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Showing posts from August, 2020

Gold Dips in August, Snapping Streak of Monthly Gains; U.S. Mint Bullion Sales Mixed

Most precious metals advanced in their start to the new trading week on Monday, padding their monthly gains. Gold was one of the winners on the day, but it also stood alone with a loss in August --... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Major Reed Count Varieties Exist

Differences in the reed count make for what I would consider being minor varieties. Are there any reed count varieties that are considered to be major? Several of the Morgan silver dollar reed count varieties usually command a strong premium as does the 1876-CC Fine Reeding Seated Liberty quarter. The 153-count reeded quarter is more common than the normal variety with the standard 113 reeds.   I have a Lincoln cent with a significantly rolled edge. How could this have happened? It is possible someone tapped the edge with a hammer to create the edge; however, it is more likely that the coin got into the laundry, then got stuck between the rotating and stationary drums in a commercial dryer. By tumbling in the dryer, the rim was altered.   What about the edge on the 1907 Rolled Edge Indian $10 eagle? The edge on the 1907 Rolled Edge Indian $10 eagle was mass-produced and is a mint-produced variety. The beveled rather than square edge with wire rim as it appears on other Indian $1

Excellent Deals on Mercury Dimes

1916-S Mercury Dime graded MS-63. (Images courtesy Heritage Auctions, www.HA.com.) By Mark Benvenuto O ne of the classic series of United States silver coins that has been a solid collector favorite for decades is the Mercury dimes . Also called the Winged Liberty dimes, these little silver pieces were churned out of three Mints from 1916 to 1945, often in very large numbers. Many collectors know about the well-loved rarity right up at the beginning, the 1916-D.   In looking for bargains among these 10-cent pieces, we’ll have to steer clear of that one. But there is still a wide array from which to choose.  When it comes to looking for bargains among the Mercury dimes, we’ll have to find some upper price limit and try to stick with it. We could shoot very low, but doing that gets us to the bags and rolls of these dimes in worn condition that are still around in abundance, and that people tend to call “junk silver.” Let’s go rather in a somewhat more upscale direction, and see jus

Weekly World Numismatic News for August 30, 2020

There were two items this week of a particular note. First, two Israeli teenagers found a hoard of gold coins that experts say date back to the 9th century. The jar of coins found consists of 425 24-karat gold coins weighing 845 grams (1.86 pounds). Most of the coins are cut to that were once […]

Make Hobby Accessible to Youth

By Bob Miller  I wanted to contact you as a subscriber that has gotten back into the hobby after a nearly four-decade hiatus. I started remembering my childhood involvement with coins when I used to visit my local hobby shop, usually for models to make and baseball cards to buy, sell and trade. But I always went over to the glass cases near the back walls to look at the older silver half dollars and dollar coins. My fascination was the heavier feel of the coins (pre-1965) and the different sound when they clanged in a bag or when taken out to review. I pictured myself as a pirate with my treasure chest as I counted my pieces of eight, a parrot on my shoulder, too. My first score was the silver run in the early 1980s, when my hobby shop owner friend who worked in the same area as my mom, told her that all those Franklins were worth $30-$40 more from the average $5 I spent from my allowance. I sold 25 of them to buy baseball cards that I later parlayed into college tuition payments and

Gold Rush Excepted for ‘Goldbug’ Collection

Heritage Auctions strikes gold this fall by offering The James Dines “Original Goldbug” Collection, named for the legendary financial prognosticator who is also an esteemed numismatist. Dines, who rose to forecasting fame in the 1950s and ’60s, has spent more than six decades – “and I don’t know how many thousands of hours,” he said – building a collection that reflects not only his steadfast faith in the enduring strength of gold, but his unceasing curiosity. Dines sought out coins not just for their value, but for their beauty and the stories they told about those who made them and those who protected them. “Nobody owns a gold coin,” Dines says. “They cannot be owned. We are temporary custodians.” The Dallas-based auction house will offer Dines’ collection in three auctions, beginning with its Sept. 16-22 Currency Signature Auction and concluding with the Oct. 30 World & Ancient Coins Signature Online Auction. The Sept. 17-21 U.S. Coins Signature Auction will contain the maj

Gold Logs 1.4% Weekly Gain

Precious metals finished sharply higher Friday, padding their weekly gains. Gold's weekly advance was its first in three weeks. Gold for December delivery tacked on $42.30, or 2.2%, to settle at... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

2020 Colorized Basketball Commemorative Coins Launch

We travel to new territory with the United States Mint as it releases its first ever coins with applied color. Debuting today from the U.S. Mint are colorized 2020 Basketball Hall of Fame... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Perth Mint Gold Bullion Sales Jump in July

Demand for Australian bullion products in July ranged from solid to strong compared to June and a year ago, according to sales figures from The Perth Mint of Australia. The monthly gains happened... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Precious Metals Decline Thursday, Aug. 27

Precious metals futures registered losses Thursday that ranged from 1% for both gold and palladium to 1.5% for silver. Gold for December delivery fell $19.90 to settle at $1,932.60 an ounce on the... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

U.S. Mint Produces Nearly 1.7 Billion Coins for Circulation in July

U.S. coin production soared for a second month in a row, manufacturing figures from the United States Mint show. In July, U.S. Mint facilities in Philadelphia and Denver struck nearly 1.7 billion... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

US Mint Sales: Women’s Suffrage and Barbara Bush Coins Debut

The United States Mint last week introduced five new products for collectors. All of them were among the Mint's top weekly sellers. Released Aug.18 at prices ranging from $64 to $120, three of the... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Precious Metals Rise Wed., Aug. 26

Precious metals posted gains Wednesday that ranged from 0.6% for platinum to 4.5% for silver. Silver logged its first increase in six sessions. Gold's advanced was its first in three sessions. Gold... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

PCGS To Offer Special Labels For Basketball HOF Colorized Coins

Professional Coin Grading Service (www.PCGS.com) will grade and have special insert labels for colorized 2020 Basketball Hall of Fame Clad Half Dollars and Silver Dollars, the first colorized coins... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

NGC Wins Four NLG 2020 Awards

The Numismatic Literary Guild (NLG) has once again recognized Numismatic Guaranty Corporation® (NGC) for its efforts to provide educational and engaging content to the coin collecting... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Gold and Silver Decline Tuesday, Aug. 25

Precious metals split Tuesday with platinum and palladium posting gains and gold and silver registering losses. Gold for December delivery declined $16.10, or 0.8%, to settle at $1,923.10 an ounce... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Buffalo Model for Nickel and Notes

Buffalo Model for Nickels and Notes  Being new at collecting coins, I have to rely on documentation to enlighten me about the coins I collect. The first book about numismatics I bought was the “Red Book,” 72nd edition of 2019.   I thought it was a fairly good book with lots of information. Watching various television programming that sell coins also helped to learn about the different coins and paper money in this hobby. The second book I bought was 100 Greatest American Currency Notes. I bought it because it was constantly referenced on the TV shows. Now I have a question that perhaps you can answer. In the “Red Book” under the Indian Head or Buffalo (1913-1938) in the nickel section it states, “The bison was supposedly modeled after ‘ Black Diamond ’ in the New York Central Park Zoo.” I have heard this same statement on multiple TV shows when this coin is being sold. However, in the 100 Greatest American Currency Notes under No. 6, $10 Legal Tender “Bison Note,” series of 1901,

Merna Dudley Remembered

By Tom Michael  A nother pillar of early Standard Catalog of World Coins development passed away Sunday, Aug. 23. Merna Dudley worked as the SCWC’s coordinating editor during some of the years when listings were actively being built back in time from 1700 to 1501. Merna was a stickler for detail and worked tirelessly to bring more uniformity of style to the SCWC listings. Excellence in proofreading and data entry were Merna’s hallmarks, and her impact on the catalogs can be seen in the database even today, 10 years past her retirement. Merna joined Krause Publications in 1988, working in data entry with Carolyn Borth. The close ties between the cataloging and data entry departments, combined with her great attention to fine detail, made Merna the perfect candidate to step into the difficult coordinating editor position. The many eccentric individuals working on the SCWC at the time could be daunting characters, but Merna always stood on firm ground in any discussion. Colin Bruce II,

Gold Logs 1.4% Weekly Gain

Precious metals finished sharply higher Friday, padding their weekly gains. Gold's weekly advance was its first in three weeks. Gold for December delivery tacked on $42.30, or 2.2%, to settle at... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Women’s Suffrage Coins Top Sales

The highlight of the week is the addition of some new Mint products to our charts, most of which honor women. Because the Mint had released small additional quantities of the 2019-S Enhanced Reverse Proof silver American Eagle, you will see that line item listed under the “Collector Eagle Sales” category at the bottom of this page. This week marks our first recording of sales for the 2020 Women’s Suffrage Centennial commemorative coins. The silver dollar, in proof and uncirculated versions, was issued for sale on Aug. 18, as was a coin and medal set. These three products were the highest sellers this week with the proof dollar being the clear frontrunner. Just over a week of sales brought the total of the proof dollar to 11,264 and the uncirculated dollar to 5,543. The medal set, consisting of a proof silver dollar and silver medal, came in at 7,796. Another new item this week is the 2020 First Spouse gold coin honoring Barbara Bush. Since its Aug. 20 on-sale date, the 1/2-ounce

Are you more interested in gold or silver?

From the Aug. 21 Numismatic News e-newsletter Are you more interested in gold or silver?  Here are some answers sent from our e-newsletter readers.   I’m interested in both but rely more on silver. If our mighty U.S. dollar collapses, silver will be more portable to use when buying small items like groceries, which means gold would be used when buying much larger items. I would recommend having some of each if you can afford to. David P. Cafferata MSG (Retired), USA   In my opinion, I think silver is under value. So, if you can hold on to it for a while, eventually you can make some money in return in the future! Kwok WaAu Hanover, Md.   Gold. Michael McKinnon Southport, N.C.   Silver! Why? The ratio disparity is great between the two metals, but I don’t believe it will stay that way and will return to a more normal ratio like 10:1 to 15:1. When, and if, this happens, I will sell my silver and purchase more gold. I believe silver will go up at a faster percentage rate

Look for Bargains Where Investors Aren’t

Pride of ownership. Bragging rights. Your own personal and private museum. All of these thoughts come to mind when a collector collects . How a person gets to the point where something becomes collectible rather than just being an object or is viewed as an investment is the question. Right now, the business of coins has drawn a significant number of investors and speculators into our realm. These people are welcome. They drive prices up by offering additional demand to a relatively fixed supply of most coins. Will some of them take the next evolutionary step and become true collectors is the question. In past business cycles that have impacted coin collecting, this has been the scenario. It is likely that this will repeat once again. Look at the attention being drawn to the spot price of gold and silver . Look at the headline-grabbing rarities that have recently reached the auction block. Look at the surge in activity on the internet. Some of the internet activity has of course been

UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India featured on stamps

India is home to several UNESCO World Heritage Sites; ranging from natural wonders to architectural marvels. While some are keepers of the magnificence of history, others are a safe and lush haven for biodiversity to flourish. These majestic UNESCO World Heritage Sites in India featured on stamps which were   issued on 16 March 2020. These sites have received the prestigious status because of their natural and scientific significance. UNESCO World Heritage Convention was established in 1972 for recognizing various sites of cultural and natural importance around the world. After the latest addition to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, India now has 38 World Heritage Sites, which makes India the country with the sixth-largest number of World Heritage Sites in the world. This is the second in a series and concentrates on natural sites and depicts wildlife found in those sites. They feature Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks, Western Ghats, Manas Wildlife Sanctuary,

2020 Colorized Basketball Commemorative Coins Launch

We travel to new territory with the United States Mint as it releases its first ever coins with applied color. Debuting today from the U.S. Mint are colorized 2020 Basketball Hall of Fame... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Perth Mint Gold Bullion Sales Jump in July

Demand for Australian bullion products in July ranged from solid to strong compared to June and a year ago, according to sales figures from The Perth Mint of Australia. The monthly gains happened... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Precious Metals Decline Thursday, Aug. 27

Precious metals futures registered losses Thursday that ranged from 1% for both gold and palladium to 1.5% for silver. Gold for December delivery fell $19.90 to settle at $1,932.60 an ounce on the... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Buy/Sell Formulas for Gold and Silver

A frequent question I am asked is what kind of buy/sell formulas for gold and silver my company might use if prices soar far above their current levels. An implicit question that is part of that is whether people would even be able to sell their precious metals at all. Most, but not all, coin dealers are seek to make a profit margin, whether buying or selling. That means that they are willing to purchase items from the public at a price less than they can sell it on the wholesale market (the bid side of the wholesale market minus shipping costs and the cost of tying up funds). Sometimes they may be willing to pay a relatively stronger price if they have a solid retail prospect to sell the coins or currency. Similarly, most dealers price their merchandise to sell at a price slightly higher than what it would cost them to replace it wholesale (the ask side of the wholesale market, including what might have to be paid to have product shipped). By structuring their business model to ma