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What Makes a Coin Collection "Great"?
EXOJUNKIE
Posts: 1,624 ✭✭✭✭✭
This thought-provoking article by our own @Pistareen was just posted yesterday. I thought it was a great read. Thoughts or comments anyone?
I'm addicted to exonumia ... it is numismatic crack!
ANA LM
USAF Retired — 34 years of active military service! 🇺🇸
ANA LM
USAF Retired — 34 years of active military service! 🇺🇸
2
Comments
A red baseball cap?
Did you see yourself in each bullet ?
I have difficulties with #3 Expansiveness and #4 Completeness ...... into my 2nd year of collecting I'll take it as a good challenge.
Thank you for sharing ...... enjoyed reading while sipping my coffee
Interesting. I hadn't come across Jack Royse, Ted Craige, and Rob Retz before. Are they well known? For early coinage, Dan Holmes and Ted Naftzger stand out for me.
ownership
Ted Craige was a legend. It’s a shame that he didn’t live another 20 or 30 years. He amassed a fabulous collection of colonials in a relatively short period of time. Unfortunately he died at a young age in 1971, and most of his primary estate was broken up rather poorly. Still he had some great coins that were sold 5-10 years ago by Stacks.
Rob Retz built a fantastic collection of Fugio’s by die variety. His book on Fugio’s was published a short time ago. I didn’t know him very well but he seemed like a nice person. He too passed away at an early age.
The enjoyment one receives from their collection is what makes a collection great. The thrill of the hunt, the memories of chasing the coins, the trips to shows, etc. all make a great collection. Whether it is considered great by anybody except the collector is not important.
Being sold by Ian Russell
Excellent read. Thanks for reposting the link.
AKA Pakasmom
I appreciate that you put "great" in quotes! I apologize for being a curmudgeon, but our culture tends to use words like "great" and genius" a bit too liberally. Michelangelo was a great artist and a genius, but I'm not sure there is such a thing as a great coin collection. There are passionate collectors and fantastically interesting collections, but if we aspire to greatness through our collections, we may be fooling ourselves.
I tend to disagree with the premise of the article, but let me point in particular to one of the closing sentences: "Anyone can build a great collection, though it is admittedly easier to do when wealthy." If it possible to build a great collection, I don't think wealth plays a significant factor. "Great" collections illustrate aspects of history or culture. The themes might be rather focused (e.g., minting process as illustrative of industrialization) or more expansive (tracing the history of economic development in the West from Roman times to the present) or almost whimsical (1936 commemoratives as illustrative of American art, culture, and politics of the era). However, if there are great collections, I think they can be assembled by thoughtful people of modest means.
Passion, enjoyment, and educational are a few traits that come to mind.
I enjoyed reading the thought provoking article.
Do most agree with this quote?
"Most collectors would rather have one box of nice coins than 10 boxes of ugly coins."
Of course, many will differ as to what "nice" and "ugly" mean, but I've always tried to follow a "less is more" approach to collecting. I think I'm in the minority.
"Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"
A collection is "Great" when it's better than Kellog's Frosted Flakes with cold milk.
Question: What Makes a Coin Collection "Great"?
You need to ask?
Easy Answer: Virtually unlimited money to buy anything for sale so you can assemble the greatest collection in the highest grades = Great Coin Collection.
I would consider my collection “great” for me. Where I’ve been and where I come from, plus, my experiences in life make it a great collection that would be difficult for others in those circumstances to duplicate.
I would definitely like to have fewer really nice coins than many ugly ones of lesser rarity or quality.
Sometimes, it’s better to be LUCKY than good. 🍀 🍺👍
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
There are levels of great to me:
Which ranks higher, a Great collection or an Important collection?
Keeper of the VAM Catalog • Professional Coin Imaging • Prime Number Set • World Coins in Early America • British Trade Dollars • Variety Attribution
To me, the greatest collections should be important ones.