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Showing posts from February, 2018

Bowers on collecting: American medals to the fore — Pierre Eugène du Simitière

By Q. David Bowers Welcome to the latest installment in my series on the subject. I highlight some of those featured in the best-selling Whitman book, 100 Greatest American Medals and Tokens . This week I circle around to feature an artist and polymath who hardly anyone in numismatics had heard of until a study.  The Eagle That Is Forgotten: Pierre Eugène du Simitière, Founding Father of American Numismatics , by Joel J. Orosz, was published in 1988. That was 30 years ago. Today he is a familiar figure to historians. As to his medal being highlighted someday, read on. . . Here is what was said in the 100 Greatest book, where he was featured in the introductory pages: Pierre Eugène du Simitière Raising the Liberty Pole in New York City, a 1770 pen and ink drawing by Simitiere. The earliest numismatically inclined person in America for whom we have a fairly detailed biographical record was Swiss-born Pierre Eugène du Simitière (1737-1784), who settled in Philadelphia by 1774.  A

Bullion Eagle sales repeating 2017 pattern?

Yesterday I thought for a moment that gold was going to dip right back to the point it started the year. This morning, the Kitco price quote was $1,320 when I checked. This is still slightly higher than the $1,306.30 close in 2017. Gold’s gain for the year is $13.70. Don’t spend it all on lunch. Putting it in percentage terms, gold is up 1.04876 percent. I put a lot of digits to the right of the decimal point because just writing 1 percent seems somehow like I am minimizing the gain. Sales of gold American Eagle bullion coins continue their rapid fall. So far in February, the Mint has sold 5,000 one-ounce Eagles and 5,000 tenth-ounce coins. This compares to 21,000 one-ounce coins in February 2017 and 30,000 tenth ouncers. Remember, February 2017 was a weak month. It was when it was beginning to dawn on us that Eagle buyers were going on strike. In terms of ounces sold, the February 2018 monthly number is 5,500 compared to 27,500 ounces last year. In 2017, the Mint sold some

World Top 5 most expensive coins 2017

These are World Top 5 Most Expensive Coins in 2017 purchased by winning bidders in auction and the auction companies that sold them. For your information, none of this coins make it to  Top 7 World Most Expensive Coins . The World most expensive coins sold in auction still a 1794 silver dollar sold for USD$10,016,875 (including the buyer's commission) on 24 January 2013 in Stack’s Bowers Cardinal Collection auction. WORLD TOP 5 MOST EXPENSIVE COINS IN 2017 No.5: Brand 1793 Liberty Cap Cent. Sheldon-13 One of the finest examples of the 1793 Liberty Cap cent sold for US$940,000 on 31 March 2017 during Stack’s Bowers Galleries’ auction of the D. Brent Pogue Collection. The Legendary Mickley-Sheldon-Husak 1793 Sheldon-13 graded AU58BN by PCGS beautifully showcases Joseph Wright's elegant and distinctive portrait bust. No.4: 1861 Original Confederate States of America Half Dollar The Newman / Newcomer / Green 1861 Original Confederate States of America Half Dolla

WWI Centennial Silver Medal Sales Reach 62,660

The 30-day ordering window ended Feb. 20 for the five World War I Centennial Silver Medals. The latest U.S. Mint sales figures show 62,660, or about 62.7%, of the potential 100,000 sold. The silver... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Really? A real tribute proof? Give me a break!

While watching television, a new advertisement sent off the usual bells and whistles that the numismatic industry needs to watch out for. Our “friends” at the National Collectors Mint has seized on the story of the dies and drawings of a potential 1964 Morgan Dollar that was first published in the fifth edition of A […]

Assay Commission abolished 1977

The first Assay Commission Medal was struck in 1860. (Photo courtesy Stack’s Bowers) The 180th meeting of the United States Assay Commission was held on Feb. 9, 1977. It was something of a watershed as the then president, Jimmy Carter, had refused to appoint members of the public, a tradition that had existed since the presidency of Andrew Jackson in 1837. The meetings held from 1977 to 1980 consisted only of government officials and the 1980 meeting was the last one held, the commission itself being abolished in that year. The Assay Commission had tested the quality of our coinage for nearly two hundred years when it was abolished to save a paltry $2,500. It was the oldest operating federal commission and had first met only a few days after George Washington ended his presidency. The origin of the Assay Commission may be traced to 13th century England. During the reign of King Henry III (1216-1272) it became obvious that some method was needed to control the quality of the coinag

Precius Metals Decline Tueday, Feb. 27

Precious metals futures declined as a group on Tuesday after they gained on Monday. Gold for April delivery lost $14.20, or 1.1%, to settle at $1,318.60 an ounce on the Comex division of the New... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

‘Sensational’ discoveries in Knight sale

By Peter Huntoon Lyn Knight will be offering two sensational national bank note discoveries that just came in from the cold in the upcoming PCDA auction held in conjunction with the PCDA National Currency & Coin Convention from March 1-3 in Rosemont, Ill. These notes were so fresh, they weren’t in holders when I got a look at them.   This $10 brown back discovery note on The Cochecho National Bank of Dover gives us at least one reported note from 77 of the 79 issuing banks in New Hampshire. Cochecho National The $10 brown back on The Cochecho National Bank of Dover, New Hampshire, is the discovery note for the bank, which was chartered April 29, 1865, and placed in receivership June 6, 1899, for fraudulent management in the form of excessive loans to its officers, directors and others. By the time the receivership was closed on Sept. 30, 1901, the depositors had recouped all their money and no assessments had been levied against the shareholders so things were not as dire

Now even gold needs a gimmick

Just how strongly needed is the novelty factor with coin issues from the United States Mint? When the 2018 proof gold American Eagle coins are put on sale March 1, most collectors will simply ignore them. Such was not always the case. When the first proof gold American Eagle $50 one-ounce coin was offered to collectors in 1986, it created a buyer’s rush. This was pre-Internet, so the coins did not sell out in five minutes. But they were new. They were different. They were novelties on steroids. Collectors bought 446,290 of the one-ounce coins. On Thursday, collectors will be offered 25,000 individual proof one-ounce gold Eagle coins plus another 18,000 in a four-coin proof set. If every single one sells, that adds up to 43,000 coins. That’s less than 10 percent of the number sold in 1986. But even at this low number, the Mint marketing staff might be called overly optimistic in setting their mintage maximums. The 2017 proof one-ounce has so far sold 18,464. This is 42.9 per

US Mint Coin Production Tops 1.6 Billion in January

United States Mint production facilities in Philadelphia and Denver picked up their pace in January. Over 1.6 billion in cents, nickels, dimes, quarters, half-dollars and dollars came from U.S. Mint... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

COTY award goes to Germany

By Donald Scarinci Individual category winners and the top Coin of the Year Award for coins dated 2016 were announced Feb. 3 at a ceremony held in conjunction with the World Money Fair in Berlin, Germany. The German Federal Ministry of Finance’s 2016-dated “Planet Earth” copper-nickel 5-euro coin with a blue polymer ring has been named the Coin of the Year. It also won the Most Innovative Coin category. It was a win for the home team, as Germany came away with highest honors: the 2018 Krause Coin of the Year Award. The winner was the 5 euro copper-nickel “Planet Earth” coin with the new polymer ring technology. The coin was designed by Stefan Klein. An easy win in the Most Innovative category, the polymer ring was developed by the German Mint as an anti-counterfeiting device. The coin was minted in proof and in circulation strike by each of Germany’s five mints. The polymer ring is a slightly different shade of blue for each mint that is easily spotted when the coins are placed

Perth Mint Bullion Sales Pick Up in January

Demand for Australian bullion products picked up in January with silver sales the highest since July and gold sales the strongest since October, according to the latest figures from The Perth Mint of... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

BEP’s Founding Fathers set on sale

“America’s Founding Fathers 2018 Currency Set” was to go on sale at 8 a.m. Eastern Time Feb. 21 at the website of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. Priced at $21.95 each, the set contains a Series 2013 $1 note from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and a Series 2013 $2 note from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. The two notes have matching serial numbers beginning with the numerals 2018. Packed in a tri-fold folder, each note is protected by a clear acid-free polymer sleeve. There will be only 5,000 of these sets produced. A Series 2013 $1 note from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia and Series 2013 $2 note from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco are featured in the America’s Founding Fathers 2018 Currency Set from the BEP. For those wishing to buy 50 or more sets, the price of each is reduced to $18.95. Visit bep.gov for information and www.moneyfactorystore.gov to buy.   This article was originally printed in Bank Note Reporter . >>

Sales open for 2018 American Eagle Gold Proof Coins on March 1

Washington — The United States Mint will begin accepting orders for 2018 American Eagle Gold Proof Coins on March 1 at noon Eastern Time (ET). The American Eagle Gold Proof Coins are the collector versions of the Mint’s American Eagle Gold Bullion Coins. Launched in 1986, these 22-karat gold coins display the “W” mint mark of the West Point Mint where they are produced. Hover to zoom. The coins’ obverse (heads) design features a version of Augustus Saint-Gaudens’ full-length figure of Liberty with flowing hair, holding a torch in her right hand and an olive branch in her left. The reverse design (tails), by sculptor Miley Busiek, features a male eagle carrying an olive branch while flying above a nest containing a female eagle and eaglets. Highlights of this year’s coin release include new packaging and the implementation of product and household order limits. New Packaging Beginning this year, the Mint will now package individual coins and the four-coin sets in a satin-li