CoinWeek IQ: Grading Ancient Coins with David Vagi - 4K Video

CoinWeek sits down with NGC Ancients' Director David Vagi to discuss collecting ancient coins, ancient coin grading, and how new collectors should approach this remarkable area of numismatics.
Vagi then takes us behind the scenes as he grades an order of silver tetradrachms at NGC's headquarters in Sarasota, Florida.
This exclusive CoinWeek video was made possible with the generous help of NGC.
CoinWeek IQ Video: #026
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[@dakadaka7455]

Wait a minute, is this the guy that appears in Pawn Stars? :D

[@ZombieProdigyUS]

Yup! That's him!

[@afsof1015]

That was an outstanding short interview Charles ! David imparted the answer's to your questions clearly, concisely, in layman's terms, and with a sincerity that demonstrated his love of the field. Thank you for sharing my friend

[@mikeleapline5834]

That was the best i love it

[@randywatson8347]

Luv that clean mark on the spacebar on that ancient keyboard.

[@dynomania]

I saved for a long time then eventually invested in an NGC graded Athenian Owl tetradrachm as depicted in the early part of the video. Definitely my fav ancient coin.

[@brictator]

8:00 true about learning backwards from coins

[@Sageofthenation]

My First ancient coin was a Hadrian Denarius. Knew nothing at the time, but was drawn to the history. 4 years later, I'm cleaning and attributing my own coins and that of others. A remarkable hobby that allows for history to live on unmolested. I'd do anything to work at the NGC ancients department.

[@tpf988]

I must say this from start. I'm a total beginner, collected some 30 years ago . Few of the talkers on this had strengthened the video, but David is really amazing! Intelligent, well researched, easy flowing speech. I love what he sharwa! I hope to someday meet Matt I'm person. That's the excitement I feel.. Once again Dave makes or breaks the show. Love you and yours.

[@samu0450]

@coinweek We need more of these ancient coin videos!!! :D

[@vacciniumaugustifolium1420]

The quality of the coin on this video is truly amazing

[@DanielFHarb]

Awesome video, thank you! I just bought my first Ancient. It is a Severus Alexander Denarius from 222~235 AD. I love it and learning about Ancient coins is pretty fascinating. Thanks!

[@joeeema3873]

Nice how much for that?

[@alkowsky]

Excellent video! One important factor Mr. Vagi didn't mention in the video is the cost of encapsulation by NGC. There is a standard fee of $40.00 to slab an ancient coin & receive an evaluation for strike & finish, plus an $8.00 handling fee, plus a minimum shipping fee of $21.00. This adds up to $69.00, not including your cost to ship the coin to NGC. Many ancient coins have a retail value ranging from $15.00 to 50.00. So you must ask is it worth sending the coin to NGC for encapsulation? For rare & valuable coins as shown in the video it certainly is worth the expense, especially knowing there are many excellent fakes in the current market, but for coins of low value it is probably a waste of money.

[@nonplayerzealot4]

I saw a new Pawn Stars where Vagi examined a Mithratedes coin and Rick tried to use the nominal grading costs of NGC/PCGS on the owner as if it was gonna cost him thousands of bucks, haha. He offered her thousands less than her asking price and he said, "I gotta send it off and there's grading and encapsulating costs." Yeah, like a hundred bucks or less. People who don't know the first thing about coins shouldn't try to sell to a pawn broker. That's the kind of line they'll get. The woman in the show was smart enough to seek a higher price.

[@brictator]

as cheap as $15 for slower processing without strike/surface grade, and just "CH VF" etc. For $100 F - XF denarii maybe not worth it but for some nice centered CH XFs or better it is worth it

[@Fivology]

I have never seen a good centered tetradrachm as that Alexander III first tetradrachm. My god that's beautiful...

[@jeretuononen]

Fivology I agree!

[@antoniusbritannia8217]

I concur!

[@locknloadvideo]

That Athens Tetradrachm was insanely nice too. Those feathers and lack of a counterstrike wow

[@Fivology]

I agree. What an absolutely attractive piece. Only thing missing in this video is an Aeginean turtle stater ;)

[@yaricelasanche2250]

Fivology cuales

[@shanekilleen9022]

Great interview

[@SilverBlackBird1989]

The coins shown are looking fantastic, I wish i had the money to buy one of these in good condition. Looks like I'm going to be saving some cash.

[@jaybee5269]

No doubt NGC and ancient coin grading are doing a good service and opening up the hobby to many timid novices. However, the spectacle of Mr. Vagi (presumably) handling those magnificent coins, turning them over and over in the light, demonstrates why slabbing ancients is such a shame because this is impossible with a slabbed coin. It probably makes sense for delicate, extremely high grade gold that might be easily damaged, but on the whole, I think that doing business with a scrupulously reputable dealer, of which there are fortunately more than a few, is a far superior alternative.

[@nonplayerzealot4]

Market dictates the demand for slabbing. People don't wanna buy damaged or cleaned coins. Slabs prevent those things.

[@thunderstruck122]

Slabbing doesn't prevent either. Ideally, they will be mentioned, but not always. Remember that these bright silver Greek coins weren't found that way. Interesting that the slabbing of ancients hasn't caught on very well in Europe.

[@brictator]

I think you can buy ancients at the European auctions from Germany and San Marino, Switz, and then get them slabbed here and sell in USA at Heritage or inflated Ebay buy it now, and make money

[@DrBPhD]

@@thunderstruck122 You're right. We actually hate slabbed coins here in Europe. First thing to do for most European collectors when they bought or just received a slabbed coin: break the slab (carefully!!!).

[@wollin20]

Ancient coins have survived centuries of humidity, oxygen, and varied salts exposure. They are not made of perishable materials, so a simple coin cabinet box should do for preservation. And for a collector, grading a ancient coin, that is a craft production, it is just a matter of personal appreciation of one specific object, so where is the need of a third party? (Actually, the seller's grading is also irrelevant: This coin is pleasant for YOU or not). Not to mention enslabbing a coin prevents you needlessly from gently manipulating and observing the coin. So, encapsulating these pices of history is for me an heresy, and it just has the purpose to sell coins to people who only want to speculate on this market with no specific interest in coins or history.

[@wollin20]

Just correcting a few mistakes: "craft production, is", "pieces". I hope my english is correct.

[@dynomania]

@@wollin20 Yes exactly, for the moment the ancient coins are as close as we get to time travelling.

[@Fivology]

Thank you for this beautiful video. I wish you'd upload more ancient videos ;)

[@coinweek]

We will keep at it. Thanks for the feedback!

[@numanuma20]

Yes, please upload more ancient coin videos.

[@antoniusbritannia8217]

Great Interview with David Vagi! I would like to hear him describe, a bit on the difference between a normal business strike, and fine style. A common critique is there are many a Sestertius and Denarii that are in NGC holders, with exceptional strikes, and engraving, that are not given the coveted "Fine Style" designation. In essence, what is the objective standard? CoinWeek consistently has the best interviews and examples! Love the overview of ancient collecting. +1 and shared!

[@Fivology]

What I did notice is that coins marked as "fine style" are mostly semi-perfectly centered die strike on outstanding circular flans. That might be one of the standards they rely on along with eye appeal.

[@brictator]

I know what you mean. But, when you see one that DID get the fine style designation, it usually looks really really good

[@senatuspopulusqueromanus5626]

i have one of those Athens silver tetradrachm from 440-404 certified by NGC.

[@senatuspopulusqueromanus5626]

I own several of these coins (not the exact coin) but they are all graded by ngc

[@bobtimster62]

I'm a newbie ancient coin collector. How would I get help from NGC in evaluating a coin that I am thinking of buying/have bought in the midst of the Co-vid pandemic?

[@hermanbrowndog5503]

Good presentation. What I would like to learn about is how to find a reliable dealer. That seems to be very difficult with ancient coins.

[@Jose-db3hg]

I have a 1977 quarter dollar no mint mark indicating it from Philadelphia, the bust of george washington has a donut circle impressed in his features, also the left side of the coin seems to not be stamped all the way, would it be worth grading???

[@robertsimon6674]

thanks for your lovely presentation !!!

[@BobRossTrolling]

One of the coins were a Greece Athens Tetradrachm.

[@numanuma20]

I do agree with your video. How do we know that the person we are buying the coins from has real ancient coins. If they are real, how is that person able to obtain those coins? Also, is it worth having coins graded, or is the grading part just a marketing ploy? It's great that someone is able to help determine if the coin is real, but I'm not sure about the grading and value part mostly with the modern coins.

[@donnalynn4907]

I found a very old struck coin in a gravel pile,..(ancient)? I was wondering If you could tell me the approximately ,era, and area from where it originated... I may not be interested In selling. I am more curious. about it as love old objects ests...ECT...My husband is 77. Old. Lo Thank you Respectively Donna Croken

[@federicovinluanjr.8102]

i have a ancient goins but i dont know from what year and it is greek or roman coins. can anybody help me to distinguish this kind of ancient Coins.

[@coincollectingfun]

Awesome video! :-D

[@twfegtwfeg7302]

I have a very historic Roman gold piece

[@3milio1112]

David has the most beautiful eyes 😍

[@robertlakay88]

How are nearly all these silver coin still brilliant white without toning as if they where struck yesterday? Are cleaning anciet coins common acceptable practice because I thought this was frowned upon in numistmatics...?

[@dougsmit1]

There is an old truism: "All ancient coins have been cleaned; the ones with an inch of dirt on them used to have two inches." We have yo evaluate how well or how poorly a coin was handled in the process of recovery as par of evaluation but it is unrealistic to say coins should not be cleaned. Modern coin collectors expect 200 year old coins to have passed hose years in some bank vault or sock drawer. Our 2000 year old ancient coins come from pots buried in the ground or singly from coins dropped in the dirt. Cleaning is a fact. Unfortunately there are many coins ruined by misguided and inexpert cleaning techniques. That is what is frowned upon in ancient numismatics.

[@donnalynn4907]

Mime has a crown with what appears like a dog figure on one side and dumber numbers plus the letter AS and what looks like styilsted s ' or snakes on on the other side...the strike seems centred but the coin is a an almost perfect round.

[@strangerman9568]

Thanks mr. Amazing

[@deadskull1051]

I have 4 of the coin that have the owl sign ( the first one you shiowed) i have one big and gold polished and 3 small silver polished can you tell me the estemated price of each one

[@shepirate4651]

👈 David Vagi Fan

[@mobeenakhtar4845]

I have some coins of kushankingdom aged 1st century

[@bRadicalmagic1]

I am hoping for advice on an Ancient coin I picked up at a Magicians Estate sell . Can anyone offer me a suggestion ?

[@noahsnumismatics]

Awesome :)

[@SoCalFreelance]

Seems like the ancient coin market would be rife for forgers. The coin designs aren't sophisticated and as David says there is so much variation. Variation is the exact characteristic all of us use to detect fake modern coins. There should be heavy skepticism when someone introduces a new never before seen coin into the compendium of ancient coins. I would like to have known how he detects forgeries.

[@antoniusbritannia8217]

There are a lot of forgeries. With that said, you see faked high grade modern world coins, Morgans, and Trade Dollars in faked slabs. Thanks China.

[@locknloadvideo]

I don't think an NGC slab guarantees authenticity in ancients.

[@DrBPhD]

Nope. Ancients are in fact very difficult to copy in a way that convinces/fools an expert.

[@donnalynn4907]

Picture are available, plus it does not look like an expert strile

[@simonsalazar1027]

pawn stars

[@FlyOnTheMoon.]

I don't trust TPGs. You pay a ridiculous price for verification and subjective grading. Just keep it, and send it in to be slabbed when the time is right. Don't accept a grade you don't agree with.

[@donnalynn4907]

No facial feature except of the graved dodge, horse..??? whatever the animal is. YOU arecthe expert perhaps you may recgnisit it

[@donnalynn4907]

Very pre roman

[@JoseFlores-mn8pz]

What a cute guy

[@edstud1]

If you like the coin buy it! It's ridiculous to grade these coins, it's way too subjective to grade these. How presumptive to think you are so authoritative.

[@DrBPhD]

Exactly. Personal taste is one of the main guidences in collecting and buying an ancient coins. What is, by general appearance, a mediocre coin to one collector makes the day of another collector. A specific coin in a certain state of preservation may be appreciated totally different by different collectors.

[@donnalynn4907]

I AM NOT a collector

[@anthonylewars365]

Hi mr Vagi ism Anthony from Jamaica i. happen to hav a 1901 two shillings how much will a coon like that be worth today ????NIGHT NIGHT