Why are ancient coins so inexpensive?

Question

I've noticed ancient coins that are over 2000 years old are less expensive than the ones that are 200 years old. Why is that? Sorry that i asked this on the religous board but I didn' know where to put it.

Here is an example
http://cgi.ebay.com/2300-Year-Old-GREEK-Silver-COIN-of-ALEXANDER-the-GREAT_W0QQitemZ110027081764QQihZ001QQcategoryZ4738QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Answer 1

I guess that the real reason is that people do not appreciate the fact of how many of these coins were made, or the fact that there are not that many collectors in the world. This coin by Alexander was made from dozens of mints for years to fuel the economy of one of the largest empires the world has ever known. They minted them by the millions per year. Add to this the fact that there were no banks, so many people buried their life savings to keep it safe. If the person died before retrieving their savings, those coins are kept safe for future collectors.

I have seen hoards of coins like this of many thousands of pieces, and have seen hoards of late Roman coins in the tens of thousands just from one hole in the ground. In the past, these coins were so plentiful that they were melted for their precious metal content, since there were not enough collectors to want them.

The question as to why a 200 year old coin is worth more than a 2000 year old coin is the number of collectors of a series. You don't even have to go 200 years back. A Wisconsin quarter with a cracked die made some error coins a couple of years ago that looked like it had an additional leaf in the cornstalk. Those coins are worth more than this authentic Alexander the Great silver drachm! It is just a matter that millions of people collect the state quarters, and maybe 10,000 people collect greek silver.

Answer 2

Cheap Ancient Coins

Answer 3

Hey, its a good, solid quesiton. You're right, technically it would be under "Antiques, neumastics" but this works

OK, You mean like Roman coins, right? Because they're so darn common! Every time you dig a hole in any country near there, its turned into an archeological dig.

Rome doesn't have an underground bus or rail system because every time they've started, its turned into a dig!

Most Roman coins are copper, a few silver, and a very few are gold. The purity is dubious- alloying was primitve, if any. Some were of bronze.

The coins from 200 years ago, are more like "Great Grandfathers coins" and have better documentation, and are more psycholgically "real"

Answer 4

The economic law of supply and demand. Many of these ancient coins are dug up by the hundreds. They are not particularily rare.

What makes a coin valuable is when it is hard to find that certain coin in quantities to satisfy the need or desires of those who want to have one. This is usually caused by a certain coin not being produced in large quantities.

Also those who are looking for ancient coins are not usually seeking anything very specific. It's like trying to find any silver dollar instead of a 1973 dollar with an "S" mint mark. If you want any dollar coin, I can find you one for a dollar, but if you want the 1973 S, it will cost a bit more.

There are some ancient coins that are more expensive because they are rare. Others, however, cost very little because they are found in large quantities.

Answer 5

Poorly made, no date, no marks, just a picture on ruff cut silver. During a rule that may last 30+ years all coins are cut the same. Value is silver or Gold or even copper + maybe 20% if it can be verified genuine!
The shorter reining king demands a higher price!
Quarter oz of silver is about $3 + .75 = about $3.75 to maybe $25 if the king is short lived!

Answer 6

Anything that's rare and coveted becomes expensive. I guess most people don't want ancient coins.

Answer 7

Because they're useless, and only mear collectors items that can be found anywhere. There are some rare ones, but they've been found in such great amounts.