How many collectors of world coins are there for every collector of US coins?

ANACONDA

How many collectors of world coins are there for every collector of US coins? Just looking for opinions here.

coinkat

you might just be surprised...

JamesMurray

When we look at the leading publications in numismatics such as Krause and Spinks it illustrates how widely the hobby is spread. I have numismatic material ( books ) pre dating the civil war so it's not a new thing.

I think people have always collected coins worldwide , i don't see how else the stunning examples survive to this day. The big difference i see having spent 50% of my life or more overseas is that collectors are more likely to be part of a social type club than an anonymous forum.Even now the majority of friends in the UK don't frequent forums although i see there is no shortage of them.Very few are even close to active , but the collectors are out there.

llafoe

I go both ways!

Ask the question in another forum so I can answer there too!

ANACONDA

<< <i>I go both ways!

Ask the question in another forum so I can answer there too! >>


You are funny.



Yes, I was just beginning to realize how many collectors there are of world coins as my facebook page suggested friends......seems to be an unlimed supply of world coin collectors, way, WAY more than collectors of US coins. I think too, your buck goes a lot further when buying world coins.

I take it I am safe in assuming that the more developed a nation is, the more likely there is to be an active collector base?

By the way, anyone interested in sending me an invite on facebook, please do so:

link to Adrian Crane's (anaconda's) facebook page

WWW

Billions and billions!

JCMhouston

I would guess there are perhaps 10-100 times as many collectors of world coins as US, I realize that is a wide and wild guess but China alone has a huge number of newly made middle class who collect only China. Europe has a reasonably large collector base also. The hobby is perhaps not as "developed" as the US market with everything being slabbed, and well developed buy/sell spreads on common coins, but it is none the less very large.

BillyKingsley

People in Europe have been collecting coins since LONG before the Europeans discoverered America. I believe I read that the first documented coin collector was Augustus, the first Roman emporer! Surely he was not the first, just the first that a record of collecting has survived.

I think there are two reasons that the US section has a lot more action:
#1 this is mainly a US based forum, run by a US company that caters to US interests (IE, coins).
#2 world coin collectors aren't as fanatic over slabbing as US collectors are, therefore, don't feel the need to to join a forum run by slabbers.

It also seems to me like world coin collectors are more likely to be in it for the love of the hobby, where many US coin collectors are in it for the love of profits.

JamesMurray

Your last point rings true Bill , in all my time in the UK it was an unspoken agreement , people didn't ask about prices or values , it was all about the coins themselfs.I think all your points are valid but that one stands out.
I'll never forget the beautiful mahogany built cabinets and gentlemans club feeling when among collectors there.Theres too much slab just to flip nonsense in the US for my tastes to be interested in seriously collecting US.

OzzyAndy

I think another reason we may not notice it here is because we speak English. I'd imagine that most collectors of mainland European coins would converse in a language other than English and as a result we don't hear most of what goes on. I personally collect German coins but don't read German, would love to be able to as there is a wealth of reading on the subject that would be too time consuming to translate.
Andrew

Hussulo

There's certainly many more World coin collectors then US coin collectors.

However US coins tend to bring in the bigger money. This could be due to reasons like:
Investors
Grade/price Inflation, Slabification (I mean paying huge premiums for +1 point on a slab, when in reality there might not be much of a difference between that coin and the next coin down).
The lack of coins - due to the fact that the date of US coins only goes back a couple of hundred years.
etc..

Don't get me wrong, some World coins like Chinese and Russian, to some extend British have been gaining huge momentum.

I do like US coins, but you can buy much more rarity, history etc for your money in World coins.

Take for instance this coin:



1799 George III, gilt, proof farting. Current value probably £400-£500 ($635-$795).

I don't think you could find an equivalent US coin for that price.

Hus

P.S. I'm already on your facebook account as CoinsGB.

questor54

Part of the problem is in the definition of 'coin collector' of course. And then there are the differences in collecting habits. I would guess that most world collectors are 'type' rather than 'series' collectors - the notion of 'completeness' that is important to US collectors simply does not seem to exist for many world collectors.

Completeness mania in the US (driven for the average collector by the early availability of inexpensive coin boards, folders and albums) has extended to some world series, such as Canadian and Australian. Having said that, the US focus on completeness has led to some remarkable research being done in minor varieties (think VAMs for Morgan dollars) and very detailed analysis of market population and grading. Third party coin certification is an outgrowth of this.

I collect, in a casual way, US coins, world coins and ancient coins (among other things). I have all of my collections graded and 'slabbed' if they can be. I do this primarily for the protection and preservation of the object.

There have been coin collectors for as long as there have been coins. After all, this used to be called The Hobby Of Kings. Now it is the hobby of silly colorized coins and circulation finds.