The 1933 British Penny is, perhaps, one of the most famous coin rarities in the English-speaking world today – allegedly only seven coins were minted – specifically for the king to lay under the foundation stones of new buildings. So why do so many people claim to have a 1933 penny on their possession or to…
The Nervan-Antonine Dynasty (96–192) The Nerva–Antonine dynasty was a dynasty of seven Roman Emperors who ruled over the Roman Empire from 96 AD to 192 AD. These Emperors were Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Verus, and Commodus. They are probably of great interest to fans of the Gladiator movie but the real history…
The Year of the Four Emperors (68–69) and the beginning of the Flavian Dynasty The suicide of emperor Nero, in AD 68, was followed by a brief period of civil war – the first Roman civil war since Mark Antony’s death in 30 BC. Between June and December of AD 69, Rome witnessed the successive rise and…
Coins of the Roman Empire This is intended as a simple, introductory guide to Roman coins. Links to academic and other sources of information are provided for each Roman Emperor and more detailed Roman coin databases are available online. Roman Provincial Coinage (University of Oxford) Online Coins of the Roman Empire (New York University / ANS) Coin…
One of the most asked questions relating to hammered coins is “how are they made?” Rather than go into a long speech about how it was done, perhaps it is best if I leave this to the experts …. Dave Greenhalgh (Cosmeston Medieval Village) & Barrie Cook (Curator of Medieval Coins, British Museum) Dave reckons…
Abrasions Area(s) of a coin where a foreign object or another coin has displaced metal in an abraded fashion. Similar to a bag mark but usually on the high points or open fields but not as deep or acute as the former. Accumulation A miscellaneous grouping of coins, often as a monetary hoard. Opposite of…
The Old Currency Exchange is a specialist dealer and valuer of Irish & GB coins, tokens and banknotes 