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What has been your most memorable numismatic experience?
MFeld
Posts: 17,025 ✭✭✭✭✭
Whether it was the discovery or acquisition of a particular coin for your collection, learning something of great importance, seeing an amazing coin or collection that made your heart go pitter-patter, meeting and having a conversation with your numismatic hero, the sale of a coin or collection at an unbelievable price or other, please feel free to share it.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
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Finding a 1983 doubled die reverse Lincoln cent when going through random pocket change as a kid.
Edit: found a photo
Nothing is as expensive as free money.
inheriting my grandfather's collection from him while he was still alive
My first experience with a coin dealer after a long absence from the hobby. I decided I wanted coins graded by PCGS. I met with the dealer who had six Hawaiians in inventory. Three MS64s and three MS65s. I asked for his opinion and the dealer picked out the one I thought was the nicest. I gave him my credit card and the dealer said take the coin home and mail him a check. That same afternoon I was shown an Old Spanish Trail which had a fingerprint and I said so. Then I was shown a MS?? FB 1916-D Mercury dime and a 1916 MS64FH Standing Liberty quarter. Both were way beyond my means, Went home with my head in the clouds. It was six months before I bought another coin.
It would either be attaining my first certified coin for free at a show (A 1957-D Wheat, MS66RD) or holding a proof quarter eagle. I get it really isn’t too much everything considered but considering just how rare it is compared to anything I own it just isn’t something I’d forget.
Auction photos of what might be the coin; considering PCGS only has 2 certified in the 63 DCAM grade, it’s a 50/50 chance.
"Another day, another Collectors Universe forum scrolling session."
- Someone, probably
Visiting the The Smithsonian and seeing the National Numismatic Collection as a youngster. It was a family vacation to DC c1970.
Sitting around with my Grandma when I was about 10 years old looking at Morgan dollars and other silver coins she had saved from circulation prior to 1964. Set me on the path of a lifelong coin collector.
Honestly, of all the crazy coins that I’ve owned and sets that I’ve built the one that I miss the most is the 1804 dollar. It is kind of crazy that 150 years ago it was owned by a Businessman in Spokane and then when I owned it, I was a businessman in Spokane. So I would have to say holding that coin in my hand and thinking about its history was even more of a lifelong dream than acquiring the 1794
My most memorable numismatic experience was the Trade Dollar & Chopmark Summit at the Baltimore Whitman show last year. Putting faces to the names of some people from here and reconnecting with other friends was great. Every guy in the group is a stand-up guy with knowledge and passion, and it was a really fantastic time. I don't think I ever had more coin fun than that day.
Another recent fun one was earlier this year, when I had my first chunky, multi-lot auction consignment. The auction happened to be on the same day that my kids and I were at Disneyland. The results ended up exceeding my stretch goal by a significant amount. It was a lot of fun getting off a ride, checking the bids, and seeing that I had made a significant amount while riding Space Mountain.
chopmarkedtradedollars.com
Living in the suburbs of San Jose and riding bikes to a couple of local coin shops. Buying worn Large Cents off a bid board and selling them to the other shop (for a little profit).
On the way home stopping at 7-Eleven and getting a cherry Slurpee. This was back when the Slurpee machine was behind the counter and was .15c for a small. The only flavors were cherry and Coke.
I'd take the little profit I made on selling Large Cents and bought a balsa wood airplane kit. The kind with the little lead weight in the front so when put together would glide a great distance.
Good times.
The value of this hobby is the hobby, not the value.
Many smart collectors just buy coins they like, and not one or more series of coins. Unfortunately, my collecting choices are Type Sets and various coin series. While I derive tremendous pleasure, it forces me to be a “slave” to filling slots. Since I also have a bad habit of being impatient, I also do a lot upgrading. Now to the question raised in the OP:
Well over 10 years ago, Laura Sperber of @Legend pointed out to me something simple that makes common sense, but until then, never registered with me! She said “Never buy an upgrade simply because it’s an upgrade. Only buy the upgrade if the eye appeal to you is nicer than the coin being upgraded!” I’ve taken that to heart!
A perfect real-life example are three coins in my Classic Silver Commem 50-coin Type Set. Those three coins are graded MS65 - MS66, and I’d like an MS67 for each. Over many years I must have seen well over 1,000 of these graded MS67 (each meriting a CAC sticker), but so far I have not found any I feel have nicer eye appeal (to me) than any of those three that I have!
Steve
My collecting “Pride & Joy” is my PCGS Registry Dansco 7070 Set:
https://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/type-sets/design-type-sets/complete-dansco-7070-modified-type-set-1796-date/publishedset/213996
Recovering the DuPont’s stolen Lindermann 1804 Dollar.
Saw a ms 62 $5 Charlotte 1850 strong c gold piece a few years ago. Thats one of them to start for me...
A once in a lifetime experience for me recently, and one that I’ll be making a video for Youtube about soon to share the full story. It was like Christmas morning having the opportunity to handle, study, and review an entire original collection that had remained largely untouched since the late 1940s and early 1950s.
I was able to take notes and further calibrate my grading skills while going through Washington Quarters still sitting in old cellophane packets, sealed like a time capsule with original dealer price tags attached, along with original wrapped rolls dating back to the 1930s and 1940s. Most importantly, I had the privilege of purchasing and preserving many incredible original examples from the collection, including this 1936 Washington Quarter, one of the finest known examples.
In the mid-1990's, I bought an 1864-S G$5 in an NGC fatty slab. It's the rarest coin that I own that's not a variety.
While in high school in the mid-1960's, I bought my first gold coin. It was a 1927 Saint G$20 and I paid $47 for it. Today it would grade MS63 or 64. Sold it later to help pay for a car. Wished I still had it.
Several years ago, I bought an AU58 common date Liberty half eagle in an old small ANACS slab with the serial number 666666. I don't remember the date on the coin but I liked the serial number. Got it off eBay for a good price with no premium for the serial number. The dealer hyped the serial number in his listing and told me he was surprised it didn't bring more.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Cherry picking an R7 Connecticut copper variety on ebay. 33.28-Z.20
Spending an incredible amount of time in '76 at the US Mint in Phila, viewing the Eliasberg collection. Over and over again. I thought they would start charging me rent!
A lady was the third generation to be caretaker for the family coin collection that had been passed from attic to attic. As I was helping her to make sense of it, I came across an 1883 proof Hawaiian quarter. It had been stored in a yellow paper 2x2 and alas, wound up grading only PR62. Still, it was fun to contemplate how a coin with only 26 minted made it to an attic in faraway Chicago.
Well mine is not as exciting as many of you and does not have a particular coin.
In the mid nineties I was at the Lakeland coin show in Lakeland Florida. It was a busy show that was held twice a year I think. I was at Hauser's Coin's table looking through his high end non certified lincoln cents as he was looking through a collection he had just purchased. It got quiet and it was just the two of us both intently studying the coins. He quietly said 'You know, I see you from time to time. You never buy much but you always buy quality, sometimes great quality. You are putting together a nice collection, keep it up.' I said 'Thank you, sir. I try.' and we both went back to studying the coins.
Mr Hauser was a former ANA Numismatist of the year and a mentor of most of the better numismatists in the Tampa Fl area.
Learning the history behind the coins and currency which is an ongoing life experience. Without understanding the role of a given coin's history and what was happening at the time, how can we understand numismatics?
Receiving a brand new 1964 half dollar in 1964 from my coin collecting godfather uncle.
DPOTD-3
'Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery'
CU #3245 B.N.A. #428
Don
In the 1980s I scored a nice looking circulated 1799 dollar at a great price off of a classified ad found via a work-sponsored “newsletter”…. Only to then find out it was a rather obvious fake (I believe struck from spark erosion dies).
It’s memorable in that I’ll never forget the lesson it taught me, and in retrospect it was totally worth what I spent on the fake.
Other passions include golf, Moto Guzzi motorcycles, and Euro motorcycles in general.
Chris
Twenty some years ago, my routine was getting up early and sitting at the computer with a cup of coffee looking at the recent coin additions on ebay. Specifically buy it now items. Someone had Peace dollars up for $7 each (very poor pics) so I bought some blindly and one of them happened to be a very rare vam at that time.
I ended up selling it for a massive profit.
I've shared this before but it's worth retelling.
Late 1950's growing up in Brooklyn, middle school lunchbreak, I'd walk to a Manhattan Bank on Liberty Ave to coin roll search. Walk inside, pay $1 and get 2 rolls of cents. Back then, I was pulling IHC and even some FEC out of rolls. Second week I entered the bank, some guy told me to leave cause I wasn't a customer. At dinner, I told my parents that I got thrown out of the bank. So, my father went to that bank, opened me a pass book savings account with $5. in it. He gave me the pass book said "Now you're a customer". It was my key to CRH. Thanks Dad! Peace Roy
BST: endeavor1967, synchr, kliao, Outhaul, Donttellthewife, U1Chicago, ajaan, mCarney1173, SurfinHi, MWallace, Sandman70gt, mustanggt, Pittstate03, Lazybones, Walkerguy21D, coinandcurrency242 , thebigeng, Collectorcoins, JimTyler, USMarine6, Elkevvo, Coll3ctor, Yorkshireman, CUKevin, ranshdow, CoinHunter4, bennybravo, Centsearcher, braddick, Windycity, ZoidMeister, mirabela, JJM, RichURich, Bullsitter, jmski52, LukeMarshall, coinsarefun, MichaelDixon, NickPatton, ProfLiz, Twobitcollector,Jesbroken oih82w8, DCW
The one thing that stands out was the dealer at a how who told me the only way he would let me look through his 69 proof sets was if I paid for all of them before looking at them.
Getting this toned 1818/7 capped bust half to match its toned twin sister 1822 half. Hands down.
10-4,
My Instagram picturesErik
My registry sets
A few years ago I attended my first large coin show in Tampa. I took this coin to the Great Collections table to see what they thought about it as I had just bought it and was wondering if I had made a good decision on buying it. Ian Russell and ‘another guy’ were looking at coins very intensely. Ian asked me if there was something he could help me with (I knew it was him from his company’s ads that have a photo of him in it). He looked at my coin and said, “let me have the expert look at it…”….and introduced me none other than John Albanese! He looked at my coin and said, “I seriously believe you may have the first or second proof minted for this year as this is a beautifully struck coin!” I knew right then I had made a great purchase and it is now one of my favorite coins in my collection. John and Ian were so gracious with their time and chatted with me for a few minutes before I moved on. Truly one of my favorite coin collecting ‘moments’. I find it absolutely wonderful that some of the major powerhouses in this field are such down to earth people and are willing to share their knowledge and friendship with us ‘regular joes’ out here. To chat with some of the ultimate coin collectors and graders in the world on this forum is beyond cool in my opinion too. Thanks everyone! Cheers, karl
My most memorable coin collecting memory became my re-entry into collecting coins. As is many of my strange adventures it came from a trip to our town dump and a visit to our "Swap Shop" area.
One day years back, while there I noted a uHaul box in the book area which was loaded with vintage/antique kid's books. I grabbed the box thinking my wife would like it as she was a day care teacher at the time and would bring things in for the kid's to learn from. Later that night I was watching TV with her while she was looking though the box in her office room. We lived in a small apartment at the time and I could see her from the couch as she worked. Suddenly she said "hey there is a weird coin in here, oh here is another and another". I walked over to see what she was talking about and she handed me the box. I looked closer and on the bottom there were about 20 Indian cents. There was also one of those old cardboard panels from the 1930's used for collecting back then. There were no key dates but a few semi-key so a good starter collection.
This was what got me interested in coin collecting again which I had done briefly as a kid but not seriously. I still have all those coins but not realizing I should keep the holder I tossed it away as it was quite damaged. I wish I'd kept that now...
Jim
Nice that people have shared these stories. Mine are numerous and to some degree cumulative.
Perhaps the simplest and early example is this:
At a very young age, my mother was able to wangle Fulbright Grants for her and my father to go and teach in Cyprus with this being in 1967-68 (let's not go there with the outrageous essential elimination of such programs recently!).
In any case there is a famous ancient city there dating to Classical Greek times and even earlier; this is Salamis, but not the one in Greece/Attica. The Romans eventually took over in Cyprus and it stayed under their control even as the Byzantine empire succeeded it.
Anyway, my mother and I (age 9) were walking on the old Roman road as it approached Cypriot Salamis when I looked over on the embankment as I walked and spotted an odd-appearing small metal bit. As usual with curiosity stirred, I went over and uncovered it and gently brushed the dirt away. And I had my first ancient coin! I knew a fair bit about coins for my age so knew it had to be late Roman or Byzantine but could not make out the ruler as it was of small nummus size, about 8-10 mm but clearly of copper composition with no mottos as the copper flan was too small for the die employed. What I could see was the visage of an emperor in profile on the obverse and what appeared to be most of a palm tree on the reverse.
Anyway, I could not further identify it, but DECADES (4+) later I was able to make out that it indeed was a nummus coin/size struck under authority of the emperor Justinian I, 527-65. Not at all valuable but a momento of a special time in my life and a wonderful little coin.
Well, just Love coins, period.
Please provide us with the inside story.
It sounds like it would be a fascinating read.
(I tried looking it up. Is it "Lindermann" or "Linderman"?)
The value of this hobby is the hobby, not the value.
Im sure many of us could tell a few good stories.
One of mine is while wearing a shirt I have with a Morgan a man approached me and "said hey I have a bunch of those".
I asked him if they were for sale.
He said yes and we set up a meet.
I went to the bank and grabbed some cash.
We met up and I bought 20 uncirculated Morgans from him. At a fair price.
Then he said "hey do you buy silver" I said let me se what you have.
He had 40 1 ounce bars.
I made him an offer which was the remaining amount of money I had left.
He said he was glad to get rid of them so he could buy some Harley parts.
It was a win win. That was an awesome experience.
Student of numismatics and collector of Morgan dollars
Successful BST transactions with: Namvet Justindan Mattniss RWW olah_in_MA
Dantheman984 Toyz4geo SurfinxHI greencopper RWW bigjpst bretsan MWallace logger7 JWP BruceS bigjpst
JWP PROMETHIUS88
Three things come to mind:
Getting a 1909-VDB cent in change when I was a freshman in college. I had stopped being an active collector by that time--not even enough money to take coins out of circulation, and not enough spare bandwidth of time, energy and attention even if I had more money. But my eyes still worked, and it was very cool to find that coin (yes, I know it's not a major find, but it was the first time I had seen a "VDB" coin in the wild. And, yes, I did have enough money to take a cent out of circulation, and I still have that coin.
My quiet period lasted some decades of lots more school, career and raising a bunch of kids, until I wandered into a local coin shop, for no real reason other than my continued fascination with coins. And he had a "junk silver" basket, with very nice Morgan and peace dollars. And I bought six of them ($33 each--not much above melt; how could I not?). And that rekindled the flame. Now I'm poor again (well, not really), but I have a very nice collection I look at frequently.
After re-starting, it became apparent to me that I no longer was unable to buy nice coins. And I bought a very nice 1909-S VDB cent, the ultimate (in my child's mind) US coin.
i went to coinfest in Connecticut in 2008 and there was a dealer who had a 39 ounce bar of gold off of the Atocha after it sank. what a thing go see all that in the palm of ones hand. a wicked good memory to say the least
I have many memorable experiences as a YN (from 1963, age 7, to about 1980, age 24), including my father bringing home a Whitman Roosevelt dime album for me as a gift in 1963 which I filled from dimes pulled from circulation (which got me started in the hobby) and obtaining certain coins, which I still have today.
After returning to the hobby as an adult in 1998 (age 42) through the present I also have many memorable experiences.
They include, but are not limited to, choosing an area to collect in; looking for and acquiring coins to build a collection; learning about the hobby in general; learning about my niche area; seeing my collection improve in quality; going to shops and shows; meeting other hobby participants (collectors and dealers); joining the Forums and participating in them; meeting other forum members (in person and on line); buying coins from Forum members; selling coins to Forum members; looking at and and evaluating old coins inherited by family members of a deceased collector to help them out; and submitting coins for grading.
Too many to choose a Most Memorable from.
However, what really is a treat for me is finding a coin (preferably raw) in my niche area that really stands out as one that is far better in quality than what is normal for the specific coin. Finding such a coin, acquiring it and adding it to my collection is very satisfying, rewarding and memorable.
I had been in touch with several cent collectors on this forum and often gave/traded, and bought cents from one another – always in the gesture of helping a fellow collector. So one day I am on a driving trip and I get a phone call from Andy Skarbalak of Angel Dees coins. He informed me that Steve Cohen had passed and his collection was consigned to him as his family had no interest in the collection. It was sad news to hear. Then Andy informed me that Steve had left instructions that I was to have the first offer of refusal for his most cherished cent – a 1909 VDB Matte Proof. I was shocked to say the least and jumped on the opportunity of such a kind gesture of numismatic friendship.
WS
Visiting with Art Kagin at the Denver show years ago (the 1980s) is memorable for me. I enjoyed listening to his stories about what it was like for him as a coin dealer in the 1930s.
“The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.”
“Find out who you are and do it on purpose.”
“Don’t get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.”
“We cannot direct the wind, but we can adjust the sails.”
“Dream more, learn more, care more, and be more.”
Parton’s quotes often blend humor, humility, and practical wisdom, reflecting her life journey from rural Tennessee to global stardom. They remind us to embrace challenges, nurture relationships, and live with purpose and joy.
Dolly Parton (1946-2026)
I was working alone cleaning up a dusty attic-like storage area of an old coin shop that consisted mostly of boxes of old accounting records, auction books and other junk. Space was tight so boxes had to be lifted over head for pulling each one out. On one flimsy box it collapsed and a heavy coin album fell out hitting me. To my astonishment it was a large Morgan dollar album that was mostly complete with even the rarer issues in better than usual conditions. Even though it was personally not mine, it was still an exciting moment for a ~six figure $ value surprise literally falling on my head.
The declaration argued that governments exist by and for the people with citizens obligated to overthrow a tyrannical government.
This is more of a funny story but when I had first started in the industry, a gentleman and his wife came up to our table. When he introduced himself, I looked him up, but there were multiple accounts under his name, so I asked for his email to make sure I had the right person. His wife looked at me and jokingly said, “You must be pretty new to the industry.”
Little did I know, the gentleman was David Hall. 😂 It was definitely a humbling moment early in my career, but thankfully, it was all in good fun. Now, whenever I run into them, we laugh about the story and how funny that moment was.
There are so many, it's hard to pick one.
I suppose it was at a Baltimore show. I had been looking for a 1795 Small Eagle $5 gold coin. I was walking by a dealer's table early at the show. He had the coin in his hand and had it on the bottom edge, putting it in his case. I asked to see it, and within 30 seconds decided to buy it. I never committed to spending that much money so fast. It is an AU-55.
The other time was at Gimbels Department Store in New York City, during the Christmas rush 1963. It marked the first time that I had purchased coins from a professional coin dealer. A young man in army uniform was there with his collection of Barber Quarters in a Liberty of Coins Album. His mother came up and handed him a $20 bill. Twenty bucks met something on those days. "Wow!" I thought. "Imagine having your mom give you an extra $20 to buy coins!"
My two big purchases that date was an 1908-S Indian Cent graded VG to Fine, (a "Fine" today) for $35, and an 1875 Twenty Cent Piece in VF for $20. It would still be a VF today. And, no, I don't have either coin. I traded both later for up grades.
The other time was at a Stacks-Bowers auction in Baltimore. I was there to buy my 1796 No Stars Quarter eagle. There was one bid, and I hung up my hand and bought it with one bid. On that day I was either the smartest or dumbest guy in the room. And yea, it's the most I have ever spent for a coin.
Mark, I and I'm sure others would be very interested in hearing about your most memorable numismatic experience.
I owe great thanks to David Perkins. As a young lad, who was seeking fellowship in numismatics, sent out a couple handwritten letters to clubs hoping for the chance to fellowship with a greater numismatic community. David Perkins was the only person who responded to me, supplied 4 hours of gracious phone call time, telling stories and advice. He mailed me an AMBPR at no cost to help with my bust half collecting. He also encouraged me to attend my first ANA. The rest was history. I am very grateful for his willingness to sacrifice his valuable time for a youngster like me.
"But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you" Matthew 6:33. Young fellow suffering from Bust Half fever.
BHNC #AN-10
JRCS #1606
Losing a 12K slabbed coin Somewhere at a Baltimore. Show. Amazingly, a dealer found it on the floor and it finally got back to me…..honest person.
Since then it’s all been a blur of hookers and blow and all nighter crack-out sessions so if something important has happened, I can’t really say. 😜
Empty Nest Collection
The toughest Walker Coins that I had to acquire for my collection had to have been the 1923S, 1919 S, 1919 D, 1917 S obverse, 1921D and the 1921 Philadelphia and all have stories behind them.
The 23S alluded me for several years. I wanted one with a good strike and the 23S is notoriously soft. An OGH CAC near gem showed up in a David Lawrence auction. It had a crazy sharp thumb. I had just won the 20 D, in the same auction a day before, which was a very rare acquisition for me. So, I kinda had blown my budget already. Reluctantly, I passed. I ended up with a 23S in an old NGC number 7 slab from a Heritage auction a year later. It was last sold in 1996. I purchased it in the summer of 2010 and it arrived for me on my birthday. That was a wonderful birthday present. So, that is pretty memorable. Funny to think it has only had two owners, in the past 30 years.
The 19 S was tough, because I had owned two of them prior that I wasn’t happy with. Ended up with a really nice one with a sharp strike and nice original toning on the reverse and good luster on the obverse in an old blue holder. Out of all Walkers issues, that one gave me the most trouble.
The 1917 S Obverse; I was super lucky to get and it just seemed to fall into my lap from Heaven. Lol Flat and abraded examples had been trading in the low five figures. I found one with a super sharp strike in a dealers inventory for a really good price. It had a razor, sharp thumb and clean fields. I pulled the trigger immediately.
Finding my 21D was also very fortunate. The luster of that coin hit me at once. I knew I had to have it. They have really increased in value, since I bought mine, in 2015.
The choice 1919 D that I bought from a dealer inventory was a freak of nature. An unfathomably sharp strike for an issue that is typically flat as a pancake and nice original toning was major frosting on the cake. Got it for a good price, too, back in 2018.
Finally, my 1921 Philadelphia in gem. A guardian angel must’ve been sitting on my shoulder, when I was bidding that night. I won it on my birthday in 2019. Another great birthday present coin. I never thought I would ever own an early Walker in gem.
On a side note, three of the above Coins came from the same dealer. He had a good social media and Internet presence. So, when I had the chance to meet him at the ANA, a few years back, I was really excited to tell him about the wonderful Coins that he provided for my collection and how much it meant to me. I wanted to thank him and to explain to him about my progress and who I was, in our little collecting world, and I thought we would have a very uplifting, enlightening, and intelligent conversation…Not the case. He wasn’t interested and brushed me off. Sometimes, people you admire are actually a huge disappointment in real life. So, this one was memorable, but not in a good way. That’s OK, buddy…I definitely had the last laugh, because the Coins I purchased from you have all doubled, and even tripled in value, since then, and are very PQ for the grades and issues. Two have upgraded and all three have CAC’ed.
Besides, I met David McCarthy that same day from Kagin’s and he was fantastic to talk to. Really enjoyed meeting him, so that more than made up for it. Super intelligent and affable guy.
Also, had the pleasure of meeting Jack Beymer. He was a wonderful, classy man and seasoned dealer, who made a huge positive impression on me. I remember seeing his coin world ads, ever since I was a little kid. Took a lot of time to talk with me and show me nice Coins in his case and tell me about them. A true gentleman who loved his craft and was a great mentor.
Finally, I think buying the Dick Osburn 1844 seated dollar was a great opportunity for me that I had the sense to recognize and quickly acted on that one, too. It’s a very rare coin that I feel extremely privileged to own and I got it for a great price.
My biggest hero is my father. He got me started in Coins and we spent many hours going to shows and visiting local B & Ms together. Those are memories that I will always cherish the most.
Sometimes, it’s better to be LUCKY than good. 🍀 🍺👍
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
I consider myself fortunate in that I was able to become a Numismatist. There have been several moments that I look back at with not just pride, but a sense of luck that somehow the event even transpired. And it is more about the experiences… in some instances trying to explain why something is significant to the numismatic community… not just the neysayers. So the experiences just may not be what one would have anticipated. So it is at that moment when you have to ask why the mic was either turned off or not on from the start. Trying to make a difference or even an impact may require proving a double negative. As an example, how can you prove that a coin is a “discovery coin” is really that? Especially for a coin that is 75-100+ years old? So my point is simply this… What is it that one is expected to produce to establish that a coin is in fact a discovery coin? And I will leave it with that question.
Numismatics is not just about coins, but the people one meets along the way. It is also about your numismatic point of reference. And this is not a single moment, but a collective experience that can and should be invaluable in terms of shaping how one may choose to collect. Turning full circle back to the question of a memorable numismatic experience, l consider myself lucky to have many and I am unable to name one as being superior at the expense of the others.
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
All the sweet rips!!
Building my toned buffalo set was also quite a joy.
Chris, one answer that quickly comes to mind is something I’ve posted about before - but not too often and hopefully, not too recently.
I grew up in Manhatten. While living there, my younger brother and I went to Stack’s on many Saturday mornings to look at (and occasionally buy) coins. On one of those occasions, when I was roughly 12 to 14 years old, we made a purchase, though I have no idea what. Whatever it was, I ended up with some change from the transaction.
When we got home, as I did in those days - the 60’s - I looked through my change. And one of the coins was a Mercury dime. If you’re wondering, It wasn’t a 1916-D. But when I looked at it, I thought I saw something that caused my heart rate to increase. So I got out my magnifying glass and my Red Book. I stared and stared at it, and then I stared some more. Even though I’d never seen one in person before, it sure looked like a 1942/1.
It was and I felt as if I was dreaming.
Weeks or months later, I returned to Stack’s and sold the coin to them for (I think) $75. I was so proud of myself, that when making the sale, I rather obnoxiously asked “Don’t you check your change?”.
I’ve been fortunate to have had a good number of extremely memorable numismatic experiences. But that one was more special than most, due to my age and the unusual and somewhat ironic circumstances.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
I got to pull these 7 coins out of the exhibit cases, put them on the tray, carry them in an unlocked box across the floor of the Smithsonian while the museum was open*, and bring them back into the vault. When I was in high school. It's going to be hard to top that.
3 1804 dollars
2 1933 double eagles
1 Ultra High Relief
1 1849 double eagle
*There was a big guy with a gun next to me
I've had so many I don't know where to start.
I poked through a Gem bag of 1982-P quarters in September of that year. I had already seen dozens of die pairs and they were all very poor from manufacture to set up. There were almost no good dies at all and it didn't matter because they were misaligned and used long after they wore out. The bag was represented by about by about ten die pair and one the third most numerous were pretty good but the most numerous pair is still the only decent die pair I've seen. The bag was virtually pristine with no rough handling. There were a surprising number of very clean coins. Unfortunately the sequence of strikes from the best die pair were not from early in the dies life but rather most of them from 30,000 to ~60,000 strikes. There was one oddball; a clean very early die state of the best die pair.
I wanted to save them all but couldn't. Most went back to the bank over the next week.
Coin collecting has mostly been a lot of fun but it was a little painful looking through them and knowing I couldn't keep them all. It is very memorable (and I suppose) the completion of the story from a human perspective.
There's a lot of very memorable moments for me, so many of which have had such a major impact on my collecting journey it's hard to choose a favorite.
My first major cherrypick (a bunch of CAM Accented Hair halves) started my collection as it is today. I still have one of the coins from that lot.
Being published at 17 was incredible. Winning a Heath Literary Award for a different article at 18 was much more memorable.
Finding and having a raw major rarity graded changed how I saw the market at large and how it works. Winning the NGC grading contest that year was a cherry on top.
Photographing hundreds of rarities has also shown me what the best of the best really looks like.
What has been the best part of this though was the connections and friendships I've made along the way, and how without those none of the above would have happened.
Coin Photography
I had written an article for Penny-Wise some years back. A week or so after receiving my copy, Eric Newman, one of the greatest numismatists in history called me up out of the blue to talk about the article as well as other colonial issues. It was such an incredible thrill for me. We had a terrific conversation and he was such an easy going man. Sadly, I never met him in person.