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Particularization - interesting coin term i was reading about today.
fc
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the website where i found it...
A great term (and a real mouthful) borrowed from The Rare Art Traditions by Joseph Alsop. In any advanced collecting field the market participants (collectors, investors, speculators, dealers) tend to break down their field into finer and finer categories or compartments. As prices advance, as money flows into the market, the players develop ingenious ways to make ever finer distinctions in rarity, grade, or desirability, and, therefore, in value; in short, they particularize their objects. With coins this is done through a number of contrivances. For instance: (1) separating coins by dates and mints of issue; (2) going after low mintage pieces; (3) multiplying the number of grade categories; (4) isolating toning from brilliance; (5) prooflike surface from luster; (6) determining provenance or pedigree; (7) population or census numbers, as in low pop versus high pop; (8) Condition Census; (9) die varieties; (10) die states within die varieties; (11) Finest Known and tied for Finest Known; (12) rarity ratings [1 through 8]. Then we have: (13) so-called Premium Quality versus average quality; (14) split grades; (15) minor variances such as, open 3 versus closed 3, or micro- mintmark versus regular mintmark, or tall date versus medium date versus small date, or large letters versus medium letters versus small letters--and to put an end to it: (16) full strike versus average strike, with examples including full head, hair, nose, lips, horn, tail, bands, diamonds, claw(s), wreath, date, mintmark, skirt lines, bell lines, steps, toes, shield, rivets, rims, stars, clasp, denticles, centers, breast feathers, LIBERTY. And any combination of the above--the list is almost endless!
Does anyone think this is a natural progression of the hobby or
was it foisted upon us by dealers OR collectors OR both?
I think it was all understood by savy collectors/dealers but who
felt the need to Particularization the hobby?
thanks for any comments or your thoughts on this topic.
A great term (and a real mouthful) borrowed from The Rare Art Traditions by Joseph Alsop. In any advanced collecting field the market participants (collectors, investors, speculators, dealers) tend to break down their field into finer and finer categories or compartments. As prices advance, as money flows into the market, the players develop ingenious ways to make ever finer distinctions in rarity, grade, or desirability, and, therefore, in value; in short, they particularize their objects. With coins this is done through a number of contrivances. For instance: (1) separating coins by dates and mints of issue; (2) going after low mintage pieces; (3) multiplying the number of grade categories; (4) isolating toning from brilliance; (5) prooflike surface from luster; (6) determining provenance or pedigree; (7) population or census numbers, as in low pop versus high pop; (8) Condition Census; (9) die varieties; (10) die states within die varieties; (11) Finest Known and tied for Finest Known; (12) rarity ratings [1 through 8]. Then we have: (13) so-called Premium Quality versus average quality; (14) split grades; (15) minor variances such as, open 3 versus closed 3, or micro- mintmark versus regular mintmark, or tall date versus medium date versus small date, or large letters versus medium letters versus small letters--and to put an end to it: (16) full strike versus average strike, with examples including full head, hair, nose, lips, horn, tail, bands, diamonds, claw(s), wreath, date, mintmark, skirt lines, bell lines, steps, toes, shield, rivets, rims, stars, clasp, denticles, centers, breast feathers, LIBERTY. And any combination of the above--the list is almost endless!
Does anyone think this is a natural progression of the hobby or
was it foisted upon us by dealers OR collectors OR both?
I think it was all understood by savy collectors/dealers but who
felt the need to Particularization the hobby?
thanks for any comments or your thoughts on this topic.
0
Comments
These days, we know that some of these "common" dates are very uncommon in high grades. So what some dealers and advanced collectors may have known "anecdotally" in the '50s and '60s (from experience but without evidence) is now established as fact, in many cases, with pop reports and databases tracking auction appearances.
We also have catalogued many varieties for each issue of many coin series. And finally, we have much more granular grading today with the TPGs than in the days of adjectival grading and one column for "Unc." in the price sheets.
Online imaging technology has also increased the ante for quality coins. People used to buy coins from mail-order dealers without knowing what the coin they would receive looks like. These days we all expect an image and pass on the schlock...increasing the differentiation between quality and said schlock.
Bottom line is, what we're seeing today is an inevitable result of the explosion in available information about most coins.
The US mint decision in 1932 to stop making short mint runs probably propelled it greatly. Without
rare dates collectors are forced to look elsewhere for rarity.
<< <i>For instance: (1) separating coins by dates and mints of issue; (2) going after low mintage pieces; (3) multiplying the number of grade categories; (4) isolating toning from brilliance; (5) prooflike surface from luster; (6) determining provenance or pedigree; (7) population or census numbers, as in low pop versus high pop; (8) Condition Census; (9) die varieties; (10) die states within die varieties; (11) Finest Known and tied for Finest Known; (12) rarity ratings [1 through 8]. Then we have: (13) so-called Premium Quality versus average quality; (14) split grades; (15) minor variances such as, open 3 versus closed 3, or micro- mintmark versus regular mintmark, or tall date versus medium date versus small date, or large letters versus medium letters versus small letters--and to put an end to it: (16) full strike versus average strike, with examples including full head, hair, nose, lips, horn, tail, bands, diamonds, claw(s), wreath, date, mintmark, skirt lines, bell lines, steps, toes, shield, rivets, rims, stars, clasp, denticles, centers, breast feathers, LIBERTY. And any combination of the above--the list is almost endless! >>
Who says coin collectors have OCD?
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