Modern Bashers: What would it take for you to start collecting moderns?
MrEureka
Posts: 24,419 ✭✭✭✭✭
Would you collect moderns if 99% of them were melted overnight and they immediately became that much rarer?
Would you collect moderns if classics became too expensive to collect?
Would you collect moderns if their premiums (over face) dropped 90% overnight?
What would it take for you to start collecting moderns? Or are moderns just plain worthless?
Would you collect moderns if classics became too expensive to collect?
Would you collect moderns if their premiums (over face) dropped 90% overnight?
What would it take for you to start collecting moderns? Or are moderns just plain worthless?
Andy Lustig
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
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Liberty: Parent of Science & Industry
Russ, NCNE
Tokens.
Baseball cards.
No. Beanie Babies. Yea, that's the ticket.
Seriously in all fairness, there are only a very few people still eligible to answer this question.
For some time now, I've been researching the 1964 "special mint set" coins, and have spoken to a good many people who have been involved with these coins. Although there are many rumors surrounding their purpose, the number minted, and there whereabouts, I know much more than I once did as a result of my study.
About a year ago, I contacted a librarian at the National Archives, and asked about any reference to these coins in the 1964 mint director's journal. The box containing the records was in storage in the Philadelphia warehouse. Unfortunately, there was no reference to the coins. I learned that many of the internal memos that might pertain to these coins were probably destroyed by former mint director Ms Haskell-Sims. An interesting aside is that many of the mint records thought to have been destroyed by her directive were instead recovered by a paper recycler who recognized their significance because of several documents with signatures of past presidents. I understand Julian has some familiarity with the coin dealer who acquired the records, but I haven't had an opportunity to persue that avenue yet. Having reached a dead-end on the official record front, I decided to persue the coins pedigree.
The first mention of them was at auction in the early 90's. I spoke at length with the gentleman who acquired the sets. There were 10. They were consigned by Lester Merkin, retired big band entertainer and renowned numismatist. For the unfamiliar, one of Mr.Merkin's discovery coins was a 1922 proof Peace dollar. I have the auction catalog with his estate listing. Fascinating read.
My research has been a fully educational experience. I've gotten to correspond with a good number of great numismatists, ask lots of dumb questions, and learn about coins for which no research has been written. It has been great fun. My study is ongoing, and when complete, I'll post the rest of my work.
and it sets us apart from practitioners and consultants. Gregor
You don't even have to sell them Russ. Just say you did.
That's what I do. Frankies bite!!!!
We'll use our hands and hearts and if we must we'll use our heads.
<< <i>What would it take for you to start collecting moderns? >>
........about a hundred years or so.
One of the SMS Kennedies just sold for around $10,000 at the Baltimore Heritage sale (NGC-MS69). One of the problems with the coins is the lack of unique diagnostics IMHO. I once submitted a bulk lot of 1964 Wash quarters from some rolls I went through and (4) coins came back PCGS-MS66 SMS. I gave them back to Rick M. to correct. Who knows - maybe there were (4) in circulation, which I then sold for $20/coin with the corrected holders
Wondercoin
Les
As Emily Litella (of Saturday Night Live fame) would have said -- "Never Mind"...
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
Then I would enjoy collecting moderns.
Tom
When I was a kid we'd subcscribe to their coin & medal programs, but I always thought that they were over-priced at their issue prices; and I only cared for the precious metal (gold & silver) issues.
Now I find that many of them are available on the secondary market for melt or near melt value. At those prices, I think that they are kind of fun to collect -- but accumulating alot of them can get bulky and take up lots of space...
It would be interesting to know which of these issues have a high secondary colelctor market value in case I find some scarce ones being liquidated at my local coin shop.
Are there any online reference guides or price lists available for them? Thanks in advance for your reply.
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
Other than Krause's world coin catalogs, I'm not aware of any price guides for FM coins.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
by the time the P mints get circulated out to the west coast, they will probably be EF/AU
Liberty: Parent of Science & Industry
If it could be conclusively demonstrated that they were minted before 1792 (the creation of the Federal mint) and in one of the 14 original states (yea, gotta include Vermont).
Two Moderns from my collection:
NGC MS-67 2000-P Sac
PCGS PR-69 1995-W $25
<< <i>What would it take for you to start collecting moderns? >>
A really good bottle of scotch??
“It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so.” Mark Twain
Newmismatist
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
Oh wait! I already did that.
Russ, NCNE
Stuart
Collect 18th & 19th Century US Type Coins, Silver Dollars, $20 Gold Double Eagles and World Crowns & Talers with High Eye Appeal
"Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity"
You don't have to ask me twice!
Russ, NCNE
If 99% of the moderns were melted or if the prices dropped 90% almost everyone would jump on the bandwagon imo. I think that so many collectors were burnt buying modern commems from the mint (1982- 1993) that they will never forget what happened. Pain like that is hard to forget.
(1)dropped all the dead presidents and "politically correct" designs and went back to attractive portrayals of Miss Liberty
(2)went back to gold and silver in the majority of our circulating coins, with a cent that's mostly copper and dimes, halves, and quarters that AREN'T mostly copper! (made of mostly silver instead)
(3) go back to "regular" relief designs instead of the lowered relief coins that have been made for about the last 30 years (and since about 1990, the relief has been especially low).