Found a roman coin in my uncle's junk drawer last weekend

He had this old cookie tin full of random buttons and screws, and there it was - a bronze coin from 300 AD that he'd been using as a makeshift leveling shim for his table leg. I showed it to a local museum guy who said it's likely genuine, but now my uncle won't stop asking if he can get it appraised on that Antiques show. Has anyone else stumbled across artifacts in the most ridiculous places?

3 comments

3 Comments

christopherwilson17d agoMost Upvoted

That antiques show would probably tell him it's worth maybe 50 bucks and then charge him half that for the appraisal. I found a 1940s ration book inside a box of Christmas decorations my mom bought at a garage sale, just stuffed in there like it was nothing. People really don't realize what they've got sitting around when it's been in the junk drawer for 30 years. Your uncle probably has other weird stuff hiding in there, like a vintage watch or an old silver coin used as a bottle opener.

jordan_webb27d ago

My buddy once found a 19th century railroad spike in his grandma's flower pot holding up a broken tomato plant. She'd been using it as a stake for years and had no clue it was from some old depot that burned down in like 1888. He tried to sell it online but the shipping cost more than what it was worth, so now it's holding up his own garden. That uncle of yours probably has a whole box of random treasures hidden in plain sight if he's using a 300 AD coin as a shim. Hope he doesn't actually take it to that show though, those appraisal fees can be brutal.

kelly_craig27d ago

@jordan_webb Did the shipping really cost more than a 130 year old spike is worth?