During the recent examination and certification of recovered money from the famous 1971 “D. B. Cooper” skyjacking case, PCGS Currency staff members discovered nearly three dozen serial numbers that apparently had not been previously recorded by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The numbers were hidden in layers of notes and note fragments stuck together for decades, and those numbers now have been reported by PCGS Currency President, Jason Bradford, to the Seattle-based FBI agent overseeing the case. In a letter to FBI Special Agent Larry Carr, Bradford wrote: “Earlier this month, members of our team examined two dozen environmentally-damaged $20 denomination Federal Reserve Notes and dozens of fragments submitted to us for certification by Brian Ingram of Mena, Arkansas. As you know, Mr. Ingram was the then-eight year old boy in 1980 who discovered some of the cash given in 1971 as ransom to a skyjacker known as ‘D. B. Cooper’ or ‘Dan Cooper.’” Read Full Story

The American Numismatic Association has received a $447,095 donation to support educational programs and produce a much-needed consumer awareness booklet with helpful information on coin collecting.

The donation is from the settlement of a class action lawsuit, Francisco v. Numismatic Guaranty Corporation, concerning First Strikes designation. While admitting no wrongdoing or liability, NGC settled the case and discontinued the use of First Strikes, believing that controversy from the lawsuit would not be in the best interests of the hobby.

The parties, with the court’s approval, agreed that the lion’s share of the proceeds go to the ANA to further support its mission of collector education.

“This donation allows the ANA to implement new strategies as well as enhance its delivery of numismatic education to a vastly larger audience,” said ANA President Barry Stuppler. “We are obviously greatly appreciative of NGC’s commitment to best practices in our hobby, and to its efforts to support education, which is a fundamental value of our Association.”

“The ANA is the hobby’s premiere organization, and no one is better at developing and delivering educational programs,” said NGC Chief Executive Officer Steve Eichenbaum. “Coin collecting is a very complex hobby and everyone benefits when collectors are knowledgeable and well educated.”

Stuppler said the ANA would soon begin work on an educational consumer awareness booklet that will include consumer tips as well as basic information on grading, authentication and conservation. The booklet also will discuss the minting process and what constitutes a “first-strike” coin, plus feature a rich frequently- asked-questions section as well as a comprehensive listing of helpful resources for collectors. (more…)

An open letter from John Feigenbaum, President

David Lawrence Rare Coins just completed the acquisition of PCI and is currently in the process of transferring the company’s assets from Georgia to Virginia. First, let me say that I am very excited about this venture and you can expect great things to come from this new, old grading company.

A little history…
PCI is one of the oldest grading companies in numismatics. Originally founded around 1988, the company was named Hallmark, and though it was short-lived, coins in Hallmark holders have always been considered quality-graded items. There was a lot of integrity with that company.

The company then sold to new owners and was renamed PCI (short for Photo Certification Institute). The early PCI holders were also well respected and saavy collectors and dealers alike still covet the green-label PCI coins. Eventually, the company changed hands a few more times…and over the years the quality of the grading has suffered.

As President of David Lawrence Rare Coins, I have surrounded myself with a staff with over 75 years of collective numismatic experience. We have always approached our relationships with clients and their coins with utmost professionalism and I know that we can bring this same level of integrity to the grading of your coins.

I’ve personally been dealing in coins since 1979 and, until the true acceptance of third party grading around 1990, all dealers graded their own material. Some dealers were known for being more conservative (and accurate) than others. My father, David, taught me the importance of strict, conservative grading. There was no need to embellish the grades because we didn’t want to disappoint our mail-order clients.

The new PCI will bring the classic standard of grading back to this company! (more…)