Dear
Mar S and Board,
A lot depends on what kind(s) of
ancient coins you are trying to import. If they were struck in the UK or found there, then there will likely not be an issue with importing them into the US, but there will
still be the matter of
exporting them from
Britain. A lot of collectors and dealers don't realize it, but the proper way for such coins to leave
Britain is with the blessing of an export permit/license (which are overall easy to acquire in many cases, but which can take time). On the other hand, if the coins are clearly not of British origin, then no export documents are needed, which was a recent change if I recall correctly. Importation in this case might be a tad trickier, however, if any of the coins happens to be a
type that is restricted by an MOU between the US and another country like
Italy or
Greece, in which case an export permit and/or a
good provenance would
help greatly. That being said, I can't remember if there is an actual requirement by the US for such evidence to travel with the coins, but I do know it is something that doesn't seem to concern the majority of the world's coin importers even now.
Since the previous link concerned "
gold coins, medals, and bullion," you may get more information out of this page:
https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/359/kw/importing%20antiquesHope some of this helps.
Best regards,
Mark Fox
Michigan