I’m new to collecting coins, and these are the little things I must learn
New dies are used every year, and replaced as they wear out, so there can be varying sizes even within the same date. There are books on die varieties and a little time spent on Google should help you find what you want.You’re going to learn what you need from reading on your own, more than from anyone here.
My husband is interested in collecting coins as a new hobby (He LOVES gold) which is what sparked his coin interest. His birthday is next week and I want to get him a nice coin to start him off with a book on collecting. Can anyone suggest a good starting place?
Your husband had better be well to do to collect gold coins. The real gold ones that is, not the gold colored ones such as the presidential dollars. It would be wise to go with your husband to a couple of coin dealers and let him check the different coins out. The first book should be what is called "The Red Book" a guide to US coins. It goes through all the US coins with mintage figures, a little on grading the different series, where to find the mint marks and a lot of useful info. The values guide in it is to be used as a guide only, for the book only comes out once a year. The first rule to coin collecting is to buy the book before the coin and never clean a coin. It actually takes some work to put a nice collection together and in the end make a few dollars. Your husband has to make up his mind what he wants to be. A coin collector who collects coins with a goal ahead such as a complete set on Lincoln cents 1909-2010. An a accumulator who just has a lot of coins but no goals and has really no collection. A numismatist a collector who has goals but also studies coins and knows their history, such people collect say varieties of early large cents or bust dollars and of course ancient coins. Last but not least is the investor who must have lots of money and can do $10,000 coins and up. Less money usually does not work and the person loses. Hope this helps. I alow email through yahoo answers if I can be of more help.
Is there a list somewhere out there that will show me what coins the Mint has done. . .in the state Quarters ? I have been to the US mint and cannot find a list. . . I also see that there is one issued for / to Somoa? Now it has been a LONG TIME since school . . but what is up with that? Is it part of the USA now? Guess I better go back to school. . .Also. . I see the Mint is doing something with Nickels too. . .I need a lesson I guess. . .
The mints did a quarter for each of the 50 states, there is a D mint mark for the Denver mint, a P mint mark for the Philadelphia mint and the proof version has an S for the San Francisco mint. The mint then had a separate program for the District of Columbia (Washington DC) and the 5 US territories (act of congress 2008). Even though the people are not allowed to vote in US elections they are still citizens of the United States.They are the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, America samoa, The US Virgin Islands and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Now starting this year there is a new quarter program called the National Parks, there will be one quarter for each state with a national park or national monument on it.
For the most part when it comes to commemorative coins the United States Congress authorizes commemorative pieces that lionize and honor American individuals, places, events, and institutions. Although these coins are legitimate tender, they are not coined for common circulation instead they are merely coined as “art”. Each commemorative coin is produced by the United States Mint in closed quantity and is only accessible for a specific amount of time. As far as I can tell the World Trade Center coins found underneath the Twin Towers have yet to become a part of the Mint coin program, frankly I don’t really understand why! However, these coins are a part of another program; the PCGS also known as the Professional Coin Grading Service which is the premier Internet site for collectors of coins.
These coins in particular that were found in the vaults can be worth a lot of money (from a few hundred on up to a few thousand), so under advanced security measures the coins were loaded into Brinks Armored vehicles and sent to Collectors Universe a parent company of the well-known Professional Coin Grading Service.
This particular organization is the archetypal company for collectors of coins. Once this organization collected all of the coins they then continued on to catalog, grade and encapsulate in the Professional Coin Grading Service high security tamper resistant capsules along with a specially designed commemorative United States Flag insert that identifies the coins as a genuine artifact. This is how you can actually tell if a coin is legit or not and is produced like this as a part of the grading and collection guide which can be seen on their website.
There are numerous different coins being commemorated for this particular event including the 2000 World Trade Center ground zero recovery gold eagle, silver eagle, and also a few uncirculated 1993 silver eagle gem. To buy these coins you can spend anywhere from $60 on up to $1000+. These coins truly are a piece of our history and it’s definitely a part, if you could choose any part, that you should have in your collections!
It doesn’t matter if your a master at collecting these types of coins or materials or if you are just starting out, or if you are going to hold on to these for personal reasons or sell these for some cold hard cash, this is a noteworthy part of history that you can take possession over starting right this very moment. I have known of quite a few people that have inducted these coins in to their own little collection because they had a loved one or knew someone in the World Trade Center bombings, so something like this means a lot to them not only for personal reasons but for remembrance of loved ones lost. These coins are anything but gaudy, in fact they are simply amazing to even glance at in image view. I can only imagine what they really look like in person! If you think you would be interested in something like this, check it out the next time your online. I think you will be really surprised by the craftsmanship of these coins! Absolutely stunning!
Kristi Ambrose
http://www.articlesbase.com/news-and-society-articles/how-would-you-like-to-own-a-piece-of-our-history-690052.html
As a general answer, it’s supply and demand, like anything else.
When a coin is rare, supply is small by definition. This includes situations where a coin may be common in bad condition, but rare in excellent condition. The supply of the nicer coins is small, so they are much more valuable.
On the demand side, popularity has a lot to do with it. For example, US coins in general sell for more than coins of some other countries because there are more people collecting them. A rare coin from some obscure nation might sell for much less than a relatively common US coin, just because few people are interested in it.
Contrary to popular opinion, age has nothing to do with it. There are a lot of 2000-year-old coins that can be had for a few dollars each.
There are a few US coins (e.g. the 1804 silver dollar) that have sold for over a million dollars. The most expensive coin ever sold was the 1933 $20 gold piece for $7.5 million, of which there is only one legally held in private hands.
Main purpose of this article is to give you an insight on the topic and guide you further into understanding everything related to this subject.
If you are interested in American history, as a coin collector there is a great deal of American coins to be found. There is a great amount of information about American coins. Finding this material is probably the best way to understand what types of American coins are good to have in your coin collection.
Above all the best resource to find good data about American coins is surely the internet. You will find a great quantity of pages about different American coins, you will find information about what sort of condition your American coins must be in to be considered as being valuable. In addition to that you can also find information about the kind of coins that were used in the civil war and pre-civil war times. These types of American coins are rare but they come on the coin market once in a while. Being informed about those types of coins will help you identify them if you come across them.
While this is true these American coins are not the only one that are considered as being good to have in your collection. Here is just a small sample of coins you could be concerned about:
- Dime piece (issued almost at the very beginning of the formation of the United-States)
- American coins with unusual face designs
- American Coins with small mistakes on them
- And many more
Sometimes, the errors you find on coins including American coins are what make them unequalled for coin collectors. Gather as much Information as possible about coin grading. This will help you greatly when you start seriously collecting coins. Since there is a great amount of American coins you can buy the information you have gathered will help you distinguish the characteristics that are the hallmark of valuable coins.
Small hint!
You may want to have coin folders for all of the American coins in your collection. This will help you see the various changes that have occurred to these different denominations. You can also categorize them by period of time. For instance as Kennedy coins are within reason hard to find you may want to see what other coins from that period of time have as unusual histories.
Soon you may discover that American coins are a testament to the history that as passed us by without our even knowing.
I hope that the information above was useful to you. Cheers and thank you for reading.
Frederic Madore
http://www.articlesbase.com/ecommerce-articles/american-coins-which-one-should-you-collect-96765.html
Key Coin: A coin that is among the toughest and Most Expensive to obtain within a series. In the Lincoln Cent series, for example, the 1909-S VDB would be considered the key, as would the 1914-D and often the 1922-Plain. A coin somewhat lesser in stature but still among the tougher in a series to collect is called a semi-key; the 1909-S and 1931-S fulfill this role within the Lincoln Cent series for many collectors.
The Concept of “Key” may also apply to the Type or Purpose of the coin collection, rather than the individual coin. For example, if a collector is putting together a collection of Walking Liberty Half Dollars, without regard to the Condition of the coins, then the “keys” are the 1921, 1921-D, and 1916-S.
But if the Collector is putting together the same set in Gem BU Condition, the 1919-D and 1921-S would be considered the “keys” and the 1916-S likely would not. Also Key Date may be a replaceable term.
Certain Sellers use the term “Key Date” to generate interest in a coin, whose date may be “Key”, however, the condition of the coin is usually less than desirable. Pay Attention!
Have fun collecting your Perfect Coins!
– Robert L Taylor, JD
Copyright © 2006
Robert L Taylor, Jd
http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/what-is-key-when-collecting-coins-72435.html
Does anyone know of movies that have something about coin collecting in them? Just curious.
Thank you!
Dennis the Menace (with Walter Matthau)
Throw Momma from the Train
American Buffalo
MacGuffin
Drag Me to Hell
Rare Coins Available For The Coin Collector
All coin collectors enjoy searching for rare coins to add to their collection, and the rarer they are, the more valuable they become.
A List Of Rare Coins
Gold coins are extremely rare – they were in circulation till 1933, so they can fetch a very high value at an auction. Gold is always worth investing in as the value is on the upward trend – it never goes down.
The Liberty Seated Dollar which was produced in the 19th century is something a coin collector would like to acquire as it is a rare find.
Another coin that is worth keeping is the 20c coins which came out from 1875-1878 They resemble a quarter and today’s value is extremely low.
From 1892-1915, the Barber Half Dollars were minted, but collectors find it difficult to come across any of these coins that are in very good shape.
The One Standing Liberty Quarter minted in 1917 is a coin that a collector would like to own, but the design showed the breast of Ms.Liberty, and it caused a controversy so the circulation was stopped – it had only been around for a year.
In the 20th century there were Mercury Dimes which were sold for $50/- each.
Another coin of great beauty is The Walking Liberty Half Dollar. This had a four year circulation and is one of the rarest coins.
Coming to the Texas Commemorative Half Dollar – this is also extremely rare and very difficult to find as there are only 60 – 80% around.
One of the most expensive coins is the $20/- Saint Gauders. This was auctioned for 8 million dollars. It has a fabulous design and its value has remained intact even during the bear years in the eighties.
It is extremely difficult to get rare coins and the coin collector needs to spend a great deal of time on research by reading magazines or going on the Web for information. He can also go to auctions or join clubs where members may be willing to exchange or sell coins. After the research, he will need to examine the coins for authenticity and check that the quality is good and the price he is paying is worth the item he is buying. A great deal of his time and expense will be spent on finding the right coin, especially if it is a very rare one. If he has the money to invest in this hobby, it is worth all the time and effort if he can get the rarest of coins and add it to his collection, because he knows that in the long run his coins will be worth a small fortune.
Abhishek Agarwal
http://www.articlesbase.com/collecting-articles/collecting-rare-coins-some-exciting-tips-for-collectors-739717.html
I am looking for some free coin collecting supplies like cases and gloves or magnifiers and whatnot. Anyone know where i can find some?? Thanks!!!
Look on ebay.com or on amazon.com.
They have nearly everything.
Greetings The Freak