1856 flying eagle cent in hand

laurentyvan

On Friday, (my normal coin shop day) my dealer smiled when I came in, reached under the counter and handed me an envelope. What popped out was an 1856 flying eagle cent in MS61-62 (he hadn't graded it yet). I almost fell off the stool-it was gorgeous, all original, lightly toned, sharp strike. Another envelope contained a 1909S VDB lincoln penny. Now, this is the little old lady story:
her husband had died, and for weeks she had been bringing in mostly modern stuff from the estate, rather more of an accumulation than a collection, and the stuff she thought was worth big money, wasn't. Almost as an afterthought she brought in an old envelope with a number of loose coins; in the envelope, clinking and clanking together-among them the two coins I mentioned. The 1856 was problem free, the 1909S VDB had a couple of fresh contact marks in the fields, no doubt from her recent activities. I asked the dealer if she knew what she had and he replied she didn't. I asked if he was fair with her and he replied he had been. Knowing him, he probably was. I asked for their price (not being serious) and he said they were going to ask $10,000 for the flying eagle. It was nice to have one in hand, even for a brief moment.

jonesy

I hope he paid fair value. People who get great deals often relish at getting them as cheap as possible. I was watching an antique show on KET one sunday. The Host was talking to a husband and wife antique dealer team. They focused on some rare china plates in their posession. The wife said they were in pennsylvania at some country shop when she spotted some kind of steamer plate on the shelf. This was a dinner plate that was made for a steamer ship. Can't remember the name. Anyway she said the shop owner wanted twenty dollars for it. Said she knew it was worth $300.00, so they "jewed her down to $10.00". I immediatly despised them both.