Has anyone seen one of these before?

MorganMan94

I saw one of these on Ebay a few months ago at an insane price ($500) but haven't even seen another one like it. Did these get thrown away? I know a lot of Columbians were dumped into circulation but based off the amount sold at issue price these should be more common than they are. Has anyone seen these before on the market?
Note: This is not a WTB ad, I am just curious how common they are.

Coinstartled

Have not seen the holder before. Very cool.

Insider2

I have seen the holder before.

JBK

I have also seen one somewhere. I imagine they could be somewhat scarce, but they are out there.

ricko

I have not seen the holder before... Have seen many Columbian Halves... got several in change when I had my paper route as a kid. Cheers, RickO

TommyType

I wonder if the case is the source of the "too common to be coincidence" green toning on many of the halves? (Just thinking out loud....)

MWallace

I see these on eBay fairly regular. They always go in the $300-$500 range.
This is truly a case where you buy the holder, not the coin.

GotTheBug

.

Zoins

I haven't seen one before.

Do coins in these holders tone a particular way?

Insider2

Ed Kuszmar had three in his case at the Sarasota Show for a few hundred dollars.

BillJones

Yes, the holder is worth a lot more than the coin. I was not aware that Kuszmar's price was that low. It is marked for more.

Original commemative coin holders are interesting, but some of them are prohibitively rare or expensive. Sometimes the holder tones the coin in ways that are not attractive.

MorganMan94

@BillJones said:
Yes, the holder is worth a lot more than the coin. I was not aware that Kuszmar's price was that low. It is marked for more.

Original commemative coin holders are interesting, but some of them are prohibitively rare or expensive. Sometimes the holder tones the coin in ways that are not attractive.

Bill,
How many would you say you have seen?

BillJones

Maybe five or six covered by some minor differences, but since I have not gone out of my way looking for them, my observations are not worth that much. My gut tells me that they are scarce, but not super rare.

CaptHenway

Had nobody mentioned the prices these are bringing I would have guessed this to be a $50 item.
MOO

Treashunt

I saw one, probably 20 years ago at a local show.

Still a neat item

Kkathyl

I did see them at the Sarasota show as well.

BillJones

@CaptHenway said:
Had nobody mentioned the prices these are bringing I would have guessed this to be a $50 item.
MOO

If they were selling for $50 I would have bought one long ago. The prices I have seen have been more like $900 to $1,300 with a so-so coin included.

The original packaging for the "old" commemorative coins is a collector specialty. One of the most common pieces is the Lexington Commemorative Half Dollar wooden box. During my time as a collector, the prices for those have ranged from $25 to over $100. It’s probably more now since I have not looked for them in years. There is even a counterfeit Lexington box around to ensnare collectors.

Other original commemorative coin packages can sell for far more, but there are not a lot of dealers who stock them. It’s interesting to look at the pieces Anthony Swiatek brings to the major shows.

Zoins

Is there a website or a reference with all the different holders?

ldhair

I looked at one of these years ago. It just didn't look like it was a hundred plus years old. Maybe it was.

sellitstore

The Lexington boxes are likely more common because all (or at least many) were originally sold with this package.

The Columbian holder was probably just distributed through one seller, perhaps only at the fair itself, or might have been an additional optional purchase that many choose not to buy. That could be why it's scarcer. Just my speculation.

CommemDude

These are not too hard to find, the cases were likely made by a private company
Usually the coins are in rough shape and dark from the leather case or from mishandling during the years.
These should retail around 300 with a low grade unc coin

oih82w8

Neat...but not $300+ neat.

Insider2

@oih82w8 said: "Neat...but not $300+ neat."

In your humble opinion , right?

oih82w8

@Insider2 said:
@oih82w8 said: "Neat...but not $300+ neat."

In your humble opinion , right?

We all have our price ceilings...someone may pay more.

johnny9434

i never seen one either but it would be nice to have one in the collection. fwiw