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Found a proof walker under my bed
P0CKETCHANGE
Posts: 2,278 ✭✭✭✭✭
Doing a big cleaning today which involved moving my entire platform bed (a heavy piece of furniture)—imagine my surprise when I found this lovely lady laying in an ocean of dust. I’m not sure when or how she escaped, but she’s now snugly back with her sister 1938 and 1941 proofs.
What’s the strangest place you’ve found a piece from your collection?
Nothing is as expensive as free money.
18
Comments
Wow...Under your bed! That's a hell of a find! Love the proof Walkers.
Did you happen to sell said coin once to your best friend and is his name Scott?
Asking for a friend.
You put THAT under your bed? That's a beautiful coin.
I imagine it went something like:
“Oh hey honey! I didn’t know you were gonna be home already…”
*tosses freshly opened coin against wall behind headboard
BHNC #248 … 108 and counting.
I found a Quarter under my pillow when I lost a tooth when Iwas a kid.
That's a great find - proof Walkers, especially nice ones, have gone up in price drastically in the last few months.
PR66 1942 Walkers were selling for $550 a few months back, now they go in the $700 range in places (28% increase). There are huge premiums for nice coins (a few hundred dollars).
PR67 1942 Walkers are even more drastic, selling at $730 a few months ago, now they go for $1,055. This is a 45% increase in less than 5 months. Insane!
There are huge premiums for OGH 1942 PR67 Walkers at $1,700 (232% increase) or nicer coins (an outlier was a $1,700 sale in January, which makes no sense at they were selling for $730 then. It's nice, but not that nice). A nicely toned NGC 67+* without CAC went for $1525 in May, which would give you an idea of what nice coins go for.
In summary, CAC coins bring a premium, toned examples and OGH as well, and there are high price jumps in the last five months. Depending on how long this one was under your bed, you did very well! Of course, this is a small market sample and it isn't anywhere near perfect, but it shows you something!
Coin Photographer.
Back when I was at ANACS the two people opening mail (we always did it in pairs so that each person could vouch for the other person) opened a Registered package and in it was a submission form for a 1796 or 1797 half dollar with a declared value of $25,000 (the maximum Registration insurance value at the time).....but no coin. They immediately notified the Office Manager, and she and I ransacked the area looking for the coin. No coin. Of course we saved all of the day's trash.
I called the submitter and told him what had happened and asked if perhaps after he had sent the package he had found the coin mistakenly left out of the package. It did happen some times. He said no, and that he would file a claim with the Post Office. We later found out that he did that day.
I called the Postal Inspector's Office and told them that we had received a Registered package that appeared to have been tampered with. An Inspector came to our office and reviewed our opening protocols and interviewed the two people and the Office Manager and myself. He seemed impressed with our protocols.
A day or two later the Inspector and another Inspector rang the submitter's doorbell and presented a search warrant. They asked to see where the coin had been packaged. The man took them to a desk in his bedroom. As the Inspectors were going through the desk, the man suddenly "Found" the coin under his bed. He said that he must have dropped it and it rolled under there.
The Postal Inspectors did not press charges for attempted fraud. I wish they had.
@FlyingAl thanks for the market analysis. Any thoughts as to the reasons/factors behind the sudden increases? I acquired the coin in my post back in December, and the two others I mentioned in Oct and Feb, respectively. The idea was to assemble a full set of CAC proofs, but now I’m wondering if it’d be more prudent to sell.
Nothing is as expensive as free money.
I honestly have no idea. I’ve always said these coins have been somewhat underpriced by the market, particularly nice coins, so I’d say the coins are at a point where the price corresponds with what I think they should be worth.
I’m keeping my proofs, I want to see where the market goes. I’m still waiting for CAMs to take off, and when they do, it’s going to be wild (I think). I would hold off from buying anything but the very best (good detail, color, contrast) in the market today. I would also try to avoid paying the CAC premium as it’s substantial, but if you’re building a CAC set that probably won’t work well
.
The best advice I could give is to wait for a great coin to come along, one that makes you say “wow” and buy it. This strategy is the best, and it leads to some pretty stunning sets, but it takes a lot of time. If you do this price becomes less of an issue as the coins you will be buying deserve a premium when compared to the other coins out there, and those are the coins where the premiums will keep going up as we’ve seen over the years. Really nice coins in these years just keep going up and up. Best of luck!
@CaptHenway
I really enjoyed the story. Honestly I’m surprised this doesn’t happen more often. Was this the only case you remember of someone “losing” a coin they sent in?
Coin Photographer.
And this is why I don't play with my coins in bed. Glad you recovered that beauty. Peace Roy
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I believe I have told this story here before. I have a 1909D $5 gold Indian coin... Not slabbed, but in a 2x2. Bought it at a show in Seattle years ago. In 2008 I moved from Seattle to NYS. After getting in and things organized (after about two months) I had reason to look for that coin. It was not where I thought it should be, and not in any of the other locations it might have migrated to. I looked for that coin for over six months. Finally gave up, figured somehow I had lost it. Then, one day I opened a large box of various containers of ammunition I had stored (still from the move) and bingo!!!! There was the gold Indian, in it's 2x2, looking absolutely lovely. No idea how it could have got into that box. Just glad it did. Cheers, RickO
Earlier this spring I was searching my garage for fishing line. I found a big cardboard box full of fishing stuff. And I did indeed find the line I was looking for. But first I found 2 Franklin Halves and 3 Indian Head cents.
During college (early 1980s) I rented an apt for $100/month. Cheap by any standards, even in those days ... and it included utilities! Total dive. Filthy. Before I moved in I decided to clean the entire place. I pulled the oven out to clean behind/under it. The floor was 100% black with 1/4 inch of dirt and grease. Anyway, as I was washing the floor with a mop and rag, I noticed a coin under the muck. I pulled it out and lightly washed it off. To my surprise, it was an 1887 Seated Dime! Maybe G-VG. I still have it. Apparently this apt hadn't been cleaned recently?
Dave
I got a rock.
Pete
Your best friend might have left it there. Are you sure it's yours? It is yours.
I'm attaching parts of my life to your life.
Years ago, my father took me fly fishing for Atlantic Salmon along the Matane River in Quebec, Canada. While hiking to the river along a beaten trail, I noticed a coin embedded in the soil. When I inspected the coin, I discovered it was an 1872 Indian Head Penny! Even though the coin had resided in soil for many years, it was actually in good shape. I was so excited to find the coin that I remember the experience vividly to this day. The good luck of that day included finding the coin and catching some nice fish too! While not part of my collection when I discovered it, this unique coin is part of my collection now.
I have been looking for a raw $5 Indian that I misplaced years ago.
@Avocet Did you then have to travel to Mt Doom and return the coin to the lava from whence it came? Thus saving Middle Earth.
@Avocet that’s a nice story and a nice find. A semi-key date too! Would love to know how it got there.
I've known a few women I'd like to hide under my bed but Ms Liberty ain't one of them.
The mystery is exciting, especially considering that the coin was buried in Canadian soil -- my best estimate is that a fisherman from the U.S. traveled to the same spot many years ago and that a not-so-secure pocket released the coin during a hike to or from the river. Who knows, but a story I will never forget....
Back in the 1990s, I bought a 1914 D Lincoln Cent for $88. I submitted it to PCGS, and it came back in a F15 OGH. I have not seen that coin in years. Not worried about it. It's around here somewhere, and will show up one of these days.
A long time ago, the Matane River only served as a waterway for First Nations people, but in the 19th century, it became a major log driving route, and several dams were built. In 1879, Colonel Irwing founded the Matane Salmon Club, thereby making him a pioneer in the sport of salmon fishing.