This coin from Emperor Valerian was minted in his first year of reign. The portrait stype is much better than average for this emperor....

I was a little worried about the fragility of this coin when I bid on it and was pleasantly surprised see that, in hand, the flan crack...

The gens Fabia was a prominent patrician family, who claimed descent from both Hercules and Evander. One branch of the gens Fabia, the...

This unusual coin from Ariabia Felix is from the late 1st century or early second century AD. There doesn't seem to be much info on these...

This coin struck me as unusual, and I couldn't decide which way was "up" - so I didn't hesitate to pick it up. All three images below are...

My collecting focus has been the Roman Republic and especially the time period around the career of Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix . I have...

Technology over the ages in health and social media illustrated with Roman Republican coins. I am starting my blog with a post on a Roman...

While you can spend thousands of dollars on a highly prized ancient coin, you can also get an interesting coin for under $5. This coin...

The Humiliation of Valerian by Shapur I, French 15th Century, Digital image courtesy of the Getty's Open Content Program When I first...

This Italian "medalet", 20mm, 11h, 3.7g, by an unknown artist is from the 18th to early 19th century, apparently issued for the Grand...

This coin was issued near the end of the Roman republic and is an artifact of Mark Antony's alliance with Lepidus in the days before they...

Why were these ancient imitations minted in such quantities? While the most sought after coins can reach astronomical prices, there is no...

I often ask for provenance for the coins that I have purchased. Only rarely do I get anything and then it is something like from "a...

This coin is called a "sestertius" by modern numismatists, however it is lighter than the contemporary issues from Rome. The MH on the...