Alternative investments is an area that goes in and out of fashion and its one where the novice often meets the expert. My old didactic joke goes: “What do you know about X?” X being any subject you like. The reply is often “nothing.” The punchline is, “Well I can speak freely then.” …and quite a lot of people don’t get the joke. This is an important gag to understand in alternative investments.
So recently I wrote a piece about watches and that went down well so I have decided to do occasional pieces on other alternative investments. A long time ago I was a professional numismatist, that is I was paid to make judgements on coin investments. I can claim to be able to wax lyrical about mint marks on obscure coins or be able to regale you about the long tortuous history of thousands of coins and the hands the have travelled through unlike some full-time pros, but nonetheless my involvement with those metal disks of joy has been long and glittering.
Beyond appreciation coins pay dividends in the pleasure of ownership and for the more scrouge-ish of us, the pleasure of hoarding. It is said they appreciate 7% a year but like most alternate investments its about long term holding. Of course people do well trading but that again is where the novice meets the pro and that profit is not accessible to the average collector nor do they want to be on the wrong end of that transaction.
As such, those wishing to build up a portfolio of investment grade coins is probably best off hooking up with a auction house. One of the benefits is the constant stream of auctions allows you to study what things cost and in general engross your else with the scene without risking engaging with the siren song of the dealer.
So I recently popped into one of my old London stomping grounds, Spinks, to put some rarities back into circulation. Spinks has been around since 1666 and the fire of London. 359 years is a pretty good pedigree, and it occurred to me to try and pick the specialists brains there for the kind of coin a new collector, with a serious but cautious intent, should look to starting a collection with.
This is the thinking of Axel Hendrick, the Spink ancient expert. He deals in the sort of ancient coins that make my heart flutter and to distract myself from going into buying mode, I asked him to come up with 5 global coins at around $5000-$10,000 as archetypes and starting points for a would-be coin investor to set eyes on. This is what Axel kindly came up with.
1. Medieval English Gold Noble – $5,000–$10,000
The Noble was England’s first mass-circulated gold coin, minted by Edward III in the 1340s to bankroll his campaigns in France. It quickly became the benchmark of English money and stayed in play until the late 15th century. The design is pure medieval propaganda – the king at sea, sword and shield in hand, a statement of dominance. Collectors prize Nobles for their mix of art, rarity, and sheer historical weight. Edward III issues, like this one, carry the most interest and hold their value well.
2. Roman Imperial Gold Aureus – $5,000–$10,000
The Aureus was the backbone of Roman prestige coinage for three centuries, struck for every emperor from Augustus onward. Each coin is effectively a miniature billboard of power – emperors, gods, temples, and battle scenes, all in the highest artistic form of the ancient world. Collectors want detail, portrait quality, and provenance. Early Aureii of Augustus are especially compelling, combining founder-myth gravitas with investment potential. Its hard to hold one in your hard and not be transported back 2000 years.
3. Modern English Gold Proof £5 – $5,000–$10,000
Proof sets started under George IV in 1826 and have since become the crown jewels of British minting. These are not circulating money but pure collector products – top-end strike quality, mirrored fields, limited runs. The standout is the gold £5, the heavyweight of the set. Collectors love them not just for the craft, but also for the tax angle: in the UK, CGT doesn’t apply. Common dates such as 1937 are still highly accessible, making them a smart entry point. The £5 gold piece is an apex coin.
4. Art Nouveau ‘Lady in the Clouds’ Gold Proofs – $8,000–$12,000
Most late-19th-century European gold coins are too common to excite, but the turn-of-the-century proofs in big denominations are different. They ride the wave of fin-de-siècle art, often spectacularly. The Austrian 100-Corona for Franz Josef’s 60th jubilee is a case in point: an art-nouveau masterpiece minted on the eve of empire’s collapse. Cultural resonance plus limited supply makes these consistently strong performers in the upper market.
5. US Gold $20 – $3,000–$8,000
America’s $20 gold piece commands the biggest collector base in the world. It’s not just a coin; it’s Americana in your hand. The Saint-Gaudens design of Lady Liberty with torch and olive branch is arguably the most iconic US coinage ever struck, with the eagle on the reverse a masterstroke of neoclassical style. This 1909 San Francisco issue ticks the boxes – historic mint, strong demand, and enduring liquidity. For investment and aesthetics, few coins match it. You could spend your whole life and untold fortunes collecting this one type and you would not be the first or last to do so.
So there you have it a portal into the world of coin collecting. One last point. When you buy a high quality collectible, you haven’t spent a penny. What feels like a purchase is in fact a transfer of one asset for another. The only thing that happened was the liquidity of that asset changed. Yet while money is liquid it is depreciating, and while a quality collectible is less liquid, it is appreciating… but while you ponder that bear in mind the word quality, because that is the key.