My Top 10 Ancient Coins for 2023

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Would you like to support the channel and my work? 💰 Help the Channel by "Buying me a Coffee": www.buymeacoffee.com/classicalnumismatics Consider buying some channel Merch! You get a cool T-Shirt or Mug and you help me make more Ancient Numismatics content. Thank you! leob.creator-spring.com/

[@shanelewis617]

I collect U.S. COINS! MORGAN & PEACE DOLLARS MERCURY DIMES COPPER PENNIES ETC. But, recently I bought a one pound bag of foreign coins for $4.50 from my LCS In it I found a 315 AD LICINIUS/JUPITER bronze Roman coin! I am hooked! This history is amazing! I had no idea! This is so EXCITING! THANK YOU FOR THE HISTORY LESSONS!

[@neptunesmarsh]

I discovered your channel this past year after going back to ancients, and it has inspired to actually assemble a "collection," something w/ a common theme, and not just an accumulation of pieces, a mistake I made the first time. The finest coin I purchased this past year is actually in my channel icon, a denarius of Octavian, minted just after his defeat of Antony and Cleopatra, but before becoming "Augustus." That said, I'd like to focus on the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire this year, since it is an underappreciated topic of Western history, but was instrumental in the preservation and perpetuation of Classical knowledge into the Middle Ages.

[@christopherevans2445]

That's a beautiful Octavian. Nice peice.

[@santoshr2984]

Damn .. one more great video. I have learned a lot from your videos. Thanks for making such great content. Cheers. I am interested in Ancient Indian coins .. My top 3 picks for 2023 1. Kanishka Gold Dinar (Kushans are my interest) 2. Mihirkula (Oh yes, a lot interested in Huns and Hunnic invasions into Indian sub-continent) 3. Kashi Janapada (Punch marked Janapada and Ancient Indian tribal coins are of great interest) ..

[@aeternitasromae]

Best numismatic channel out there. Congrats on the growth this year, very well deserved. Look forward to seeing what coins you add to your collection in 2024!

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Thank you very much for the kind words. Lets hope for a great 2024 for all of us :)

[@stevekovoc3939]

2023 was really when my collection expanded. I got, among a whole host of others, a Justinian I follis, a coin of Julian II, a small Bactrian silver coin, a Sassanian coin of Hormazd IV, an Alexander III bronze coin depicting Heracles, etc.

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Thats a very wide range of interests, really cool!

[@gaineyjohnson6628]

I look forward to this!

[@Matisto1]

Thanks for the video and have a great 2024!

[@Numischannel]

Great coins Leo! I wish you a wonderful 2024 full of new acquisitions!!!! Happy New Year!!!!

[@iskato914six]

I have a handful of coins that I purchased as 'crusty coins', the type that are intended to be cleaned. it was my first attempt at ancient coin collecting, and I did have a lot of fun uncovering the caked on dirt to reveal the coin. I personally cannot identify the coins, and there are a few standouts that present quite well. But overall, I think that purchasing an already cleaned coin that is going to show its history upon purchase is the way I'll go in 2024. Aaron, you offered to sell me an 'Athenian Owl' several months back, but it was out of my budget. hope to connect this new year so you can show me what u have for sale. Thanks and Happy New Year!

[@falkone2001]

I've had a massive pop-up of my collection. Finally I've got Tarentum, Owl of Athena and Julius Caesar elephant. I'm extremely happy! Happy New Year colleagues!

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Wonderful additions to your collection. A Caesar Elephant is definitely in my bucket list for the future. So nice!

[@falkone2001]

@@ClassicalNumismatics I've bought quite cheaper due to some dirt and corrosion on the surface. But after professional cleaning it will be much better. Show you results later

[@colbystearns5066]

Impressive collection, I wasn’t able to collect more than ten coins this year but I have collected more coins this year than I have in a while, primarily focused on competing a set of denarii from the Severan Dynasty. I think my favorite coin I acquired this year was a denarius of Julia Domna. The rest of the top five in no particular order was a denarius of her husband Septimius Severus, a denarius of Alexander Severus’ mother Julia Mamaea, an AE-2 of the Fallen Horseman type from Constantius II, and this massive follis from Justinian that is the widest flan of any ancient coin I own at 36.8 millimeters in diameter.

[@monedasehistorias]

Beautiful coins. Congratulations for your coins and for the channel, and I wish you a happy new year!!

[@spef7396]

Thanks so much for your videos! I started watching nearly 2 years ago now and it's great to see the progress the channel has made. It's been. A trying couple of years and as a recent graduate I haven't had the budget to be able to purchase the coins I want, but it's great to get to appreciate them through your camera and learn more about the hobby / history at the same time. So thank you and here to hoping that 2024 is another great year for the channel 🎉

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Thanks for being around for such a long time! Hopefully your efforts on getting your degree will bear fruits in the future and you get all the coins you wish :)

[@TheSibbe91]

My top coins this year is 1: a 1/12 electrum stater from Kyzikos minted between 500-450 bc 2: a roman denarius minted between 83-82 bc under praetor Q Antonius Balbus 3: a stater from Aegina minted between 510-490 bc 4: a 1/48 electrum stater minted in Miletos between 600-546 bc 5: a antoninianus minted under Aurelian

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Wow, an Aegina Stater, wonderful!

[@emidau]

Feliz año nuevo, q la cultura numismatica siga creciendo!!

[@numismaticmaster8612]

I have to admit this year was a great year for collecting, for everything, so picking my top 10 will be quite difficult. In no particular order: 1: A portrait Denarius of Julius Caesar. My particular coin was minted from March-April of 44 BCE. Although a problem coin, it’s a good hole filler I plan to upgrade fairly soon. 2: 1902 British Crown, graded MS63. A tougher type in an even tougher grade. 3: 1908 British Florin, graded MS63. While not a rare year, it is a conditional rarity, being the highest graded at PCGS, and there are only a couple higher at NGC. 4: 1966 Rhodesia 10 Shillings, graded PF65. Always enjoy a scarce Gold coin. 5: A Denarius of Hadrian. The type I got is a very good grade Aegyptos Denarius from his Travel series. High grade and good toning. 6: A Denarius of Titus, but not just any random Denarius. A very, very nice elephant Denarius. Probably the best I’ve seen of the type. 7: Another Flavian emperor, this time being Vespasian. Given that his coins are so common, I wanted something a bit more special, so I went with a Judea Capta minted in Antioch, so the more scarce type for the series. 8: 1906 J Bremen five Marks, graded MS64. Generally not one for German coins, but it was super nice. 9: 1957 Rhodesia and Nyasaland Half Crown, graded MS65. Just a super gem looking coin. 10: Probably the most unique coin I added this year, a 1437 (2016) Dirham minted by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Since I also collect notes, I’ll mention a few of those: 1: 1974 Bahamas $50, graded VF30. 2: 1947 British Honduras $10, currently at PMG, but expecting a 12-15. 3: 1965 France 500 Francs, grade AU53. 4: ND (1961) Guadeloupe 10 Nouveau Francs on 1,000 Francs, graded VF20. 5: ND (1971) Réunion 20 Nouveau Francs on 1,000 Francs, graded CU66 EPQ. 6: ND (1944) Iran 1,000 Rials, graded VF35. 7: 1964 Rhodesia £5, graded XF45. 8: 1960 Rhodesia and Nyasaland £1, graded VF30 EPQ. 9: 1967 Morocco five Dirhams. 10: ND (1963) Malta 10 Shillings, graded CU64 EPQ.

[@ickster23]

Very nice acquisitions there. Thanks for sharing. My favourite coin I acquired this uear is also my cheapest and it's common. It's an EF Constans Fel Temp hut type with gorgeous desert patina that was expertly cleaned. It's wonderful to look at.

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Thats great! And proof that even common and "unremarkable" coins can still be super interesting and very pretty to look at

[@briank7936]

One of my favorite videos of the year. Here is to some nice additions in 2024. Let's go! My top additions for the year: 1. Athens Silver Tetradrachm EF. Owl has to be my top coin. I love holding it and knowing I am touching something made over 2k years ago. 2. St Patrick Farthing VF (Martin 1c.23-Ba.20). Early coin from the mid 1600s used in the U.S colonies from Ireland. 3. Caligula As EF (RIC I 38). You were not kidding in your video that this guy is expensive. Even in bronze. 4. Claudius I Dupondius VF (RIC 1 95). Not cheap either but a steal compared to Caligula. 5. Marcus Aurelius EF (RIC III 67). Saw this for sale on one of the dealer sites I check from time to time and used a 10% off coupon. 6. Full set of U.S. coins for my birth year. 26 coins and together, cheaper than any single coin above. Top wants for 2024 but the budget can probably support only one or two. 1. Alexander III lifetime tetradrachm 2. Fugio Cent 3. Augustus denarius 4. St Gaudens Double Eagle 5. Julius Caesar denarius

[@thumos]

Just bought a similar Probus coin (a bit higher quality perhaps), one of my favorites in my starter collection. Keep up the good work, you're one of the best new channels I subbed to this year. Happy New Year!

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Welcome to the Probus gang!

[@thumos]

@@ClassicalNumismatics Thanks :) Out of the few left-facing cuirassed spear and shield versions of Probus, I think this is the best-looking of them all.

[@mattl3729]

Gorgeous coins- I can see why they all made it to your top 10 list. 2023 has been a wonderful year for me, numismatically: I obtained an Athenian Owl tetradrachm, a lifetime Alexander tetradrachm, an Antiochus IV tetradrachm (with a lovely offset bust- I like interesting 'flaws'), a Ptolemy II tetradrachm with a gorgeous eagle on the reverse, an Achmaenid siglos from Darios I to Xerxes II, a Phampyla Stater with a Hoplite and legged Triskeles, a Heiron II Poseidon bust bronze, my first Carthage bronze with Tanit and a Horse and Palm, and Syracusan Athena/ Hippocampus, and a nice Gorgoneion drachma of Parion. Next year I hope to continue the quest for a couple of other tetradrachmae- a Phillip II is the most significant one. And more arms and armour pieces (one of my focuses), and Gods and Mythical creatures (my other main focus). Gods willing that is :)

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Wow, thats a spectacular list you got there, congratulations! Lets hope 2024 brings many more!

[@AndrejBk]

great gold pieces, specially that hyperpyron

[@UKDark_Mark]

Excellent. Thank you.

[@el_nesto1844]

I have a collection from my great grandparent with beautiful XIX century coins, recently I bought an 80 BC Iberian coin from Cástula in really good shape and I'm in love with it

[@paponne8701]

The podium is spectacular !

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

It is, indeed! Very proud of these little guys :)

[@LongLivedCoins]

ooo here we go!

[@RizzstrainingOrder66]

love your videos, happy new year

[@GordonGrant-o1h]

Lovely coins Leo,I think I added about 10 Roman coins also,no gold unfortunately. Keep up the great work, happy 2024😊

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Happy 2024 Gordon! :)

[@HistoriaMoneta]

Very nice additions and happy new year! I added some big ones to my collection this year. Here are some of the highlights. 1. Julius Caesar lifetime portrait denarius from Feb-March 44 BC. Well centered with fully visible "Dict Perpetvo" and "Caesar". I particularly liked the portrait style and felt it projected Caesar's dignitas strongly. It's a significant piece of history and I feel lucky to own it. 2. Octavian denarius minted in 29-27 BC. One of the "Imp Caesar" series with the triumphal arch on the reverse. Fantastic portrait style of Octavian. The triumphal arch is such an iconic piece of Roman architecture and I have long wanted a coin displaying one. This piece also represents an incredibly pivotal moment in Roman history, commemorating Octavian's victory over Antony. One of the key pieces in my Roman collection. 3.Larissa Drachm Lorber Hoard Phase L-III. It is also a double die-match to one of the examples in the published Lorber hoard. I have long admired the beautiful facing head portraits of this series, so I prioritized getting an example with a high quality die in a good state of preservation. I also appreciate the historical connection this type has to the rise of Philip II of Macedon. The Lorber Phase L-III series is thought to have been minted in large quantity to help fund the Third Sacred War, where Philip cemented his rise by leading his coalition to victory against the coalition led by Athens and Sparta. 4. Nero Temple of Janus Sestertius. This is a type I have been long interested in but did not want to spend the money on a very high quality example. I was able to win one with some problems on the obverse but a fairly clean reverse and strong depiction of the Temple of Janus. Nero's architecture depictions on his AE coins are some of the most impressive of the Roman series. The connection of the Temple of Janus to Rome's founding is what drew me to this particular type.

[@ChalupaJ23]

Love this. I think you’re making me catch the bug, gonna make my first purchase here soon, not sure what

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Welcome to the club, and happy new year! :)

[@antonio4782]

Espectaculares piezas, enhorabuena,un fuerte abrazo.

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Muchas gracias Antonio! Un abrazo :)

[@numiscanal8018]

Fantastico top 10 ! Queria hacer uno hace rato pero se me hace imposible escoger las 10 ! Las quiero todas ! Obviamente, como siempre, tu top 10 es grandioso ! Feliz año nuevo !

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Feliz año nuevo Jerome!

[@nathanielscreativecollecti6392]

Top 10 for this year, most often from uncleaned lots: 1. Not a coin but a crucifixion spike from ancient Rome. 2. Denarius of Commodus in XF condition, this wins the top coin because it was in an uncleaned lot so I got it for only $14 by chance! 3. Tetradrachm Demetrios II 4. Sestertius of Gordian III 5. Gallienus Antoninianus with full brilliant silvering 6/7. Two fully silvered antoniniani of Probus one with Roma Eternae and another with an adventus 8. Celtic bronze Tetradrachm and silver drachm combo, no I'm not going to divide these up 9. Fully silvered Ulpia Severina 10. Anonymous Follis around 900-1000 AD depicting Christ. This coming year I'm sticking with the fun of uncleaned coins but I'll play in the auctions a bit I'm sure. I would love to get a particular Faustina the Younger portrait, she's the most beautiful of all the Roman Wives.

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Super wide range of fun coins, congrats for the finds!

[@allanwestphall8108]

Thanks for this extremely fine channel and good luck for the new year! My favourite coins in 2023 are a Parthia coin of Mithridates II in shiny silver and a Roman Probus coin with a reverse of Sol Invicto riding in a quadriga shown frontally as if it rides towards us, a spectacular pictorial rendition., The Probus coin was very cheap!

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Probus never dissapoints! Thank you for the kind words, may 2024 bring us some great coins :)

[@213thAIB]

Lovely, all of them. And thank you for sharing your knowledge. That is very much appreciated. As far as the expansion of collectors goes, it is my own opinion that as more and more of us realize just how debased our coinage is, we are attracted to real money. The increase in the number of people now buying gold and silver bullion coins leads, I think, to a very natural progression from our own sovereign coins to more historic examples. I think that there is a great deal of interest in Rome in its own right, but the analogies with the modern West, particularly with respect to the United States, are now so obvious that there is a greatly expanded interest in Roman history. It’s just another factor in appreciating and collecting ancients.

[@colbystearns5066]

It feels like we’re either in the Late Roman Republic era or the Severan Dynasty era honestly, like we’re stepping on pins and needles before something truly horrific happens.

[@christopherevans2445]

Completely agree with you on seeing people's attraction of owning a precious metal coin (gold-silver) that actually has a value then and a value now.

[@silver_salvage_savage]

I only have a few ancients but im happy to see a couple rulers that i have still in a top 10. I have a hadrian with a cos III reverse. Also a probus 😊 Might look for a Phillip II and an Alexander coins in 2024, bout time i filled those holes. Wouldn't mind a Macedonian shield coin either.... Cant argue with anything here, beautiful collection!

[@elviskoo548]

that portrait of Christ is beautiful

[@numismatik]

Awesome coins for 2023!

[@ottolehikoinen6193]

Those Bysantines, wow! Probably like many others following the channel, I just check all the coins I get while using cash. I've been doing this since we joined Euro and 2023 I took out some German Stately 2€s, Estonian Festive 2€s and a couple of Maltese coins from circulation.

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

I do that too! Sadly no luck so far, only normal issues of where I live, and the adjacent countries.

[@christopherevans2445]

Congrats Leo! You should have 200k subscribers. Gonna give my top 10, and I'm going to be honest so please understand I'm on a budget. No order- Valen's Siliqua,2 Roman Republic denarius 122bc, 80bc. Silver Tetradrachm of Macrinus from Seleucia Pieria. Vespasian, Nero and Hadrian tetradrachms from Egypt. Silver Gallienus anto. From Samosta. Silver anto. Decius, Parthian drachm of Vologases I, and a full silvered Probus bought from Romae Aeternae Numismatics. Not the most expensive this year, but good silver Probus are hard to find.

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Thank you for the kind words Chris! Lets hope 2024 brings us some amazing coins :)

[@christopherevans2445]

@@ClassicalNumismatics it's a honor Mentor

[@bratrcunik4571]

Congratulations. Beautiful coins. My top coins for this year: - Two bronze coins of the Greek colony Pantikapaion with the heads of bearded and beardless god Satyr. Circa 310-304 BC. - Bronze coin (tetrachalkoi) of the Greek colony Olbia with the head of river god Borysthenes (Dnieper). Circa 320-300 BC. - Drachm of the Bactrian king Menander I Soter. Circa 155-130 BC. - Drachm of the Bactrian king Antialkidas Nikephoros. Circa 145-135 BC. - Drachm of the Cappadocian king Ariarathes V. Circa 163-130 BC. - The same denarius of Emperor Augustus as your number five. (My first and only Augustus). - The siliqua of the Roman emperor Valentinian I. 364-375 CE. (My first and only siliqua). - The Athenian Owl Tetradrachm.

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Thats a really nice selection! Good eye on the Pantikapaion and Olbia pieces, they are quite rare and very interesting

[@bratrcunik4571]

I have a weakness for Oikouménē borderlands.@@ClassicalNumismatics

[@markp44288]

I know what my top coin this year is. I got a Bostran drachm of Trajan, but overstruck on a Nabataean drachm, with lettering from the undertype in the margins. The coin itself celebrates the annexation of Arabia to Rome, with the same motif as the Roman ARAB ADQ denarius - but then it literally is a Roman coin over a Nabataean coin. Super cool.

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

I always wondered if these Bostran drachmae were made on the planchets of the debased Sela-Im of Petra, fascinating! Now I need to get one :)

[@markp44288]

Here is an even cooler thought: a lot of the Bar Kochba coins were struck over Bostran drachmae, meaning it is possible there is a Bar Kochba over Trajan over Rabbel II with both undertypes showing somewhere out there... @@ClassicalNumismatics

[@deathsheadknight2137]

I have a few ancients- a postumous alexander tetradrachma, a late republican denarius and a misshapen lump of dirty augustian bronze which allegedly features "Nike" on it. I would love to get a gold piece when I can afford it. I think my next ancient coin will be gold or electrum stater. I've always liked them on account of their archaic nature. hell, I would even buy copper trading rods from the pre-coinage era if i could find them

[@pichu2387]

Hi! Will your book soon be able to be bought again? It seems to be very interesting but now is out of print in amazon. Thanks!

[@fredmidtgaard5487]

Really nice! Congrats! Hmmm as a very young man (15) I had my father's coin collection after he died 7 years earlier. I was alone. No one to help me. I had to sell to survive. I survived but lost the collection. Many of these coins were there. I think I got 1000 dollars from the pond shop. Or less. Many kgs of ancient coins. But I am alive today. So is my shit mother who never cared :-(

[@francescofrancesco4512]

In 2023 I tried to buy one coin for each emperor, and sostitute the bronze coins of the IVth century with siliquias. The best one is a siliquia of Julianus, very nice from Corwin collection. Other coins I bought are siliquias of Costantius II, Magnus Maximus and Onorius. In 2024 I want to buy silver coins of Balbinus, Pupienus, Maximus Cesar and Quietus.

[@emcee6365]

Sestertius of Pulpenius and Denarius of Balbinus

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Wow, congrats, impressive!

[@Staterstacker]

What kind of coin tray is that you’re using? I would like something similar

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Look up my links on the video description. There is also a brand called "lighthouse"

[@odaicututu2640]

Hey numismatic i have a question for you please respond. Are dacians Koson coins silver too?

[@LongLivedCoins]

Tried to buy you a coffee but no luck - link ?🤷‍♂

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

Here it goes! :) Link seems to be working fine www.buymeacoffee.com/classicalnumismatics

[@hectormoreno4862]

I always enjoy your videos I have learned a lot. I know prices are all over but can you make one with some average price on this coins?Thank you!

[@ClassicalNumismatics]

I'd rather keep the prices for these coins in particular private, but I have many videos on how to buy coins online on my playlist, you should check them out. I've even made a video recently on coin types that are still affordable and good value for money.