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A very sharp coin with no wear. The minor details must be present, and be clear and sharp, and the coin's surfaces must look as they did when the coin was first struck. A coin missing some details because it was struck with a worn die, or was weakly struck, does not qualify. Mint State is seldom used with ancient coins, but the term "Near Mint State" can be applied to coins with no wear, but only traces of weakness due to very minor die wear or very slight weakness in the strike, as long as the minor details are still very sharp. It is not unusual to find a coin with was struck from one worn die, and one new die, and which grades near Mint State on only one side.
One must be a little careful here as die engraving styles changed over time and some issues started off with far more detailing than others. A mint-state Greek tetradrachm or first century Roman denarius will not have the very fine details typical of mid-third century denarii and antoninianii. While we can make you aware this is a consideration, only experience will give you a good grasp of what to expect from any given issue of coins.
click on image for enlargement
This is an example of a coin with no wear (by a simple definition the coin is in mint state), with an obverse struck with a fresh die but the reverse stuck with a very slightly worn die. Even through the coins has no actual wear, the grade is MINT STATE/gVF.
click on image for enlargement
This Byzantine solidus has no wear on it, and while every letter in the inscriptions is visible, some letters in the obverse inscription are slightly weakly struck (although not as weak as the image suggests). There is also a very light scratch (visible on the enlargement but almost invisible with the coin in hand). A grade of NEAR MINT STATE could be accurately applied to this coin.
Next page : EXTREMELY FINE | 
