in batches, I've given them away to newer collectors as part of a swap. I haven't ever paid more than $5 for one, some of them I've even picked out of the 12 for $1 bin at my local coin shop. It's a very unsophisticated approach I know and I'm sure that I have lots of duplicates and nothing of any great value - but it works for me.

One day (or perhaps one year!) I'm going to settle down with a glass/bottle of Glenmorangie, put my wife out for the night and the dogs / cats to bed, and identify them all, catalog them and put them into a nice album. I have everything ready to rock n roll, the 2x2 flips or varying sizes, the album pages to match and a very handsome purple binder. (Imperial color, geddit?) I've bookmarked all the websites suggested by the more experienced so all I need now is time and inclination.

I did make a start a few years ago and was given a great deal of help by several Numista members which made the learning curve a little less steep. Most of them are still around, although my dearest friend and ancients go-to-guy Imreh seems to have vanished. There are however many helpful and knowledgeable members remaining who are always willing to answer a question or point me towards the answer. That's quite reassuring.

The hardest part, for me at least, is deciding whether to organise them by reign or by denomination and of course working out what the denominations are and how they relate to each other. There's nothing more frustrating than putting a lot of effort into a project and ending up having to redo the whole thing because you're not happy with the end result.

Please do keep us informed of your progress. Once I finally get my act together and find out exactly what I have perhaps we can swap our duplicates.

I'll post what i got in the next days. Even if I'm collecting roman coins i'm not into for so long so I don't have many of them, roughly 20. I try to collect a nice example of each emperor. I can't take pictures right now but it will be done soon enough.

Do you know what is the big greek coin at the top ? I'd like to know.

I'd love to see a picture of some of yours pnightingale! I have no local coin shops since I live in the middle of nowhere, so I'm pretty much stuck with the internet. I've tried soaking, but without much success. I usually just use a small sharp knife and very carefully chip the crud off. depends on the condition of the metal and patina where I go from there. I've never spent $50, usually $25 or so. But like I said, kinda like playing the lottery, half the fun is in the unknowing! (although I've never actually played the lottery). Plus, some of the mediocre examples are good for a beer at the local bar :)

I've been working on identifying mine to at least the closest in the numista catalog. Have a pending request for a new entry of that smallest greek coin there, I was able to positively ID it on another site as being from Abydos, 320-200 BC. Still trying to find the one with the elephant, I did ID it a while back but lost the website bookmark

Cita: "Choucas"​I'll post what i got in the next days. Even if I'm collecting roman coins i'm not into for so long so I don't have many of them, roughly 20. I try to collect a nice example of each emperor. I can't take pictures right now but it will be done soon enough.
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​Do you know what is the big greek coin at the top ? I'd like to know.

​The one on the right? This is the closest in the numista catalog. Elsewhere on the web I've found some closer variants. The reverse there is Athena with shield and spear, common pattern for that city. Mine's in really poor condition, when I first got through the dirt layer I was sure it was just a slab but after a ton of work scraping away a very hard, thick layer of patina I got enough detail to ID it. And it's not that big, same diameter as a US penny. The other's are just really small, the top center is an AE11!
https://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces44706.html

Here you go my dear fellow redneck -

Earlier discussion of the topic which a ton of useful info. and links.

https://en.numista.com/forum/topic26297.html

Here's some pictures of a part of my collection. Just enough to give you an idea of where I'm at along this fascinating road.

https://en.numista.com/forum/topic46885.html

Cita: "pnightingale"​Here you go my dear fellow redneck -
​
​Earlier discussion of the topic which a ton of useful info. and links.
​
​https://en.numista.com/forum/topic26297.html
​
​Here's some pictures of a part of my collection. Just enough to give you an idea of where I'm at along this fascinating road.
​
​https://en.numista.com/forum/topic46885.html

​Thanks! And those coins look really nice!

Those are all I've got just for sentimental value https://en.numista.com/forum/topic27284.html

Here is what I got for the empire (well, I agree that is not only bronze):



Nero, Maximinus, Gordianus III, Phillip 'the arab', Volusian, Valerianus, Gallienus, Postumus (x2), Victorinus, Tetricus, Aurelianus, Probus, Constantinus, Crispus, Claudius, Decentius, Valentinian II, Theodosius I.
I also got some "minimi" from Tetricus but they aren't on the pic.
Moreover, i should receive in the following days a Trajan Decius and a Trebonian Gallus.

Also a bronze from the roman republic :



I usually pay not much for the coins. The most expensive one was the denarius from Maximinus. I paid 25€ for it, which is still reasonable. I think it is easier to find nice roman coins for good prices in Europe than in America. Nonetheless, I actually get for free the Nero and a republican denarius. They were given to me by my father who bought them when he was a teenager.

Cita: "sc.rednek"​

Cita: "Choucas"​I'll post what i got in the next days. Even if I'm collecting roman coins i'm not into for so long so I don't have many of them, roughly 20. I try to collect a nice example of each emperor. I can't take pictures right now but it will be done soon enough.
​​
​​Do you know what is the big greek coin at the top ? I'd like to know.

​​The one on the right? This is the closest in the numista catalog. Elsewhere on the web I've found some closer variants. The reverse there is Athena with shield and spear, common pattern for that city. Mine's in really poor condition, when I first got through the dirt layer I was sure it was just a slab but after a ton of work scraping away a very hard, thick layer of patina I got enough detail to ID it. And it's not that big, same diameter as a US penny. The other's are just really small, the top center is an AE11!
​https://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces44706.html

​
No, sorry, I was talking about the one in the left. It looks interesting. However, thanks for your answer about the other coin. This one is interesting too, considering it was struck under the thessalian league.

Cita: "Choucas"​​​
​No, sorry, I was talking about the one in the left. It looks interesting. However, thanks for your answer about the other coin. This one is interesting too, considering it was struck under the thessalian league.

​I don't know anything about it, except that it was struck with a punch just like the earliest coins. Unlike those first coins it is bronze, not electrum. So could have been made anywhere at anytime, but I'm guessing it's very old. There's no design on the bottom, just the two punch marks on the top. The larger punch has a bird or a face design in it, not quite sure

I just got 3 small coins I just tried to identify in this topic: https://en.numista.com/forum/topic65738.html
Really hope to expand it soon, especially with bigger coins ;).

Can anyone help me identify this greek coin? I know it's not in the numista catalog, if I can get any info on it I'll add it.

Perhaps Carthage or some other Phoenician state?

Seleucid, Antiochos III ?
The Elephant was the symbol of this king and we can read "ANTI...." under it.

http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/greece/seleucia/antiochos_III/t.html


I mostly have nummus (about 35) and barbarous radiates (about 15) : I bought an unclean lot few month ago.

Except that, I only have an As, a Dupondius and a Sestersius, plus two other coins from the Seleucid Empire as well as a Kushan one and a Celt one.

It's all I have in bronze from that period.

Too many to list, but here are a few from my collection:

Roman Republic: Anonymous (ca. 215-212 BCE) Æ Sextans, Rome (Crawford 41/9; Sydenham 107; RBW 133-4)

Obv: Head of Mercury right, wearing winged petasus; •• above
Rev: Prow of galley right; ROMA above, •• below



Bruttium, the Brettii: Anonymous (ca. 214-211 BCE) Æ Double – Didrachm (Scheu, Bronze 1; HN Italy 1975)

Obv: Helmeted head of Ares left; two pellets to right, grain ear below
Rev: Nike standing left, erecting trophy; cornucopia between



Ptolemaic Kings of Egypt: Ptolemy III Euergetes (246-222 BCE) Æ Triobol, Alexandreia (Svoronos 965; SNG Copenhagen 173-5)

Obv: Diademed head of Zeus-Ammon right
Rev: ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ; Eagle with closed wings standing left on thunderbolt; filleted cornucopia to left, XP monogram between legs



Sicily, Syracuse: Pyrrhos (278-276 BCE) Æ Unit (B&S Type 5; BAR Issue 52; HGC 2, 1451; Sear 1213var)

Obv: ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΩΝ; Head of Herakles left, wearing lion-skin
Rev: Athena Promachos advancing right, holding thunderbolt and shield; trident head to left




Roman Imperial: Constantius Gallus, as Caesar (351-354 CE) Æ Centenionalis, Heraclea (RIC VIII 84; LRBC 1894)

Obv: D N CONSTAN-TIVS NOB C; Bareheaded, draped, and cuirassed bust right
Rev: FEL TEMP RE-PARATIO; Soldier standing left, holding shield and spearing fallen horseman; shield on ground at right; Horseman turns to face soldier, and extends left arm; Γ in left field; SMHΔ in exergue




Roman Imperial: Crispus, as Caesar (316-326 CE) Æ Follis, Treveri, 320 CE (RIC VII 251)

Obv: CRISPVS-NOB CAES; Helmeted and cuirassed bust right
Rev: VIRTVS-EXERCIT; Two captives seated at base of trophy; STR in exergue

I have one roman and one (possibly) greek coin, photos here: https://en.numista.com/forum/topic64932.html (topic I opened when purchased them to ask for ID). The greek coin is still unidentified (found nothing at wildwinds), if someone can help I appreciate.

Cita: "Giobruno"​I have one roman and one (possibly) greek coin, photos here: https://en.numista.com/forum/topic64932.html (topic I opened when purchased them to ask for ID). The greek coin is still unidentified (found nothing at wildwinds), if someone can help I appreciate.

​A precise identification of the first coin is not possible as the reverse is pretty much gone. A close approximation is the following coin:

Antioch RIC VIII 49 - Constantius II AE3

Obv: CONSTAN-TIVS AVG, pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right
Rev: GLOR-IA EXERC-ITVS, two soldiers holding spears and shields with one standard between them. Mintmark SMANZ



The second coin is not Greek, but Byzantine:

Byzantine Empire: Justin I (518-527 CE) Æ Pentanummium, Antioch (Sear 111; DOC 57)

Obv: DN IVSTINVS PP AV; diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right
Rev: Tyche of Antioch, turreted, seated left within columned shrine with half submerged figure of river-god Orontes swimming at her feet, retrograde Є to left

Beautiful coins Quant-Geek !

Cita: "Quant-Geek"​

Cita: "Giobruno"​I have one roman and one (possibly) greek coin, photos here: https://en.numista.com/forum/topic64932.html (topic I opened when purchased them to ask for ID). The greek coin is still unidentified (found nothing at wildwinds), if someone can help I appreciate.
​
​

​​A precise identification of the first coin is not possible as the reverse is pretty much gone. A close approximation is the following coin:
​
​Antioch RIC VIII 49 - Constantius II AE3
​
​Obv: CONSTAN-TIVS AVG, pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right
​Rev: GLOR-IA EXERC-ITVS, two soldiers holding spears and shields with one standard between them. Mintmark SMANZ
​
​
​
​The second coin is not Greek, but Byzantine:
​
​Byzantine Empire: Justin I (518-527 CE) Æ Pentanummium, Antioch (Sear 111; DOC 57)
​
​Obv: DN IVSTINVS PP AV; diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right
​Rev: Tyche of Antioch, turreted, seated left within columned shrine with half submerged figure of river-god Orontes swimming at her feet, retrograde Є to left
​
​
​

​Wow, bizantine. Didn't expected that. And thank you for the prompt answer! And thank you twice because the coin is related to the great Justinian that is on all history books (as Justin is Justinian's uncle).
Is that coin added to Numista yet?

About the Roman coin, I already got an approximate ID on that day (https://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces50663.html). Indeed one side was nearly erased but the emperor's face side was relatively well preserved, and believe me, 90% of the coins available were completely erased, as I said before I've picked 2 with something visible.

Well, mystery solved. Thanks!

And by the way, Quant-Geek's coins are a wonder. True relics of a far past.

Edit: about the roman coin, it's indeed the Antioch variety, not Constantinople's. That small details. (https://en.numista.com/catalogue/pieces90175.html)

Cita: "Giobruno"​​Is that coin added to Numista yet?

Most of my coins are not in Numista

Cita: "Quant-Geek"​

Cita: "Giobruno"​​Is that coin added to Numista yet?

​
​Most of my coins are not in Numista

​Well, I've added my coin, awaiting validation. (and found it on wildwinds: http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/byz/justin_I/sb0111.1.txt and http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/byz/justin_I/sb0111.1.jpg)