**UPDATE** I just tried to buy an ounce of silver for $262...and failed!!!
gecko109
Posts: 8,231 ✭
You guys were right.....silver is becoming difficult to aquire at any price!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=170254487802&ssPageName=STRK:MEDW:IT&ih=007
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=170254487802&ssPageName=STRK:MEDW:IT&ih=007
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So is that the key to the series?
Edited to correct that there are 15, NOT 16 silver proof 1 ounce pandas.
<< <i>Double Sealed...does that mean it's wrapt twice or is that like a seal that's stamped twice on the coin, which then makes it like a double die?? Hard to tell from photos. >>
This coin came from the China mint in an inner hard plastic capsule inside a soft mylar pouch, hence the term double sealed. It is presumed the capsule protects the piece from mechanical damage while the outer mylar pouch protects it from chemical attack, i.e. toning.
Is the only reason its expensive because its a limited edition???
WHen it first came out was it selling for silver price or do coins like that already have a high price due to collectiblability?
Many members on this forum that now it cannot fit in my signature. Please ask for entire list.
<< <i>Guys, was that a good price the person paid for those pandas???
Is the only reason its expensive because its a limited edition???
WHen it first came out was it selling for silver price or do coins like that already have a high price due to collectiblability? >>
I'd never pay it. Was it a good price? Hard to say, perhaps. Certainly a collecter piece, not standard bullion.
No, they came out at a stiff premium. Those are special proof limited editions with the box and such.
Regular Pandas like that sold for 50 cents to a dollar over spot. Back then you could have bought a regular one for $5 or less.
I have no idea of the issue price on that particular Panda edition, but my guess is that it was probably in the $40 - $50 range.
I like Pandas, both in gold and silver and have quite a few including proof gold, but they are nothing like that in their presentation. Double sealed is standard and they should have a small strip of paper included with Chinese characters on it inside the mylar. Same with the gold Pandas.
John Marnard Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, 1920, page 235ff
<< <i>Double Sealed...does that mean it's wrapt twice or is that like a seal that's stamped twice on the coin, which then makes it like a double die?? Hard to tell from photos. >>
Hermetically sealed! Kept in a mayonaisse jar on Funk & Wagnall's back porch SINCE NOON TODAY!
<< <i>Guys, was that a good price the person paid for those pandas???
Is the only reason its expensive because its a limited edition???
WHen it first came out was it selling for silver price or do coins like that already have a high price due to collectiblability? >>
"Good price" when speaking of gold and silver pandas is a very dangerous concept. For instance, the only actual publication that I know of that lists prices on these coins is the Krause catalog. It lists the 1996 proof as having a value of $75. However, like so many other world coin prices in Krause, this too is wrong. Actual sales are what need to be considered. Since this coin in the raw form sells for between $225 on the low end, and up to $300 on the high end, a raw piece such as the one in my OP seems reasonable at that price.
Is it only expensive because its a limited edition? In a nutshell, yes. The "rarity" (in this case just 8,000 pieces made) coupled with the ever increasing popularity of this series has really driven up prices recently. I was not collecting pandas when this particular coin debuted, yet I'd imagine its issue price to authorized distributors from the Chinese mint was most likely in the 2x -3x melt range. Meaning this coin most likely could have been ordered en mass at about $10-$15.
<< <i>
<< <i>Guys, was that a good price the person paid for those pandas???
Is the only reason its expensive because its a limited edition???
WHen it first came out was it selling for silver price or do coins like that already have a high price due to collectiblability? >>
"Good price" when speaking of gold and silver pandas is a very dangerous concept. For instance, the only actual publication that I know of that lists prices on these coins is the Krause catalog. It lists the 1996 proof as having a value of $75. However, like so many other world coin prices in Krause, this too is wrong. Actual sales are what need to be considered. Since this coin in the raw form sells for between $225 on the low end, and up to $300 on the high end, a raw piece such as the one in my OP seems reasonable at that price.
Is it only expensive because its a limited edition? In a nutshell, yes. The "rarity" (in this case just 8,000 pieces made) coupled with the ever increasing popularity of this series has really driven up prices recently. I was not collecting pandas when this particular coin debuted, yet I'd imagine its issue price to authorized distributors from the Chinese mint was most likely in the 2x -3x melt range. Meaning this coin most likely could have been ordered en mass at about $10-$15. >>
If you were in China, or if you were an authorized dealer and I don't think there was any such thing in the US back in '96. Thus my estimate of around $40-$50 retail in the states. That's what they were at around 2003 when I first saw them in a B&M shop. The bulk of that price was in shipping and such along with it being a limited edition.
John Marnard Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace, 1920, page 235ff
Many members on this forum that now it cannot fit in my signature. Please ask for entire list.
<< <i>Ah, but there is a twist to the story! I just contacted my California connection (another panda collector) who has offered me the same coin for $225. Needless to say, the check is in the mail!
It pays to have connections!