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When does a coin become "relevant"?

Relevant in terms of:
grade?
mintage?
population?

What I'm trying to get at with this question is: Other than extreme rarities or extremely common coins / banknotes, when does the grade no longer matter vs. when does it matter the most?

Comments

  • lonn47lonn47 Posts: 236 ✭✭✭

    well there are a lot of reasons alter surface, is oneway and cleaned coins i can go on on..

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 36,136 ✭✭✭✭✭

    A coin becomes relevant when it is spent.

  • Insider2Insider2 Posts: 14,452 ✭✭✭✭✭

    A coin becomes relevant if I want it.

  • TommyTypeTommyType Posts: 4,586 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Like beauty, it's in the eye of the beholder. Maybe, even dependent on the situation?

    See a slick, dateless Buffalo Nickel in a dealer case, and most collectors won't give it a second look. Completely irrelevant.
    Get the same coin in change at the local 7-11, and it's a great thrill! ;)

    Easily distracted Type Collector
  • BillDugan1959BillDugan1959 Posts: 3,821 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited September 24, 2019 11:53AM

    Relevancy is applied by the beholder of an object. An old coin has the most appeal to me when I can readily imagine it as an artifact of an important moment in history, or as a relic of an important nation/place/ruler/personage. After considering that, then preservation of the coin is further evaluated. After that, then I think of market factors. Market factors are not the first thought when totting-up "relevancy". But that is just my own modus operandi, and there are certainly others.

  • HJPHJP Posts: 423 ✭✭✭

    @BillDugan1959 said:
    Relevancy is applied by the beholder of an object. An old coin has the most appeal to me when I can readily imagine it as an artifact of an important moment in history, or as a relic of an important nation/place/ruler/personage. After considering that, then preservation of the coin is further evaluated. After that, then I think of market factors. Market factors are not the first thought when totting-up "relevancy". But that is just my own modus operandi, and there are certainly others.

    Wow, great insight into what matters!

  • HJPHJP Posts: 423 ✭✭✭

    @Insider2 said:
    A coin becomes relevant if I want it.

    1 reason - here we begin our quest-

    What role does a coins grade have in your world of relevance?

  • TommyTypeTommyType Posts: 4,586 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @HJP said:

    @Insider2 said:
    A coin becomes relevant if I want it.

    1 reason - here we begin our quest-

    What role does a coins grade have in your world of relevance?

    Not that you asked me...But it depends! There is not one answer.

    For me, a Bust Quarter in F-12 is a great coin for my collection....But a common date Walker in MS-65 works better for me.

    For someone with more money, or higher goals....They might not get interested in a Bust Quarter until it gets to uncirculated....and they have no interest in a Walker unless it's 68.

    Level of relevance changes for each level of collector.

    Easily distracted Type Collector
  • BroadstruckBroadstruck Posts: 30,497 ✭✭✭✭✭

    When getting ready to pay for some major home improvements.

    2 Dimes became relevant and paid for the whole job :)

    To Err Is Human.... To Collect Err's Is Just Too Much Darn Tootin Fun!
  • ctf_error_coinsctf_error_coins Posts: 15,433 ✭✭✭✭✭

    When more than one person wants that coin.

  • WCCWCC Posts: 2,859 ✭✭✭✭✭

    It is a combination of factors, not one.

    Most coins have attributes which result in a (very) low collector preference. The coin or series may be "popular" measured by the size of the collector base but most collectors only like it minimally or somewhat and buy it due to budget limitations. Some collectors seem to believe that some of these coins have good future financial prospects yet the preference overwhelmingly doesn't change.

    In absolutely numbers though in low proportion, there are many actually rare coins (mostly non-US). Most of these coins have nothing to distinguish it to most collectors, so the rarity does mean much of anything.

    Condition census coins seem to be in highest demand when it is one or near it and the immediate grade below it is (relatively) large.

    A noticeable proportion of the collector base don't seem to be interested in coins that are too easy to buy but they also aren't interested in collecting something that is too hard. An active thread covers the Barber half. By my standards, it's a common series (much easier than any series I have collected) but it's not that common and feasible to complete for a meaningful number.

  • hchcoinhchcoin Posts: 4,836 ✭✭✭✭✭

    When I opened this thread I thought you were referring to when does a coin or series go from being common, everyday coins to relevant as a more collectible item. For example, for most of us today, an Ike dollar or Kennedy half doesn't seem that relevant because they circulated in our lifetime and were very common. As older collectors pass away, will the coins they grew up with become more relevant to future generations? I'm sure my grandfather would laugh that I find buffalo nickels relevant if he were alive today. He was born in 1913.

    As coins are replaced with electronic means of payment, will they become more relevant to future generations as collectible items or will they totally lose interest because they never really used coins?

  • ZoinsZoins Posts: 34,401 ✭✭✭✭✭

    When does a coin become "relevant"?

    When it has a TrueView and is listed on CoinFacts o:)

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 36,136 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Zoins said:

    When does a coin become "relevant"?

    When it has a TrueView and is listed on CoinFacts o:)

    Fanboy...

    ;)

  • santinidollarsantinidollar Posts: 1,056 ✭✭✭✭✭

    You lost me

  • leothelyonleothelyon Posts: 8,483 ✭✭✭✭✭

    When no-one else has one.

    But there are some players with the JN series who wouldn't know coin relevance if it ran up and bit them on the arse. lol

    And here is a coin dated 1999 that has relevance........to me anyway.

    The more qualities observed in a coin, the more desirable that coin becomes!

    My Jefferson Nickel Collection

  • rickoricko Posts: 98,724 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Relevance, in numismatics, is both personal and general perception. It is personal when considering appearance, grade and area of interest. It is general in the market when considering rarity, grade, price and pedigree. As in many things, relevance is an intangible until specifics are applied...item, person, desire/need. Cheers, RickO

  • WCCWCC Posts: 2,859 ✭✭✭✭✭

    The internet has already or will in the future decrease or totally eliminate the "relevance" of most coins.

  • CatbertCatbert Posts: 7,571 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I nominate @HJP as our board philosopher!

    Seated Half Society member #38
    "Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"

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