This coin has a bit of an interesting story. I bought it at auction thinking it was a forgery and for the longest time I thought it was, recently I had some dealers look at it and to my surprise I found out it was not a forgery, now I have a problem I have no idea what it is worth, perhaps someone here my be able to shed some insight. Thank you

Constantine I Campgate

Constantine I
A.D. 326-8
CONSTAN-TINVS AVG Laureate head
PROVIDEN-TIAE AVGG [In honor of the foresight of the Emperors] camp gate, two turrets, no doors, star above.
SMTS Epsilon in exergue, dot in right field
RIC VII Thessalonica 153, rarity of c3


This coin is a very common example (rated c3) of a campgate. It is in decent condition, and might sell in the 20-30 dollar range.

I'd say $25.

I have always been fond of the campgate reverse. Here are the ones (Constantine 1 and 2) that I have in my very modest collection of late Roman Empire collection.

The first three were purchased as is for about $5-$15 as I recall.

The last three were cleaned from 'uncleaned lots' for about $1-$1.50 per coin. If you have ever wondered, they are probably typical of the better quality examples of what you can get after cleaning these - at least that is my experience. Still, I can recommend that intersted folks try a batch of uncleaned coins as it is a very interesting and fun activity.

I like those they are very nice. I have thought about buying some uncleaned coins but I really don't know of a good source too offten you see the scams on auctions sites and such, so I have been wary of buying that way. I do think it would be fun though if I was able to find a honest dealer that has fair prices.

I would also have to learn how to do it, what I know now is that you soak the coins in olive oil and wait as long it takes for the ecrustation to losen then you use a gentle brush to remove the dirt and such.

I like the 1st and 3rd ones.