By Michael S. Fey PhD; Jeff Oxman

If you are an advanced collector of Morgan and Peace silver dollars, or just want to learn more about how to identify, buy, and sell rare silver dollar varieties, this is the book for you. There are silver dollars that in many cases are several times rarer than the keys dates to the Morgan and/or Peace silver dollar series (i.e., 1893-S or 1934-S), but can be “cherrypicked” for common silver dollar prices, or purchased for far less than the key dates. If you, like many, believe these VAM designated coins will appreciate at a much faster rate than the traditional keys to each series, you too can “VAM IT!” and find a fortune using this book.

With this little pocket guidebook you will learn:

* Which are the rarest, most popular and desirable Morgan Dollar varieties-The VAM Keys.
* How to quickly and easily identify rare Morgan dollar varieties in your collection, in your dealer’s case, or at coin shows.
* How much rare die varieties are worth as compared to the price for common coins with the same date, mintmark and grade.
* Whether your coin is among the finest known, and an estimate of its rarity-the number of extant pieces thought to exist.

Binding: Spiral
Edition: 4th
Publication Date: September 2009
Size: 3.75×6
Pages: 202

Available at Wizard Coin Supply

Abraham Lincoln: The Image of His Greatness is a remarkable creation. Harold Holzer, of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (and cochairman of the United States Lincoln Bicentennial Commission), calls it “interesting and compelling,” saying that “Reed’s commentary and the arrangement and choice of imagery make Abraham Lincoln: The Image of His Greatness a very worthwhile and elegant project.”

Dr. Thomas Turner, longtime editor-in-chief of the Lincoln Herald (the oldest continuously published journal devoted to the life and career of Abraham Lincoln), calls it “a unique study” that “makes a significant contribution to the field.” Reed draws on his own unparalleled collection of Lincoln numismatic items, illustrating the book with hundreds of full-color images sure to delight the collector and historian. These are joined by engravings and daguerreotypes, old film stills, a never-before-published oil painting, magazine covers, political cartoons, and a host of other images. They are poignant, provocative, profound, sometimes puzzling; individually fascinating and collectively illuminating.

Dr. Turner, in the book’s foreword, muses on the potential for Abraham Lincoln: The Image of His Greatness to bridge the gap between mainstream historical study and numismatics:
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From Q. David Bowers comes a book so comprehensive and authoritative that only the “Dean of American Numismatics” could have created it! Drawing on the expertise of dozens of specialists from around the world, plus Bowers’s own vast knowledge of the subject, the Whitman Encyclopedia of Colonial and Early American Coins includes:

* Chapter 1: Money in Early America
* Chapter 2: Minting and Distribution
* Chapter 3: Collecting Colonial Coins
* Chapter 4: How to Use This Book
* Chapter 5: Silver Coins of Massachusetts
* Chapter 6: British Coins and Tokens for America, Early Issues
* Chapter 7: American Coins and Tokens from 1783 to 1788
* Chapter 8: Other Early American Pieces
* Chapter 9: European Coins and Tokens for America, Later Issues
* Chapter 10: Early Washington Coins and Tokens
* Chapter 11: Unrelated Foreign Coins
* Chapter 12: 19th Century Colonial Copies and Fantasies
* Selected Bibliography
* Index

This is the new definitive reference on colonial and early American coins and tokens, and related issues. Full color and fully illustrated with hundreds of detailed photographs.
Binding: Hardcover
Edition: 1st
Publication Date: February 24, 2009
Size: 8.5 x 11
Pages: 352

Purchase this Book Here

The Official Red Book®—A Guide Book of United States Coins—enters its 63rd year with no sign of slowing down! Americans nation-wide look to this “one-volume library” to tell them how rare their coins are and how much they’re worth. Collectors rely on it for its full-color photographs and detailed technical data.

The Red Book covers the history and values of colonial and early American coins, half cents through silver dollars and gold, commemoratives, Proof and Mint sets, errors, Civil War tokens, territorial gold, state quarters, presidential dollars, and other U.S. coins, with essays on Counterfeits, grading, investing, auctions, and more.

Pricing for more than 6,000 individual coins More than 700 full–color photographs Updated values, mintages, and auction records Expanded coverage of commemoratives, sets, and other coins New state quarters and Presidential dollars First Spouses gold bullion coins 24k gold American Buffalo bullion coins.

Purchase the Latest Redbook Here

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The only book devoted entirely to matte proof Lincoln Cents. Over 250 color and black and white photos provide die diagnostics descriptions to identify and authenticate matte proof Lincoln Cents. Included are die state diagnostics and photographs of previously unpublished diagnostics and die combinations.

The book also presents an analysis of the striking characteristics of Lincoln Cent matte proofs. Lincoln Cent matte proofs were struck on a hydrolic press at much greater pressure than that used for ordinary business strikes. Side-by-side comparison photographs of matte proofs and early die state business strikes show the details of primary design elements, rims, edges and corners. Different striking characteristics were found for each year on the design elements while the rims and edges were similar in width, flatness and general appearance for most years. The primary difference on most years was the sharpness of the corners on matte proofs. For other years, the corners on the business strikes were also sharp. This book helps the reader understand what to expect on a matte proof cent on a year-by-year basis.

The date-by-date analysis presented for the series includes an analysis of striking characteristics, surface characteristics, scarcity, general comments, Heritage auction prices realized, current values and certified population counts. (more…)

The primary objective of this book is to present a detailed historical account surrounding the images used on commemorative coins struck between 1892 and 1954. These images are history frozen in time; a story told through the hands of a sculptor. They represent an important and powerful part of their lure. Understanding the background and symbolism increases the enjoyment in collecting them.

Included for each commemorative coin is a description of the design, historical facts related to the images, origin of the coin, the striking characteristics and wear points, distribution, any information regarding proofs, general comments, values, Heritage auction prices realized, certified population from PCGS and NGC. Also included from the Annual Mint Reports for many of the commemoratives is a general description of the designs used, number of coins struck during the calendar year and fiscal years, and for some series the number of dies used is given. Also included are detailed photographs for many doubled dies and RPMs, some of which have never been presented before.

The secondary objective was to present all Mint and National Archive documents related to commemorative coins. These documents represent the facts presented by those who created our history and were responsible for making the decisions. For commemorative coins, National Archives records are primarily up through 1904 with some records up through 1920. Some of these letters found present detailed accounts of the decisions made.
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