50's proof envelopes(sealed or unsealed)..that's the question??
resfranklin
Posts: 2
Many dealers claim that the proof packs that they are selling are unopened. That may be true at the time of my purchase, but are there any characteristics an envelope will exhibit that would indicate that may have not be the case in past???
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#10 - Original 1957 Proof Set's brown envelope says "Made in Hong Kong" on reverse
#9 - 1955 Proof set contains a 1963 Franklin
#8 - Coins from 1951 set are wrapped in newsprint with headlines from 2004
#7 - Side seam on the plastic baggy holding the Franklin is split open due to 'friction'
#6 - Dealer guarantees that the unopened 1956 Proof Set contains a Type 1 Franklin
#5 - You have bought 1000 sets from your friendly EBayer and have yet to find any coin above PR65
#4 - Your unopened sets all come from a perpetual estate sale in Savannah
#3 - 1960 coins in plastic sleeve are upside down and backwards in the envelope
#2 - Stapled baggy for 1950 proof set is made of high tech plastic developed in 1990
And the #1 reason to suspect that the set has had the tamper eveident seal broken --
#1 - Dealer refuses to submit DNA for match with saliva on sealed set
Link to 1950 - 1964 Proof Registry Set
1938 - 1964 Proof Jeffersons w/ Varieties
envelope are original or picked over (or even what they were picked over for).
If the sets are resealed then it's a safe bet that frosted coins were removed.
Opened sets are sometimes the cream of larger quantities so don't simply ig-
nore them.
There are increasing numbers of replica and counterfeit envelopes and even
good envelopes can be opened and resealed so the clues from this source can
be misleading.
One of the best clues to originality for these early proof sets is their distribution.
If someone is selling only thirty sets of a specific date then there is a good pro-
bability that they are from a single source and such sets are usually cherry picked.
Original buyers tended to buy one or two sets each year and it tended to gener-
ally increase gradually over a several year period before a rapid taper off or an
abrupt halt. When you see this then the sets are very likely to all be original.
Also look for signs that the original purchaser was a coin collector rather than a
speculator. Watch for original shipping material and flyers or mint ads for the
sets from the time of issue. Watch for envelopes with a little travel on them but
be suspicious if they look fresh especially if they don't have imprints of the coins
showing. Watch for sets that are for sale with lots of other disparate material. If
a person is selling only proof and mint sets then they are more likely to be picked
over. Faded or discolored envelopes can be a good sign but be careful since the
coins might be damaged.
Where sets are found can be one the most important clues. Most original sets flow
onto the market from the original buyer or perhaps years later from an heir. These
have a tendency to be sold to local dealers and then passed along on the wholesale
market unless the local dealer has a specific customer for them.
Avoid sets with ratty envelopes, with unusual distribution, from most big sellers,
from large retailers, with perfect envelopes, and with missing envelopes.
Box of 20
On Ebay,look at the pix and form an opinion.
Does the envelope look fresh ? most are wrinkled on the corners.
I have bought many "sealed" sets on there and steamed them open to find crap,lots of repro envelopes out there.
I think for the most part they have been searched.
I did buy 4 56 sets that were opened and contained 4 type 1 frankies that graded 65-66-66-67
Proof