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Showing posts from October, 2018

Gold Gains in October for First Monthly Increase in Seven Months; US Mint Bullion Sales Mixed

Precious metals futures finished mixed on Wednesday and for the month of October. Gold ended at a three-week low but still scored a healthy monthly increase, its first in seven months. Gold for... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Several ways to collect Walkers

Walking Liberty half dollars could still be found in change as late as 1966. The oldest half dollar I received in change was a 1943-D, still in nice condition. Once the Kennedy half dollar was introduced in 1964, half dollars all but disappeared from circulation. When clad coinage began, silver coins could still be found with regularity for a few more years. The Walking Liberty half dollar is considered to be the most beautiful United States silver coin. Minted from 1916-1947, it was the last regular-issue coin to feature Miss Liberty. It’s a good-sized set, with different ways of collecting, including a short set (1941-1947) and proofs. At one time, it may have been possible to assemble a full set from circulation. But in later times, dedicated collectors have found ways to find these coins. In 1916 and part of 1917, the mintmark on the Walking Liberty half dollar was placed under “In God We Trust” on the obverse. In 1917, the mintmark was moved to the reverse. It is to the left of

Bowers on collecting: A really great Whitman Expo!

By Q. David Bowers Three times a year the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Expo is held at the Baltimore Convention Center. For many years I have attended each and every one, except for March of this year when my flight was canceled due to weather. Hover to zoom. The most recent show was last week, opening for dealers on Wednesday afternoon and for the public at noon on Thursday. The bourse was completely sold out. Stack’s Bowers Galleries held multiple auction sessions covering just about every aspect of American coins, tokens, medals, and paper money. The highlight was Joel Anderson’s $1,000 1890 “Grand Watermelon note” which crossed the block at $2.04 million, or about twice what Mr. Anderson paid for it in 2005. At that earlier time, Tom Denly represented him and purchased it for slightly over $1 million, the first note in world numismatic history to cross that mark. The Colonial Coin Collectors Club, nicknamed C4, held its annual meeting at the Expo, including a fine dinner

2020 Air Force Medal Designs Reviewed

Proposed designs were reviewed and resulting recommendations made for the upcoming Air Force Medal. The 2.5-ounce .999 fine silver medal, set for release in 2020, is one of two that will introduce... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Rare shekels in January Goldberg auction

My good friend Mel Wacks has given me a peek at some important lots in an upcoming sale to be conducted by Ira and Larry Goldberg Auctioneers. Highlights of the sale, which will be held Jan. 8-10, 2019, in New York City, are coins relating to the First and Second Jewish Revolts against Imperial Rome in 66-70 C.E. and 132-135 C.E. These two David vs. Goliath military contests did not have happy endings. Rome won both. Many of the Jewish inhabitants of Judaea were killed or enslaved. But tales of valor and independent spirit have come down to us through the centuries. Those who took up arms against Rome struck coins. They are avidly sought out by collectors today. Examples of shekel coinage from five years of issue from the First Revolt will go on the auction block. Roman conquerors issued imperial coins that are also in high demand. These celebrated a great victory for the empire. They proclaim the province of Judaea captive. The arch of Titus in Rome shows the looted articl

Investing in Gold, Silver and Platinum

//www.pearltrees.com/palladiumcoins?embed=2&d=201810311011 Palladiumcoins What Can #Gold Do for Our Money? https://t.co/3yPI7uIy8s — Bullion Alpha (@bullionalpha) October 31, 2018 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Pension Funds Need #Gold Before It’s Too Late https://t.co/WAXQ79LKtG — Bullion Alpha (@bullionalpha) October 31, 2018 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js The Collapse Of The U.S. #Retirement Market & Epic Rise In The #Price Of #Gold https://t.co/RxnAeMZCjg — Bullion Alpha (@bullionalpha) October 31, 2018 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js from Precious Metals News from Gold Eagle Price – Price of Silver Oz

Small mark looks huge on cent

By F. Michael Fazzari I keep topics, ideas, and drafts in a folder for possible future columns. I just found a copy of a published column with the promise to write more on the subject next time. I was shocked to discover what I thought was a relatively recent column was actually published in the April 29th issue of 2014! Where did those four years go? My draft for Part 2 started this way: Eye appeal is the “bowl” that holds all the components for each part of the Mint State grading equation. Unfortunately, it is the ONLY subjective part of this formula, as all the others (marks, friction, luster, and strike) can be measured with a semblance of precision. I’m left with the old cliché – coin grading is subjective. What are some of the reasons for this subjectivity without writing about specific characteristics we find on coins? The mark on the cheek of this small Indian Head cent would be virtually lost on a Morgan dollar-sized coin. 1. Smaller coins are harder to grade than larger

PCGS Grades Rare 1854-S $5 Gold Coin

The fourth known 1854 San Francisco Mint Liberty Head Half Eagle, discovered earlier this year and subsequently sold at auction this past August for more than $2 million, now is in a Professional... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Precious Metals End Divided Tuesday, Oct. 30

Precious metals futures were divided Tuesday with silver and platinum higher and gold and palladium lower. Gold for December delivery shed $2.30, or 0.2%, to settle at $1,225.30 an ounce on the... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Discovering scarcity of 1801 Draped Bust dollar

While the reported mintage for the 1801 Draped Bust silver dollar is 54,454, many factors raise questions about the accuracy of that figure and, therefore, the true scarcity of the coin. The first coins of the United States are both historic and interesting. They are also generally scarce, and for some of us, they can be frustrating. For example, if you like exact information, these coins may not be for you. Determining how many were minted can be a lot closer to an art than a science. The 1801 Draped Bust dollar, with a reported mintage of just 54,454 pieces, is a typical example. There is almost no way to compare its seemingly low mintage issue to other dollars of the period. Not many exist, as the production of silver dollars was suspended in 1804, and the next was not made for decades. This production suspension occurred because silver dollars were not circulating. Instead, in many cases, they were exported almost as fast as they were struck. When coins are exported for their

Spain marks passing of escudos

It is 150 years since Spain abandoned the escudo as part of a total makeover of the nation’s currency. To mark the anniversary of the last escudo, Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre – Real Casa de la Moneda [Royal Mint of Spain] – has produced a series of replica escudos stuck as .999 fine gold euros that trace the history of this historic gold coin. A 19 mm, 3.375 g 50 euro (1 escudo) comes with a mintage of 2,500. It reproduces the escudo of 1759 struck for Ferdinand VI at Casa de la Moneda de Popayán in Colombia (KM-29.2). The obverse shows the effigy of Ferdinand along with his legend but this year’s date. The reverse bears the Lesser Royal Arms of the monarch along with the legend: NOMINA . MAGNA . SEQUOR . J, the mintmark of Real Casa de la Moneda, and the face value of 50 euro. The 23 mm, 6.75 g 100 euros (2 escudos) has a mintage of 2,000. It shows the 1607 coin struck for Philip III at Real Ingenio de la Moneda de Segovia [Segovia Mint]. The obverse carries the Royal Arm

Is ‘Deadman’s Curve’ playing for silver?

Silver American Eagle purchasers seem to be losing interest in the popular bullion coin again. Sales numbers are inexplicably declining. With just two days to go in October, sales have dropped by 54 percent from September. This decline is significant. Unless there is a late purchase of 1,567,500 pieces in less than 48 hours, the decline is baked into the cake. So far, the Mint reports sales of 1,330,000 for the month compared to 2,897,500 in September. Such a large monthly sales decline qualifies as market sentiment turning on a dime. What caused it? While you are thinking about it, I can point out that this is the third sudden shift of sentiment in 2018. It happened in February. Sales slid 71 percent in the second month of the year. This took monthly numbers from 3,235,000 to 942,500. Some drop happens every year because January is the kickoff month where every collector wants the new date and every dealer wants the new inventory. But a 71 percent drop is steep. Weak dem

Australia releases new $50

On Sep. 5, the Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia announced that the country’s new $50 note would go into general circulation on Oct. 18. Details of the new note were announced back in February. As with Australia’s existing $50 (P-54, -60), the new note features portraits of Aboriginal writer and inventor David Unaipon and the first female member of any Australian parliament, Edith Cowan. Face and back of Australia’s new $50 bank note that was to be placed into circulation on Oct. 18. (Images courtesy Reserve Bank of Australia) The polymer bank note also includes new security features similar to those on the $5 and $10 bank notes issued over the past two years. Readers may be aware that considerable political upheaval has occurred Down Under in recent months. Unusual for the governor of any central bank, Lowe chose to use the $50 launch to highlight the deteriorating relationship between men and women in Australia’s Federal Parliament. Allegations of bullying and gender-ba

Investing Tips and Tricks

//www.pearltrees.com/silverbullionbar?embed=2&d=20181030955 Silverbullionbar 4 Tech Tips to Help #Millennials Get Off Their #Assets and Start #Investing https://t.co/9jRiYzROp3 — Alex Winter (@alexdwintertx) October 30, 2018 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Institutional #PreciousMetal Mining #Investors are Becoming Restless https://t.co/IrT1zl2F6H — Alex Winter (@alexdwintertx) October 30, 2018 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Love and Fear #Trade Buying Will Drive #Metals , and These Miners Higher… This Year! https://t.co/Vzg1ejAWke — Alex Winter (@alexdwintertx) October 30, 2018 https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js from Precious Metals News from Gold Eagle Price – Price of Silver Oz

End of road for Japan’s 1-yen coin

Japan’s 1-yen coin appears to be on its way out permanently. Could Japan’s 1-yen coin or ¥1 be ready to join what appears to be a continuing pattern of low-denomination coins being dropped from circulation worldwide? It certainly appears so. The Japanese government has set a goal of increasing all cashless financial transactions to 40 percent by 2025 in an effort to reduce transportation and storage costs linked to using physical cash. This is an increase from 18 percent as of 2015. In October 2019, Japan’s consumption tax will be increased from eight to 10 percent, a move that will mean there will be one less reason to carry the aluminum composition ¥1 coin as pocket change. Japan saw a noticeable dip in the use of the denomination once before when the tax was raised to five percent. The Bank of Japan recently indicated the number of ¥1 coins in circulation as of 2017 was approximately 37.8 billion, down about eight percent from the 41 billion circulating in 2002. E-money transa

Boy Scout medal features swastika

(Image courtesy coinquest.com) What can you tell me about a medal on which a Boy Scout appears mounted on a horse on one side, with a reverse swastika on the other side? These medals were issued between 1910 and 1914 by the Excelsior Shoe Company to mark the company’s association with the then-new Boy Scout movement. There are five major varieties of this medal to be collected. The hole appearing at 12 o’clock on most examples was meant to allow the medal to be fastened to the shoe.   I get it that until the use of the swastika by the German Third Reich, the swastika was a symbol of good luck. The symbol last appears on German coins of 1945. When did the symbol first appear on coins? The symbol appears on coins almost as soon as coinage was invented. It appears as a raised pattern on a gold 1/24th stater of Ionia from about 625 to 600 B.C. The symbol appears on several coins of city-states on ancient Sicily, on coins of early India, Jewish tokens, and others prior to becoming a

A lot of lettuce for a Grand Watermelon

Stack’s Bowers demonstrated Oct. 25 that some paper money beats inflation better than any silver or gold could. A Series 1890 $1,000 Treasury Note sold for $2.04 million in Baltimore during an auction of the third part of the Joel R. Anderson Collection. That’s over 2,000 times issue price. In comparison, gold is up 59.5 times its $20.67 per ounce 1890 price. Silver is up 15.3 times from its lowest 1890 price of 95.7 cents per ounce, or 12.16 times its highest 1890 price. Of course, anybody who could have obtained a $1,000 bank note in 1890 would have been wealthy unlike the owner of a simple silver dollar or even a $20 gold piece. Nowadays, the note is so incredibly valuable not because of its face value or inflation trends but because of its rarity, which makes it the objective of well-heeled paper money collectors. This is one of only two notes known in private hands with the Rosecrans-Huston signature combination on its face. It is cataloged as Friedberg 379a. PCGS Currenc

Engraving mistake remained uncorrected

By Peter Huntoon and Doug Murray While perusing the scans of the proofs on the Smithsonian website, Doug Murray spotted an extraordinary situation. Every Series of 1882 $1,000 gold certificate proof, including the countersigned Fr.1218a variety, utilized a misspelled Thousand in the central banner; specifically, “One Thonsand Dollars.” This heretofore unrecognized mistake by the numismatic community is an out-and-out engraving error that was created when a letter engraver engraved the banner on a component die, the banner was lifted onto a component roll, and the image transferred onto the master generic full-face dies for both the countersigned and non-countersigned varieties. Full-face rolls lifted from those masters were used to lay-in the generic faces onto the six 4-subject plates that ultimately were used to print the notes, which remained current for the next 25 years. We find it extraordinary that the mistake never was corrected. Shown here a subject from the Fr.1218c proo

Feeling good about buying what we need now

G old and silver prices are virtually identical to what they were a week ago. However, the October downturn in the stock market averages appear to place the metals in a more favorable position than they have been in for some time. Always remember the importance of market psychology. When it is positive for metals, this can give that last little push to get in to hesitating buyers. A negative psychology can keep potential buyers on the sidelines. This positiveness is reflected in the prices of generic gold and silver coins as well as their modern bullion relatives. Modern made-for-collector versions of bullion coins are in a separate world in which these special editions continue to sell out almost as fast as they are issued. Older proof and mint sets continue to flat line, with little interest in them except as telemarketing products. Holiday buying will lend them support. It is still challenging to read the trends, if there truly are any, regarding the better condition and scarcer

Viewpoint: Grading system needs linear steps

By Paul Richards Years ago, I was an active shirt-pocket coin dealer, and I wrote an article about the grading services and about the 70-point coin grading scale. The original article was published by Coin World , and its subsequent criticism caused me to drop the subject completely. Now, 15 years later, it may be time to dredge it up again! The article proposes a new “linear” 32-point grading scale in contrast to today’s “non-linear” 70-point scale. Below are a few excerpts from the article, modified slightly, which introduce an idea called “one discernible step in grade.” From its inception, today’s 70-point numismatic grading system attempts to link numismatic grade to numismatic value. In his original work, Dr. Sheldon asserts that an XF40 coin carries approximately 10 times the value of a G4 coin. That is, if a G4 coin costs about $1, an XF40 coin should cost about $40. The desire to couple grade and value in one numeric system causes non-linearity in that system. Enthusiast