Serious question - how long should it take to identify a single Roman coin?

Found a coin in a field in Kent last spring. It was totally caked in dirt and crud. I figured it would take me an afternoon to clean it up and ID it. Three weeks later I'm still going back and forth between two different emperors because the patina is that bad. One guy on a forum says its Valens, another says Gratian. I've spent like 40 hours on this thing. Am I doing this wrong or does this happen to everyone? How long do you spend on a single coin before you just give up and call it unknown?

2 comments

2 Comments

simon_carr19d ago

Three weeks and 40 hours later" - yeah that's about right. Once you hit the 50 hour mark you're in too deep to quit, so I'd just call it "uncertain 4th century bronze" and move on.

morgan.jason19d ago

The real trick is convincing yourself that 40 hours of staring at copper crust is a hobby and not a cry for help. I've got a coin from my granddad that I've been "going to ID properly" for about three years now. Every few months I pull it out, spend an evening squinting at it, then put it back in the drawer with the rest of the shame collection. So yeah, you're doing it exactly right.