1st coin that you actually payed money for

ColinCMR

So, many of my first coins came from family and family friends when i was a child, or i found them one way or another, occasional British pennies could be found inside the couches we had (no joke) and i'm pretty sure i found a stamp in there.

i actually don't remember the first coin that i payed for, but it was years after all those freebies

what was the first (or really early) coin that you actually paid for?

The one freebie someone gave me that i really liked was a 1970 New Zealand dollar, with Mt Cook on it
example on ebay

At another time the same individual gave my brother a 25 ore from Denmark and I remember thinking it was crazytown because of the hole. Totally transcended my norms of specie. I guess the NZ one did too because of its size.

harasha

When I was very young, maybe about 5 years old, I used to go with my father and brother to visit the paternal grandmother in the Bronx. There was a coin & stamp store on the Grand Concourse which my brother liked to visit. On one visit, I might have had some change in my pocket and my father allowed me to purchase one of those crown size 5 Francs from about 1933.
I also remember taking a pen to outline the head of Marianne and I stuck the coin to something with a piece of scotch tape. I think I still have that coin somewhere. I even may have colored it with a blue magic marker. Clearly, this was a prized possession!

As I got older and more serious about coins, I used to collect Lincoln pennies. The nearest coin store was a bicycle ride down to Merrick;
J & J Coins, I believe. I was fascinated by some Roman coins that were on display. When finally I got up enough nerve to ask the price, I discovered that they were cheaper than the pennies that I purchased.

So, my first serious darkside purchase; an antoninianus of Gordian III for about $3.50. (Dating myself, huh?).

RedTiger

First U.S. coin was a 1955-S cent, for 55 cents at a local coin shop.

First foreign coin was a Bahamas $2 coin from the Franklin mint. Cost $3.50 mail order.

BigAlan

UNC 50-D Jefferson. It is worth about 1/2 now what I paid then. I should have learned.

theboz11

A 2 1/2 Liberty US coin. I may still have it, if I can remember the date Actually got paid with the coin for work done, it was part of the agreement.

BillyKingsley

I can't recall the first, it was sometime in 1995. (I was 11, unless it was before October 18th, which is my birthday, then I would have been 10). Most of my early coins my dad brought home from work (he was a bus mechanic on buses that served NYC-he found all kinds of cool stuff left in the seats, which he brought home) One of the earliest I remember getting was a 1/2 Franc from 1964 from France.

Around that same time period, in the Danbury Mall in Conneticut, they had a Science store that had coins in giant tubs. I think you scooped them out ala Jelly Beans. I got what seemed like a lot at the time, probably about 25. The price was I think 10 cents each. I sure wish I had gotten more of them, and I REALLY wish the store was still in buisness so I could get more that way! I know I have two from Estonia, one from Zambia, and others that came from there. At the time my mom didn't want me to buy a lot of them, which I still can't figure out. She thinks it's stupid to buy money I guess. Still does, in fact.

I can't recall the first US coins I bought. I can't remember where I got a lot of my early ones, and some of them are actually pretty good, like a 1865 Three cent piece and two Walking Liberty Half dollars. I know that around 1994-95 there was a little shop in Kingston NY called Kingston Coin that also carried NASCAR Diecast. That then as now is my #1 hobby and I bought a few from him. I don't know anymore what I bought, but I know he gave me a 1853 Dime that is almost worn smooth. I wasn't even aware what year it was until earlier this year, when I really got into coins, and purchased a Red Book and found out that in 53 it had arrows, and there clearly were arrows on mine, althought they are mostly worn smooth now.

olmanjon

First bought coin was actually a set. 1961 Proof set. I think it was $2.10. Still have it after 47 years.
Olmanjon

zeebob

First coin was a US coin -

SaorAlba

No pics, but I bought an 1878-S Morgan in BU when I was a kid, it was expensive for the time, something like $4! I still have it, but it is in the bank I think.

SYRACUSIAN

Not the first one I've spent money on, but the first one I've spent over $10 to purchase it. Back in 1992-93, I was determined to buy a three coin commem silver set, with big shiny silver coins and a nice blue velvet case, for around $100 at the time. The dealer however, insisted that I buy this 1930 10 drachmas instead, for the same price, and he patiently explained to me that the set I was after was a readily available very common modern NCLT set that I could buy at any given day, contrarily to this rare in MS grades .500 silver coin. I followed the advice and bought it.

A few years later, I've sent it to Anacs where it graded MS62 and it still resides in that holder. But the best part is that I have yet to locate a better one of this one year type coin, notorious for the hundreds of near mint state AU58s that have been submitted, a few of which by yours truly. The scratch on the cheek is slightly exaggerated in the photo.

Its value in MS62 is now about 8-9 times what I paid back then. As for the 3 coin NCLT set,(that I never bought), minted in 1981, it's still readily available and it now trades slightly below bullion value,at around $30.