Coins Books

I was saddened to find out that this book is out of print (I was acutally hoping for a revised edition). I have been collecting Roman coins for about ten years and this is the book that got me started. Mr. Fox has written a genuinely readable book that, even after ten years, is an excellent introduction to an addictive hobby. Be aware, though,that this book is not (nor does Mr. Fox intend it to be)a reference book. There are appendices and photos to help the novice collector to locate basic information, but their intent is to get you started, not to sustain you over the distance. Once you get hooked (and you will), you will discover that there are enough references available to consume all but the most well-endowed checkbook. To me, the greatest value of this book is that Mr. Fox took great efforts to show me that Roman coins, in addition to being a fascinating window into the Roman world, are both available and affordable. If you have any interest at all in Roman coins, this book is worth any efforts you may have to make to find it. I recommend it without hesitation.

I got this as a gift and am very glad that I did. While not a complete identification tool like RIC or SEARS, this is an awesome book for someone starting out with an interest in Imperial coins. It provides detailed inscriptions, RIC and SEARS numbers for the coins pictured, then provides an index of inscriptions and subjects. Truly a great catalog of a collection I want to see in person. Worth the price.

This book reviews the socioeconomic times and coinage of the Roman Republic. It provides valuable information relating to the identification and documentation (including pictures of the vast majority of known coin types) of coins of this period. If you are trying to identify an unknown coin, this would be the first and best pictorial source, and is also a scolarly work dedicated to showing the whole picture, from historical accounts to mintage figures and die types.

Occassionally a book gives pleasure way beyond every expectation raised by the title. It happens when an enthusiast is let loose on a subject that delights him, that he knows more about than seems possible and he has the talent to communicate his knowledge in an impressive and interesting way. When the subject is as well rehearsed as the final years of the Roman Republic, to find a new slant and pack it with brilliant detective work makes for great reading.

Presumably everyone who is interested in Roman Republican coins and the final years of what Tacitus first called the Roman Republic, over a century after its demise, will have devoured this book enthusiastically. If they haven't they should. It is worth shelves full of lesser retellings of the familiar parts of both stories, on a par with Henri Cohen and Ronald Smythe.

But readers unfamiliar with coins as the only mass produced media of the day and with little or no understanding of the politics of Rome in the middle of the first century BCE will be enthralled by the quality of this work and the intelligence of its author. The book contains more brilliant detective work than most thrillers and breaths life into ancient history.

During the 15 years under consideration young Roman aristocrats setting out on a political career were appointed annually to one of some sixty public posts: some civil, some legal,some military, some helping with the governance of foreign parts. Those put in charge of the mint were responsible for the coinage for a year. Whereas the quality and quantity of the coinage was largely determined by others and the technical side was carried out by artists and artisans, the young hopefuls were able to prescribe what the coinage portrayed. The coins were redesigned differently each year. At a time when coins really were the only mass produced media of the day and a media of some permenance, here was a golden (or silver or bronze) oppertunity to strike your mark, or that of your ancestors, which spoke well of your genes.

Michael Harlan is competant with this material to an uncanny degree. He introduces new concepts and challenges long held views with a persuasion and elegance it is rare to find.

His book was published ten years ago and remains fresh. Can he be the poet who published much the same time and the author, with his partner Linda, of a later book on setting up a market garden in his back yard. I suspect so. There are lively spirits, who know they go through life just the once and choose to make the most of it. In spite of its title 'Roman Republican Moneyers and their coins 63BC - 49BC' is much too good to be work of an acedemic or any other sort of type in a rut.

Good luck to him and every sucess with all his enterprises.

For anyone with a keen interest in collecting Roman Coins this is an ideal book to have. Although by no means comprehensive it does cover most of the coins that are more readily available to the collector. Roman or that matter in other early British coins are becoming more readily available to collectors, for a variety of reasons. Obviously the more coins there are on the open market, the cheaper each individual coin becomes. How

The line drawings of most obverse types mean that the legend is clear and readable in the book, and it makes a great aid to identification, as does the alphabetical list of emperors/empresses in the back of the book. This book includes an identification guide for republican coins, instructions on cleaning Roman silver coins and a list of Roman mint town mintmarks. It also includes an alphabetical list of Emperors/Caesars/Empresses and information of Roman coin grading. The book in fact touches on most aspects of coin collecting and is well worth a place on the book shelf

On a personal note for the beginner: More coins are ruined or de-valued by `aggressive' cleaning than anything else. If in doubt, do not clean any coin.

This is the standard reference book for collecting ancient Roman silver coins. Although it was first published many years ago, it is still THE standard work on the subject. No collector of Roman silver should be without it. Always buy the book first, then the coin.

For all you people who have a huge stash of coins especially or for just starting to collect this a must have. With this if you have any "clean" rare coins this keeps them clean and no damage is done. For everyone who has Quarter Folders aren't those hard to put in. Well, this is 10 times easier to put in.

This is a coin album for collecting the new Sacagawea gold-colored dollar which the US Mint began issuing in 2000. On the first page of this two page binder are cut out holes or ports with three holes per line, one line for each of 2000, 2001 and 2002. The three holes per line are for the dollars minted at the three mints--Philadelphia, Denver and San Francisco. The second page also has the same nine holes but without any dates printed, probably because the US Mint may decide not to mint any of these dollars after 2002. Each line of holes on each page has a clear plastic slide piece which is gently pushed (assembly by buyer) over and under each coin line to cover the coins, front and back, and keep out dust, dirt and corrosion, at least to some degree. Having fifteen of these clear plastic slide, coin-covering albums, I would rank this one on a par with the best in workmanship and layout. There is no doubt in my mind that these albums do protect and display collector coins much better than the older folders in which coins are pressed down into coin holes. Whitman has had a strong reputation for several decades in the production of reliable and attractive coin albums. This Sacagawea dollar album is their latest contribution to their extended history of valuable coin collecting materials.

Whitman Coin Folders, long known for quality, archival products, continues its legacy with the release of the Sacagawea Dollars coin folder. The folder includes a brief, four paragraph history of the newly minted dollar coin as well as room to store thirty-six of the coins. All collectors anticipate the release of a new product, and the Sacagawea Dollar is sure to pique the interest of collectors old and new. The Whitman folder provides an economical, practical way to store these new coins.

For those of us who long for the years of the United States' more clearly defined role in world affairs, David Abshire's "Saving the Reagan Presidency: Trust is the Coin of the Realm" is a rare and wonderful insight by someone who was not only there, but who participated. A former Ambassador to NATO, Abshire had the privilege to be on the world stage during what has been proven to be one of the greatest presidency's of the 20th Century and he shares his experiences and does so in a way that brings history alive. His intimate knowledge of the inner workings of the West Wing, coupled with his friendship of the then First Family allows the reader an insight rarely afforded to those outside The Beltway. A must read for anyone who has an interest in what made Reagan what he was and how history has treated his legacy.