by Robert L Taylor, JD

There are many coin price guides published; weekly, bi-weekly, monthly and annually. They come in the form of magazines, newsprint, “hot sheets”, and books. All of us have referred to one of these from time to time to ascertain what a particular coin might be worth. Yet, few of us stop to think about what we are getting from any one of these Price Guides, beyond the price or value of a coin. After all, don’t price guides, just give you the price? What else is there?

Basic to an understanding of price guides are two things: 1) the Grade of the Coin; and 2) the Foundation of the price guide. Knowing the Grade of the Coin is required before one can begin. Saying so seems to be obvious, but what more does it mean?

Unless the coin is Graded by an appropriate Professional Grading Company, which has designated what Grade and Identity has been assigned to the coin, most of us are making an assumption about the actual Grade. This assumption we make can be very dangerous because of: a) the difficulty in grading a coin; and, b) the different possible outcomes or results that occur. One Grade “point” or level can make the difference in hundreds or thousands of dollars in the Value of a Coin. (more…)

My friend, John Jay Pittman, though not a wealthy man to begin with, built a vast and famous coin collection. He accomplished that feat by studying relentlessly, then shrewdly investing a large percentage of his limited income as a middle manager for Eastman Kodak and his wife’s income as a schoolteacher. In 1954, he mortgaged his house to travel to Egypt and bid on coins at the King Farouk Collection auction. John sacrificed his and his family’s lifestyle over the course of many decades. He passed away in 1996, with no apparent regrets, and his long-suffering family justly received the benefit of his efforts when the collection was sold at auction for over $30 million. But why did he do it?

One fervent collector of historical documents refers to his own collecting propensity as “a genetic defect”. More likely, collecting is a basic human instinct; a survival advantage amplified by eons of natural selection. Those of our ancient ancestors who managed to accumulate scarce objects may have been more prone to survive long enough to bear offspring. Even today, wealth correlates to longer life expectancy - and could any form of wealth be more basic than scarce, tangible objects?

But more relevant than the reason you happen to collect Lithuanian first day covers or 1950s romance comic books today, are your long-term goals in seeking them. Understanding your goals may help you achieve them. (more…)

Having criticized the generic term “The Mint” several times in the past few years for actions which were sometimes the fault of the Treasury Department or Congress or others, I thought it might be a good time for me to compliment the United States Mint proper for one of its generally successful numismatic programs, the Proof set.

Although many of the commemorative coin and medal programs dumped in the lap of the U. S. Mint by a greedy and/or indifferent Congress since 1936 have proven to be less than wonderful, whether in marketing or design or purpose, the regular design Proof sets offered as superior examples of the coiner’s art have generally been considered to be a credit to the Mints that have struck them. Though some of the post-1967 sets have declined in value since they were originally sold, this is generally not the fault of the Mint, but rather the fault of speculators who overbuy an issue in the hopes it will prove scarce and then dump it on the market if it does not.

The first of the three modern eras of Proof sets began in 1936, after a 20-year lapse allegedly caused by concern over the impending entry of the U.S. into World War I (which did not occur until April of 1917), but more likely brought on by collector dislike of the Matte Proof finishes used on certain coins of the 1908-1916 period and the technical difficulties involved in trying to “Proof,” or polish, the textured surfaces of the new 1916 silver coins.

I have no idea why the 1916 Barber Dime and Quarter were not struck in brilliant Proof even if there were no plans to strike a 1916 Barber Half, but as sales of the silver Proof sets had fallen drastically in previous years (380 in 1914 and 450 in 1915) it may have been thought that they just weren’t worth the bother. The classical Proof set era begun with a bang in 1858 ended with a whimper in 1916 with only the Matte Proof Cent and Five Cents being offered to collectors, no regular issue gold coins being struck in Philadelphia in 1916 and hence no Proofs.

Once the decision was made to stop making Proofs, bureaucratic inertia saw to it that the same policy was observed in the next year, and the next, etc. I have never seen a good reason given as to why the production of Proof coins was resumed in 1936, but it is possible that the commemorative coin frenzy which reached its peak in that year inspired the Mint to imitate the Post Office, which since 1934 had been making a tidy sum selling specially prepared souvenir sheets of otherwise regular design stamps to collectors. (more…)

As a dealer who has spent over $100 million on rare coins, what are some of the “tricks” that I have learned that can help you when you are buying coins? Read on to see some of the ones that I think you will benefit most from.

When I buy a coin I am looking to sell it immediately for a profit. This makes my needs as a buyer slightly different than yours as a collector. But your ultimate goal, I would hope, is to sell your coins for a profit. What are a few of the most obvious but most important parameters to consider each and every time you buy a coin?

1. Buy Coins That Are Pretty

Numismatics has always been a highly visual hobby. But the advent of the Internet has made the visual aspects of numismatics more significant than ever before. When I look at coins now one of the first questions I ask myself is: will it image well on my website? Coins that are pretty are very easy to sell.

The term “pretty” is somewhat semantic. I tend to like gold coins that are dark and dirty and find these to be aesthetically appealing. Not everyone agrees me. Some people like gold coins that have bright, dazzling luster while others prefer coins that two-tone contrast between the devices and the fields. But I think most people can agree that a certain percentage of coins are, for lack of a better term, “special.” This does not necessarily mean “expensive.” I have seen circulated $100 Bust dimes that I thought were really pretty. The bottom line is that you should try and have as many pretty coins as possible in your collection. (more…)