Are modern commemoratives actually coins ? or just commemorative medals shaped like coins?
barberlover
Posts: 2,228 ✭✭
Please, don't get the wrong idea, this is not a slam against moderns collectors. I am asking out of curiousity because i really don't know. For me, part of the allure of collecting circulating or proof issues of circulating coins was they have legal tender statues as u. s. coins. I beleave even the old commemorative silver halves and gold comemoatives of various denominations have legal tendar status as u.s. coins even though few people actually circulated them because they had to pay a premium to buy them. Would love some book recomendations on moderns also because i always like to try to learn new asspects of the hobby,even when its not something i collect. thanks, barberlover
The President claims he didn't lie about taxes for those earning less then $250,000 a year with public mandated health insurance yet his own justice department has said they will use the right of the government to tax when the states appeals go to court.
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Russ, NCNE
If you only buy 1 commemorative, I would recommend the bi-metallic 2000 Library of Congress Proof . It's a gold and platinum beauty.
You could spend it at 7-11 for $10, but I doubt the clerk would accept it.
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Relayer, I'll give ya fifteen, and pay for shipping too!!!!
We'll use our hands and hearts and if we must we'll use our heads.
<< <i>If you only buy 1 commemorative, I would recommend the bi-metallic 2000 Library of Congress Proof . It's a gold and platinum beauty.
You could spend it at 7-11 for $10, but I doubt the clerk would accept it. >>
Hard to say who the dumber party would be in that transaction!
Joe
Thanks
of good metal. They are underweight or not the metal marked. I've seen lots
of these and some appear to be good and some not.
It is up to each collector to decide what is a real coin and what isn't. There is
nothing wrong with collecting "coins" which were not made for circulation, but
one should know what he is collecting. The modern commems are coins in as
much as they are legal tender but like an 1804 dollar they were never intend-
ed to circulate. This has become a rather impressive set and many people are
attempting to put it together. To some extent this also applies to the modern
bullion coins. Some of these are made in small numbers and make an impressive
collection.
President, Racine Numismatic Society 2013-2014; Variety Resource Dimes; See 6/8/12 CDN for my article on Winged Liberty Dimes; Ebay
The Classic Commemoratives DID circulate which is why you find many in less than MS condition.
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<< <i>Modern commens are non circulating legal tender (NCLT's). They are created by the mint to sell directly to collectors and, due having a bullion value far in excess of face value, never will, or could, circulate. They trade only between the mint, collectors, investors and dealers with the grading services reaping profits by creating plastic holders and screwball grades for them. >>
The services grade these and attempt to separate them by their quality and value
just as they do with the classic NCLT issues like proof barbers or 1804 dollars or
any other myriad issues which have been struck with no intention of circulation. While
many moderns are made to circulate not all are. (Just like the classics which are also
graded and encased in plastic)
I was unaware that Proof Barbers and 1804 dollars had bullion values far in excess of their face values.
<< <i>I was unaware that Proof Barbers and 1804 dollars had bullion values far in excess of their face values. >>
What about base metal commemoratives? Aside from the Washington and Madison, all modern commemoratives half dollars are copper-nickel clad, just like circulating Kennedys. These don't have "bullion" values far in excess of their face values.
<< <i>Then they are not NCLT's. >>
Huh? Are you saying that coins like the 1995 and 1996 Olympic Half Dollars (cupro-nickel clad) circulate?
If you don't already have it the book to get is the 2003 redbook. There is a whole section devoted to commems. Thats how I larened about the Columbia, SC commem and many others too. Buying the redbook really sharpened my collecting skills. I was able to learn about the designers, reasons for production, oddities and many other facts. But the thing that I learn that was the most satisfing was the pricing. After I bought the redbook, I knew how to gauge the fair price of a coin and I could tell when I was over bidding. I can't recommend it enough, Its not just commems too you know. Valuable reference.
Dan
First Place Winner of the 2005 Rampage design contest!
NCLT. An NCLT merely needs to be denominated, legal tender, and not intended
to circulate. This term was coined recently primarily to describe issues from coun-
tries which were made primarily to capitalize on the coin collector market. It is not
a particularly good fit for any US coin regardless of the reason for manufacture or
it's metal value relative to it's face value. Most US commems were made primarily
to commemorate an event, place, or person and for the main part did not circulate.
1804 dollars and proof gold were not intended to circulate. Many of the coins minted
in the US were not intended to circulate. Collectors ask the grading services to grade
all these coins and put "screwball" grades on them. All these coins are available on
the market encapsulated and raw. The classic commems were generally not available
for face value. They were bullion issues available for sale by the mint at mark-ups com-
parable to the mark-ups on the modern commems and bullion issues.
It should also be remembered that the states quarters are commems and are available
at face value in pocket change or can be purchased with "screwball" grades just like
all the other classics and moderns.
"I think I am thinking of a law they had long ago...but I know it was a law at one point in time."
There is still a law that requires an eagle on coins with denonimations of 25 cents and higher. Someone correct me if I am wrong (memory) but I think the law covers circulating coins and not commems. That law can be amended to allow for exceptions, such as the bicentennial quarter, half, and dollar coins and the state quarters.
09/07/2006
No it isn't, is this a coin (it was produced by the US Mint and it's not a medal)?
coin - usually a piece of metal, marked with a device, issued by a governing authority, and intended to be used as money.
commemorative - a coin, note or medal issued to mark, honor or observe an anniversary, other event, place or person, or to preserve its memory.
definitions can be deduced by context, but this is not necessarily always possible. Coins
are generally round and metal, but obviously these are not defining characteristics since
Japan has issued coins made of fiber and many countries issue coins in highly irregular
shapes. Even Lincoln cents will be found crescent shaped because of a major clip, yet they
are still coins. Governments issue coins, but what about governments with no real stand-
ing such as the Hutt River Province. Are the coins issued by the German states actually
coins? Notgeld was issued by municipalities and other entities and was not always fully
redeemable. Tax tokens issued by the Missouri government in the 1930's were round metal
discs which circulated freely at face value. Were these coins? The secret service thought so
and forced Missouri and all the other states issuing these to stop doing so, but today they
are usually collected as tokens. Many items issued by the US mint with denominations never
were intended to and never did circulate.
Canada recently made a mule which was half medal and half coin. Trying to describe the
universe of "coins" with a few hard and fast definitions is impossible. I collect US and world
coins, tokens, and medals and many other "round" "metallic" "discs" which don't fit neatly
into any of these categories, and find many items which really fit right in between two or
three of them.