By Coins Magazine posted on Numismaster
Grades listed are based on the following standards established by the American Numismatic Association. For more detailed descriptions, see Official ANA Grading Standards for United States Coins, by Ken Bressett and A. Kosoff (American Numismatic Association, 818 N. Cascade Ave., Colorado Springs, CO 80903-3279.

Proof Coins

The term “proof” refers to a manufacturing process that results in a special surface or finish on coins made for collectors. Most familiar are modern brilliant proofs. These coins are struck at the Mint by a special process. Carefully prepared dies, sharp in all features are made. Then the flat surfaces of the dies are given a high, mirrorlike polish. Specially prepared planchets are fed into low-speed coining presses. Each proof coin is slowly and carefully struck more than once to accentuate details. When striking is completed, the coin is taken from the dies with care and not allowed to come into contact with other pieces. The result is a coin with a mirrorlike surface. The piece is then grouped together with other denominations in a set and offered for sale to collectors.

From 1817 through 1857, proof coins were made only on special occasions and not for general sale to collectors. They were made available to visiting foreign dignitaries, government officials, and those with connections at the Mint. Earlier (pre-1817) U.S. coins may have prooflike surfaces and many proof characteristics (1796 silver coins are good examples), but they were not specifically or intentionally struck as proofs. These are sometimes designated as “specimen strikings.” Read Full Article

During the past 35 years, ANACS has dedicated itself to the Numismatic community and has strived to exceed customers’ expectations by taking into account their needs and suggestions. With that in mind, ANACS is proud to announce the introduction of the sleek and dynamic Clearview 7™ holder.

ANACS has improved on the original Clearview holder, improving durability, while maintaining integrity. The stylish new capsule allows not only for easy grade and denomination identification, but a full view of the coin and its rim. Also, no final product is complete without the ANACS hologram, which is located on the reverse and serves as our stamp of authenticity.

Coupled with improvements to the Clearview holder, ANACS has also chosen to eliminate the classic holder used to encapsulate details coins, therefore returning to a unity of encapsulation. Details graded coins are now encapsulated just as problem free coins with appropriate designations on their labels. This, along with the streamlined design, allows for easier storage.

Excerpt from the Journal of Antiques and Collectibles

Hawaii has always been an exciting place in my imagination. When I was a pre-teen, I was collecting coins, stamps, and old books. In those days, there seemed to be rare stuff all over the place. I would dig through piles of old books and came up with treasure after treasure for 10¢.

By the time I was 12, I often could spend as much as $5 or $10 for a coin, stamps, or a book. For me, the trio was a natural to collect. I found A New Voyage, Round the World In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, and 1771 Undertaken by Order of His Present Majesty, Performed by James Cook, In the Ship Endeavour. The title goes on, but the really rare things about this book is not only the subject matter, but the fact that it was printed in New York by James Rivington in 1774. Books printed in America before the Revolution are rare, and this subject was very popular.

Four years later in 1778, Cook discovered Hawaii and was killed there shortly thereafter. For a few dollars I had purchased Cook’s Voyages With an Account of His Life by A. Kipps published in Philadelphia in 1838. This was followed by History of the Sandwich Islands With an Account of the American Mission Established There in 1820. This rare little book was printed in Philadelphia in 1831 by the American Sunday School Union.

The coming of the Missionaries doomed the Hawaiians. Soon most of the Missionaries and their families spread fatal western diseases that all but wiped out the Hawaiian population. Then the men of God and their families grabbed most of the land, and eventually overthrew Hawaii’s last ruler, Queen Lilinokalani in 1893 with the help of U.S. Marines from a U.S. warship in the harbor at Honolulu. Read Full Article

Before the invention of money, the only way to trade goods was via barter. If you had a spare goat but wanted a big pile of wheat, you had to find someone in the reverse position. This would have been fine in a community where the only possessions were wheat and goats, but once you threw a few more items into the mix the limitations of the barter system became glaringly obvious.

First, there was the problem of matching up desires. What if the person with the wheat was only interested in swapping it for hand axes? It could be a long time before the first man found an axe-rich individual in desperate need of a goat. In the meantime, he might starve.

Second, what if the wheat man did want a goat, but not until his daughter’s wedding in three months’ time? Had they been able to read and write, the protagonists could have drawn up a contract, but at this stage there were no literate societies. Even if there had been, a system relying on written records of who owed what to whom would have become hopelessly unwieldy once there was a reasonable amount of trade going on.

As it was, the parties to the deal would have had to rely on memory. This was open to abuse (“What are you talking about? I never said I’d give you a whole goat!”) and still more liable to become overtaxed (“If Ug owes Stig seven axes, Stig owes Rok four clubs and Rok owes Ug two goats, how many bear hides does Stig owe Yed?”). And there was always the risk that the poor old goat might turn up its toes before the wedding day. (more…)