history/art vs "the market"
rmorgan
Posts: 249 ✭✭✭✭
From today’s blog by Seth Godin…
The art market has shifted from something that supports art to something that is mostly a market. Some collectors bought art they didn’t like, simply because they were persuaded that the system would make it increase in value or that their perception of status was so shaky that they needed the next big thing.
Of course, I immediate thought about my experience with the coin market. Aren’t coins supposed to be valuable because they connect one with stories, history, and beauty? Isn’t it true that for some, coins are valuable solely because the market says they are?
My strategy is about collecting what I intend to keep, not investing in what I plan to sell.
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Different coins are valuable for different reasons...and my opinion of a coin's value can be (and often is) different than other opinions.
The market doesn't say a coin is valuable...people who make up the market for that coin say it is valuable (or not).
A coin is worth what someone will pay for it. Values change, but rarity will usually ensure value remains stable or possibly will grow. That being said, even high value rarities, when sold, may sell significantly below their previous sale price. The market can be fickle....Cheers, RickO
For me it depends on what I can sell a coin for / quickly move it. Lower the pop what I look for.
People buy coins / banknotes for various reasons - birthdate, country of interest, place traveled, or state (National Banknotes).
I am a big picture guy not stuck in some series, holder game, sticker game, crossover addict, nor sticker game.
Nobody wants to see their coin go down in value, despite the original purchase intent.
The art market is based on "name" and promotion by the "right" critics.
Yes. Picasso's works are valuable because he created it. There is no comparable equivalence for any coin.
My sense is that most coin and art investors would not be playing if they didn't actually like the stuff.
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
That's not completely true. There are engravers of note. St. Gauden's, McNeill, Brenner and Fraser are collected for their artistic merit. The medallic works of these artists are often collected as well as their coins.
You can say something similar about some of the early silversmiths, Brasher and the like, and their silverworks.
All comments reflect the opinion of the author, evn when irrefutably accurate.
Other than bullion, ALL coins are only valuable because market participants say they are so.
NO, coins are not supposed to be valued because of stories, history and beauty. Someone might choose any one or all of those reasons to value certain coins. But there is no single reason that anyone collects. And your idea of "beauty" won't necessarily match mine. And your stories, history and beauty don't explain why people collect series by date and mint mark. In general, most date/mm combinations do not add any story, history or beauty. [There are exceptions, of course, like a 1933 Saint.]
If he's talking about speculation in the art market, that is nothing new. If he's talking about trophies in the art market, that is also nothing new.
In the end, the market is what it is: perceived value by participants. That applies to all collectible market. If the world suddenly decides that Picasso is a hack, his works are worthless. If the world suddenly decided that date/mm combinations are meaningless, the price of "key dates" would crash.
All comments reflect the opinion of the author, evn when irrefutably accurate.
We each have our own estimation of the "value" of any coin. Coin collectors simply place more value on most coins than anyone else. This could change going forward as the FED tries to allow a run up in the prices of collectibles to forestall all the inflation they are creating through the printing of money and skyrocketing deficit spending.
The person to whom a coin is most valuable tends to end up being the owner. If the perceived aggregate value of coins increases or the value of the money decreases the market heads higher.
I believe many factors are converging to lead to a fantastic bull market in coins and one of these factors will be a sort of diversification in the collections of things that are normally outside numismatics. For instance someone who collects worlds fair memorabilia may add Columbus Exhibition Half Dollars. Art collectors may add a high relief double eagles, or civil war aficionados may add coins of that era.
The coin market is being influenced by a rapidly expanding collector base especially outside the US, macroeconomic factors, and continuing evolution caused by the speed of light transmission of communication and knowledge via the net. We're probably almost through the lean times caused by the massive dissolution of the coin collections of baby boomers. Select US coins may continue a little weak for up to several years.
The price of the artwork you mentioned is or may be valuable but it isn't even close to being comparable as the artists most people think of with expensive art.
Recently, I also attempted to find prior sales of his work. The few I did (maybe a dozen) sold from the mid-five figures up to $1.5MM for a 40" Lincoln bronze statue. That's valuable but concurrently a lot less than the most expensive Saints. I doubt a single one of his works is worth more but if I am wrong, someone can correct me.
I'm not sure what the price level has to do with your original point. You said "Picasso's works are valuable because he created it. There is no comparable equivalence for any coin." That's not true.
As for price, a Fraser bronze statue will cost you more than a Buff nickel just like a Picasso oil will cost you more than a Picasso limited edition folio.
All comments reflect the opinion of the author, evn when irrefutably accurate.
Fixed it for you
The World never "suddenly decides" anything. A few individuals, yes. But it takes a long time for such sentiments to spread to the entire "World". This is because, by nature, people do not (and will not) agree.
The quote on the art market is essentially true in some cases right now. Ego plays a huge part, increasing numbers of wealthy people have dough to throw around.
It was a hypothetical. But it can happen faster than you think. When bubbles burst, there can be a race to get out of the market.
All comments reflect the opinion of the author, evn when irrefutably accurate.