5 ms·

I've been interested in the idea of collecting ancient coins for a while. The thought of holding money in your hand that was used to purchase goods a thousand

by timmg 5y ago

I've been interested in the idea of collecting ancient coins for a while. The thought of holding money in your hand that was used to purchase goods a thousand or more years ago is exciting. And seeing what is "printed" on these coins can ground you in the time they were created. Unfortunately, my wife has an archeology degree. She says that most ancient coins have been "robbed". And that it is unethical to buy them. Soooo.... I will probably never collect ancient coins :)

debacle 5y ago
Get yourself a metal detector kit and head to the UK.
- boringg 5y ago
  But then wouldn't you become a robber if you found something?
  - brianwawok 5y ago
    Not if you replace what you rob with a loonie
  - shagie 5y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_trove#United_Kingdom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_trove#United_Kingdom Of old.. > The objects were later presented to the nation by their owner, Edith May Pretty, in a 1942 bequest. In March 1973, a hoard of about 7,811 Roman coins was found buried in a field at Coleby in Lincolnshire. It was made up of antoniniani believed to have been minted between AD 253 and 281. The Court of Appeal of England and Wales held in the 1981 case of Attorney-General of the Duchy of Lancaster v. G.E. Overton (Farms) Ltd. that the hoard was not treasure trove as the coins did not have a substantial silver content. Thus, it belonged to the owner of the field and could not be retained by the British Museum. And more recently... > To remedy the faults of the old treasure trove regime, the Treasure Act 1996 introduced a new scheme which came into effect on 24 September 1997. Any treasure found on and after that date regardless of the circumstances in which it was deposited, even if it was lost or left with no intention of recovery, belongs to the Crown, subject to any prior interests or rights held by any franchisee of the Crown. The Secretary of State (currently meaning the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport) may direct that any such treasure be transferred or disposed of, or that the Crown's title in it be disclaimed. As to coins... > If the object is a coin, it must either be: > one of at least two coins in the same find which are at least 300 years old at that time and are at least 10% precious metal by weight; or > one of at least ten coins in the same find which are at least 300 years old at that time. --- It appears you can still find coins that can be claimed by an individual rather than the Crown, but the definition is broader now.
at_a_remove 5y ago
Not buying the coins won't unrob them. They are still robbed. You can't do anything about that. Go ahead and enjoy.
- AlotOfReading 5y ago
  Buying looted artifacts further supports the market for looting. It's unethical regardless. However it's perfectly possible to find legal historical currency. If that's a serious concern, just make sure it comes from a reputable source.
garbanz0 5y ago
Interesting, robbed from who?
- timmg 5y ago
  Archeological sites.
  - michaelmcdonald 5y ago
    If these are 1,000 year old coins found in an archeological site.... who do the coins "belong" to that were "robbed"?
    - bell-cot 5y ago
      Depending on local law - the owner of the land, or the national antiquities authority, or the owner of the mineral rights, or... "Finders Keepers" is very, very seldom the law, when there is anyone with a plausible prior connection to the found item(s).
      - samizdis 5y ago
        Treasure trove laws, as applicable in the UK and US (and previously in Roman law), are laid out here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_trove https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_trove
        jhgb 4y ago
        Only the UK coincides with the largest extent of the Roman Empire. So these laws would be inapplicable to the vast majority of Roman finds.
  - StevePerkins 5y ago
    Before the archeologists had a chance to rob them first.
  - unmole 5y ago
helloworld11 5y ago
Or, don't let your wife's debatable notions of ethics and morality on this subject dictate your choices in personal pleasures of life. Those coins exist in large quantities and not all were robbed. Even the word robbed is a bit forced since it assumes only archaeologists should claim access to any archaeological find or control of any objects on it (even common ones).
tastyfreeze 5y ago
I am a bit torn on the idea that artifacts shouldn't be moved unless by an archeologist. An archeologist can learn a lot about a culture from artifacts in place in the strata but not nearly as much from moved artifacts. However, in the US anything older than 50 years is protected by law as "historical" which I find ridiculous. Legally I am not permitted to pick up a 1970s soda can found in the woods because it is historical trash. I am of the mind that if I find something cool on the ground I am going to take it. If I don't somebody else will. All of the archeological sites we have today are what is left after millennia of people taking what they found. Life is too short to follow all the rules.
- AlotOfReading 5y ago
  You're misinterpreting the 50-year rule. Any site or collection of artifacts older than 50 years is eligible to be considered for inclusion in the historical site register when documented because it meets one criterion. The other criteria are things like historical/cultural significance. Please free to clean up all the 20th century trash you find. We have lots of it. Archaeologists don't like documenting pepsi cans either and long-winded arguments on this subject can be found in many journals.
StanislavPetrov 5y ago
>Unfortunately, my wife has an archeology degree. She says that most ancient coins have been "robbed". And that it is unethical to buy them. Actually this isn't always the case, especially for late Roman coins made from extremely debased metals. These coins were so abundant that in many cases they were used as ballast for ships (and subsequently recovered from shipwrecks). You can find these common late Roman coins on Ebay for a couple of bucks or in bulk even cheaper.

by timmg 5y ago

debacle 5y ago

Get yourself a metal detector kit and head to the UK.

boringg 5y ago
But then wouldn't you become a robber if you found something?
- brianwawok 5y ago
  Not if you replace what you rob with a loonie
- shagie 5y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_trove#United_Kingdom https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_trove#United_Kingdom Of old.. > The objects were later presented to the nation by their owner, Edith May Pretty, in a 1942 bequest. In March 1973, a hoard of about 7,811 Roman coins was found buried in a field at Coleby in Lincolnshire. It was made up of antoniniani believed to have been minted between AD 253 and 281. The Court of Appeal of England and Wales held in the 1981 case of Attorney-General of the Duchy of Lancaster v. G.E. Overton (Farms) Ltd. that the hoard was not treasure trove as the coins did not have a substantial silver content. Thus, it belonged to the owner of the field and could not be retained by the British Museum. And more recently... > To remedy the faults of the old treasure trove regime, the Treasure Act 1996 introduced a new scheme which came into effect on 24 September 1997. Any treasure found on and after that date regardless of the circumstances in which it was deposited, even if it was lost or left with no intention of recovery, belongs to the Crown, subject to any prior interests or rights held by any franchisee of the Crown. The Secretary of State (currently meaning the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport) may direct that any such treasure be transferred or disposed of, or that the Crown's title in it be disclaimed. As to coins... > If the object is a coin, it must either be: > one of at least two coins in the same find which are at least 300 years old at that time and are at least 10% precious metal by weight; or > one of at least ten coins in the same find which are at least 300 years old at that time. --- It appears you can still find coins that can be claimed by an individual rather than the Crown, but the definition is broader now.

at_a_remove 5y ago

Not buying the coins won't unrob them. They are still robbed. You can't do anything about that. Go ahead and enjoy.

AlotOfReading 5y ago
Buying looted artifacts further supports the market for looting. It's unethical regardless. However it's perfectly possible to find legal historical currency. If that's a serious concern, just make sure it comes from a reputable source.

garbanz0 5y ago

Interesting, robbed from who?

timmg 5y ago
Archeological sites.
- michaelmcdonald 5y ago
  If these are 1,000 year old coins found in an archeological site.... who do the coins "belong" to that were "robbed"?
  - bell-cot 5y ago
    Depending on local law - the owner of the land, or the national antiquities authority, or the owner of the mineral rights, or... "Finders Keepers" is very, very seldom the law, when there is anyone with a plausible prior connection to the found item(s).
    - samizdis 5y ago
      Treasure trove laws, as applicable in the UK and US (and previously in Roman law), are laid out here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_trove https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treasure_trove
      - jhgb 4y ago
        Only the UK coincides with the largest extent of the Roman Empire. So these laws would be inapplicable to the vast majority of Roman finds.
- StevePerkins 5y ago
  Before the archeologists had a chance to rob them first.
- unmole 5y ago

helloworld11 5y ago

Or, don't let your wife's debatable notions of ethics and morality on this subject dictate your choices in personal pleasures of life. Those coins exist in large quantities and not all were robbed. Even the word robbed is a bit forced since it assumes only archaeologists should claim access to any archaeological find or control of any objects on it (even common ones).

tastyfreeze 5y ago

I am a bit torn on the idea that artifacts shouldn't be moved unless by an archeologist. An archeologist can learn a lot about a culture from artifacts in place in the strata but not nearly as much from moved artifacts. However, in the US anything older than 50 years is protected by law as "historical" which I find ridiculous. Legally I am not permitted to pick up a 1970s soda can found in the woods because it is historical trash. I am of the mind that if I find something cool on the ground I am going to take it. If I don't somebody else will. All of the archeological sites we have today are what is left after millennia of people taking what they found. Life is too short to follow all the rules.

AlotOfReading 5y ago
You're misinterpreting the 50-year rule. Any site or collection of artifacts older than 50 years is eligible to be considered for inclusion in the historical site register when documented because it meets one criterion. The other criteria are things like historical/cultural significance. Please free to clean up all the 20th century trash you find. We have lots of it. Archaeologists don't like documenting pepsi cans either and long-winded arguments on this subject can be found in many journals.

StanislavPetrov 5y ago

>Unfortunately, my wife has an archeology degree. She says that most ancient coins have been "robbed". And that it is unethical to buy them. Actually this isn't always the case, especially for late Roman coins made from extremely debased metals. These coins were so abundant that in many cases they were used as ballast for ships (and subsequently recovered from shipwrecks). You can find these common late Roman coins on Ebay for a couple of bucks or in bulk even cheaper.