I'd like to speak to Anaconda please

Singapore

Had to start a new post here as (and I believe others may agree with me) the snake pictures were starting to freak me out.

On the Gem Wreath Cent I have a few questions:

What was the hammer?
Aren't you just a tiny, tiny bit tempted to lie to your wife, hide it in your night stand and keep it?
If you own the thing for 6 hours befpore selling it do you still get to put your name on the historical pedigree, or are you some minor footnote in the coins history?

Good on 'ya for getting that one -

DesertLizard

Here's a gem wreath for you, except it's not under my pillow!

gmarguli

If you own the thing for 6 hours befpore selling it do you still get to put your name on the historical pedigree, or are you some minor footnote in the coins history?

In my opinion, a footnote at best. Many rarities are "owned by dealers" for short periods of time, yet I rarely see them listed in the pedigree. Sometimes it will mention, "sold to dealer X, who placed it in a New England collection" or something like that.

relayer

are "owned by dealers"

Even though he sells thousands and thousands of dollars in coins, I don't think Anaconda counts as a dealer.

To me he seems more like a high end collector (with a fluid collection) IMHO.

Sunnywood

Get serious !! Adrian is a dealer !! D - E - A - L - E - R !!!

But that doesn't mean he's a bad guy
There are some dealers I really like !!!!

Sunnywood

Outhaul

The Snake is jake

relayer

Dealer is such a harsh term.

To me a dealer is someone who makes a living buying and selling, and Adrian is a pain/injury/money guy who appreciates nice coins, even though he likes to get paid for the time he spent apperciating them when it's time to sell.

BTW: Singapore - do you have an appointment?

braddick

Primary source of income: Dealer.
Secondary source/ or funds raised to buy MORE coins you like: Passionate Collector.

I would think Adrian more closely resembles the second catagory- but only his accountant knows for sure.

ANACONDA

Hey Singapore - man, those are some really good comments and questions. I'm at work, gonna get into my Suburban, (made in America) think about how to answer them and how i'm gonna try to get my name on that provenance of that wreath cent and give you a well thought out answer later this evening.

adrian

Oh, the hammer was 80K (plus 15% buyer's premium).

ANACONDA

Singapore asked

"Aren't you just a tiny, tiny bit tempted to lie to your wife, hide it in your night stand and keep it?"

The problem is that my wife is also a lawyer and when she sees anything out of the ordinary she starts in with one of those friendly
inquisitive conversations that ends up with me pausing and taking long drinks to think up answers which eventually leads to me
looking like I'm dishonest when all I really am is an exuberant teenager trapped in someone else's body.

So, yes, i bought the coin on Monday (i think it was Monday) and didn't tell her until after my agent had sold it for me ...."Hey honey.....i
have a confession to make but i also have some goods news....." She was not happy but i think the margin medicated her mood, to
some degree. She has a tendency to readily forgive but only after a full confession is rendered and forgiveness is humbly requested.
(and my humble muscles are somewhat under developed but life gives them a work out fairly regularly.....)

Singapore

Interesting area of the coin biz for me is this kind of material -

It almost seems that you could pay virtually any amount of money for the gem Wreath Cent or other similarly phenomenal coins of other types and still be assured of selling them for a profit, in some cases just 11 minutes after you acquire them.

Did you have a limit in mind when you were bidding or did you just figure you'd buy it for whatever and know someone, somewhere would want it?

ANACONDA

I told my guy that i would pay up to 80K plus the juice for the coin. That's exactly what the coin sold for. (Strange, eh? )

I think the coin sold incredibly cheaply - one of the few guides to list a Wreath cent in 65 is Trends which lists it at 185,000, if memory serves me correctly.

I think i could have gotton more for it if i would have held out for more but......

(Pricing is one of those things that i (and i assume others, too) often have trouble with. Ya' know, do you flip everything for 5% or hold out for more.....do you sell everything old at a discount or add to it to show the market that waiting around for cheaper prices on your material isn't a good idea, etc.)

....i really like my agent (a/k/a friend, buddy) and being able to include him in the fast resale of a wickedly cool coin is actually part of what went through my head, as well as having a little sugar to put on my impending confession to my wife, as well as carrying through on my goals which is to act like a dealer as opposed to a collector (try to make money as a goal over amassing a cool assemblage)