by Joseph Bakes/The Star-Ledger

The breadth of the offerings and exhibits at the 33rd Garden State Numismatic Association convention last month in Somerset gave testimony to the broad appeal of coin collecting.

And the efforts of the organizers to involve young collectors was testimony to their enthusiasm for the hobby.

“Coin collecting, even paper money, has to do with the history of our country,” said Bill Horton of Keyport, a past president of both the GSNA and the American Numismatic Association.

And with geography and language, said Dave Bailey of Staten Island, the new president of the GSNA.

“The expression ‘Hold history in your hands’ is certainly true” about coin collecting, said Bailey, a retired history teacher.

While most young collectors start out putting pennies and nickels of various years into slots on cardboard folders, he said that for as little as $3 they could own a coin minted during the Roman Empire. He pointed out a beautiful 1 denarius Roman coin graced by Faustina, the wife of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Dating to the second century A.D., the coin was on sale at the convention for $60.

“I like old,” Bailey said, recalling that he was able to collect pre-Revolutionary War coins as a child “for pennies.” (more…)

Funny how things work. We expected this to blow away Long Beach, but for us, it ended up the quieter show. Overall, we still did several hundred thousand in business and unlike Long Beach, we did do some retail. The only thing we could not do: BUY COINS! Yet again, the floor was beyond dry. NOTE: We had commented that at the last LB Show you could “bowl down the isles.” An attention seeking know-it-all type dealer who has nothing better to do than troll gossip boards for biz, made some comments on a chat board that this was not true and that we had our backs turned. Well, that was BS and we totally stand by that comment and ALL our observations for the Long Beach show. Ask any major dealer who has attended that show for years, the public attendance is badly declining. There is no specific reason.

The Baltimore Show simply had too many odds going against them this time for it to be a great show. Having a major show the week before was the #1 problem. The overal uncertainty of the economy probably was #2 (i.e high gas). #3 bad luck with the killer heat (weather). And last, #4-many collectors along the East Coast simply are waiting for the summer ANA Show at the end of July (which is also in Baltimore). Dealers certainly were burnt out from all the recent travel. Less then the usual amount of summer dealers attended (so it seemed). Still, everyone who was there clearly tried to make the best of it. If you had nice and fresh coins, they immediately sold the first day or to the first person you showed.

Surprisingly to us, the collector turn out was a little heavier than what we thought it would be. However, it was still incredibly less than what the March show brings in. Many substantial dealers felt (for them) the show really ended by 10 AM Friday. Very few stayed for Saturday. We ourselves did NO business Saturday at all and we were bone tried, so yes, we left early.

We strongly feel this show should NOT be used to measure the market, it was most likely an abberation.

Yet again, we congratulate Mary Counts, David Chrenshaw, and all the Whitman people for working hard to put on what clearly has become the BEST privately owned show in the biz. We just wish circumstances could have been better for them this time around!

Read Full Market Report Here 

The 27th Annual MidAmerica Coin Expo will move to a new site this year, the Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel and Convention Center. The expo is slated for July 10-13.

Schaumburg, Ill., is a suburb of Chicago. It is just over 10 miles from O’Hare Airport and adjacent to the I-90 freeway.

“The Renaissance Schaumburg has been open for not quite two years and is in my estimation the finest hotel on the entire numismatic convention circuit,” said Kevin Foley, who has been general chairman of the event since its inception.

“The attached convention center is a first-rate, state-of-the art facility offering a level of amenities typically absent from similar facilities elsewhere. The Renaissance offers complimentary parking for both hotel guests and event attendees, a cost that was close to $20 at our previous home in Rosemont,” he said.

The expo will have more than 150 booths featuring a wide range of dealers from 23 states offering different numismatic specialty items.

Read Full Numismaster Article Here 

The American Numismatic Association’s School of Numismatics will offer its Fundamentals of Grading United States Coins, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 8-9 during Coinfest in Stamford, Conn.

Students will learn and understand how U.S. coins should be graded according to the latest ANA and market standards during this highly enriched two-day seminar. Participants will gain confidence in evaluating surface marks, strike, luster and eye appeal through interactive discussions, group activities and individual study of hundreds of coins from the ANA grading set.

“A well-rounded education is the foundation of any successful collector,” said ANA Executive Director Larry Shepherd. “Courses like Fundamentals of Grading United States Coins can teach hobbyists skills and information that will save them thousands on the bourse floor.”

Summer Seminar instructor Lane J. Brunner, Ph.D., will teach the course. Tuition is $345 for ANA members and $445 for all others. Become an ANA member at www.money.org. To register for Fundamentals of Grading United States Coins, call 719-482-9857 or visit www.money.org and select “School of Numismatics” from the “Numismatic Events” drop- down menu.

The Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) will display the only complete grading set of “Hot Lips” dollars, one of the most interesting of all the different varieties in the popular Morgan dollar series (1878 - 1921), at the Long Beach Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expo, May 29 - 31, 2008.

“Some Morgan dollars were struck at the New Orleans Mint in 1888 with a doubled die obverse that produced significant doubling of Miss Liberty’s lips, nose and chin. A faint second eyelid is also visible,” explained Ron Guth, PCGS President.

The unusual variety is listed as 1888-O VAM-4 (for the “VAM” reference book created by Morgan dollar researchers, Leroy C. Van Allen and A. George Mallis), but many collectors refer to it simply as “Hot Lips.”

PCGS will display the Ashmore “Hot Lips” grading set during the show in the Long Beach, California Convention Center. The 21-coin set is owned by Ash Harrison, President of the Society of Silver Dollar Collectors and owner of Ashmore Rare Coins in Greensboro, North Carolina, who has assembled examples of this unusual variety in grades ranging from Poor-1 to Mint State-61, according to BJ Searls, Manager of the PCGS Set RegistrySM program.

Only two are certified PCGS MS-61, and none in higher grade by PCGS. The MS-60 coin in the set formerly was in Van Allen’s personal collection, and is the only Hot Lips variety example certified as Deep Mirror Prooflike (DMPL). With the recent acquisition of this unique coin, Harrison completed the years-long hunt to assemble the first-ever “Hot Lips” set for all reported grades. (more…)