Interesting Heritage Finding

ColonialCoinUnion · October 30, 2008 5:54AM

So this past week my daughter was helping me re-arrange my numismatic library (hey, she wanted to, and I did pay her).

About midway through we were moving the Heritage section to a new bookcase and sorting them chronologically.

Now, I don't have every past issue, but I probably have 95% of them and I found it really interesting that the portion from the earliest Heritage catalog I have (December 1983) all the way through January 2001 (representing every catalog they produced over 17 years or so) occupies exactly the same amount of linear feet on my shelf as the Heritage catalogs for 2008 alone.

Conclusions:

1. Man, those 2008 books are getting more frequent and dramatically thicker.

2. At the current rate of growth, I will need to double the size of my library ever 37 days.

3. From 2008 forward I'm going to stop saving the actual catalogs and instead use the Heritage online archives only.

Longacre · October 30, 2008 6:00AM

Are you sure you're not shrinking?

ColonialCoinUnion · October 30, 2008 6:01AM

<< Are you sure you're not shrinking?

>>

Pretty sure.

Unknown · October 30, 2008 6:01AM

This content has been removed.

ColonialCoinUnion · October 30, 2008 6:05AM

<< Wow, that is crazy. What does that say about the coin market, a whole lot of buying and selling going on, much more than before. >>

When you see it in front of you like that it is frankly pretty astonishing.

Of course, some other companies' catalogs have shrunk (or disappeared altogether) during the same period.

Broadstruck · October 30, 2008 6:07AM

So this past week my daughter was helping me re-arrange my numismatic library (hey, she wanted to, and I did pay her).

Is she a gun for hire as I could use help with mine... a winter project I'm not looking forward too!

RWB · October 30, 2008 6:08AM

Just save the envelopes the catalogs are shipped in....

adamlaneus · October 30, 2008 6:10AM

It is nice to hear that at least one segment of the print market is growing.

Remember, if you design catalogs, it is utterly important to update your publishing software to the latest version immediately. Failure to do so will surely cause a dramatic falloff in prices realized, as your catalog will look old, unattractive and so "yesterday". I cannot understate the importance of always having the latest software on your computer.

Shamika · October 30, 2008 6:27AM

<< 

<< Wow, that is crazy. What does that say about the coin market, a whole lot of buying and selling going on, much more than before. >>

When you see it in front of you like that it is frankly pretty astonishing.

Of course, some other companies' catalogs have shrunk (or disappeared altogether) during the same period. >>

Also notice that many of the current catalogs image EVERYTHING (or nearly so). The older catalogs only imaged the special or expensive stuff so it may not be so much addition auction lots, but instead larger entrees per lot.

Coxe · October 30, 2008 6:40AM

(1) More material goes to auction market these days than in the past. TPGs have failitated this and distrust of direct sales to dealers and inconvenience of direct sales to other collectors has driven it.
(2) The sale frequency of coins has gone up apparently. Coins that used to be off the market about 25 years seem to make the rounds every few years in many cases.
(3) Heritage has all but demolished their competition, taking their marketshares.
(4) They image more lots than ever before even in the print catalogues, since they image all of the lots anyway (except some multicoin ones perhaps).
(5) Coin quality put into major auctions appears to have dropped remarkably. Coins that weren't worthy in the earlier days of certified only sales are now included. Valuations are not consistently of the same scale calibre.

The solution to the shelf space problem is to get the DVDs form them of the cataogues. Has all of the imaged lots in better detail. The print ones are good for marking up and taking to the auction floor for bidding.

Coinosaurus · October 30, 2008 6:45AM

I gave up on Heritage, they go in the recycling bin now unless I personally attended the sale and took notes during lot viewing. Or if it is a very important sale (Reiver, Green Pond, etc.) I will keep it. They have everything on the Internet anyway.

You can use the shelf space for more important things like RWB's books, etc.

mrearlygold · October 30, 2008 6:52AM

RYK · October 30, 2008 7:16AM

Before you toss all the catalogs, make sure you check and see how far back the online archives go for the images. Granted, the imaging ten years ago was quite crude by today's standards, but a photo is better than not at all. Some of the 1990's Heritage auction online archives do not have images. By recollection, they have images back to 1999 or so, but I am too lazy (or not sufficiently motivated) to verify this right now.

ColonialCoinUnion · October 30, 2008 7:23AM

<< Before you toss all the catalogs, make sure you check and see how far back the online archives go for the images. >>

I think 1999 is the online cutoff for images.

In any case, I plan to keep everything prior to 2008. If I fill in more of the really old ones and find myself needing more space, I may summarily dispose of 2007 so that I can restrict the Heritage section to the existing bookcase. 2007 is almost, but quite, as prolific as 2008, so if I removed that year too I'd have a ton of extra room for additional old ones, some decorative shelf knickknacks and possibly a nice houseplant.

Walmann · October 30, 2008 7:25AM

Are there the same number of listings per page today as there were back in the 80"s?

With the overall aging of the collector's base perhaps they are using larger print?

ColonialCoinUnion · October 30, 2008 7:32AM

<< Are there the same number of listings per page today as there were back in the 80"s?

With the overall aging of the collector's base perhaps they are using larger print?

>>

A quick perusal (which should not be confused with an exhaustive study) indicates that the ones from as far back as 1990 or so look pretty much like the current versions, except that the old ones are B&W, and generally thinner (though there was an occasional phonebook back then). The explosion of scale seems to have been caused by the increase in thickness of the major sales, the frequency of them, and the addition of Platinum Night, World auctions and other extra catalogs.

Torrero · October 30, 2008 11:36PM

I think Coxe is very accurate in his assessment.

Jay

ColonialCoinUnion · October 30, 2008 11:38PM

<< The solution to the shelf space problem is to get the DVDs form them of the cataogues. Has all of the imaged lots in better detail. The print ones are good for marking up and taking to the auction floor for bidding. >>

The key for me is to retain my original notes for each lot. I often refer back to them and remember clearly what I did or did not like.

Broadstruck · October 30, 2008 11:41PM

Does Heritage offer a DVD for every single auction

Although I like catalogs... I'm bound to need to call in the services of a Structural Engineer due to weight load conditions.

Barndog · October 30, 2008 11:45PM

<< Does Heritage offer a DVD for every single auction

Although I like catalogs... I'm bound to need to call in the services of a Structural Engineer due to weight load conditions.

>>

not every single auction, since the internet-only auctions don't make it to DVD

garsmith · October 30, 2008 11:46PM

Most people didn't know about Heritage until the 2000's

Barndog · October 31, 2008 12:05AM

<< Most people didn't know about Heritage until the 2000's >>

most people still don't know about Heritage

OnlyGoldIsMoney · October 31, 2008 3:37AM

<< I gave up on Heritage, they go in the recycling bin now unless I personally attended the sale and took notes during lot viewing. Or if it is a very important sale (Reiver, Green Pond, etc.) I will keep it. They have everything on the Internet anyway.

You can use the shelf space for more important things like RWB's books, etc.

>>

I toss Heritage's catalogs into recycling even before the auctions close. I rely on the website descriptions and photographs. Most of the items I win at Heritage are not pricey enough to be imaged in print anyway. The last few catalogs were surprising heavy. As clumsy as I am, I could drop one and clobber my poor cat Roger. I do like the idea of obtaining the CD-ROMs for long term reference.

jdillane · October 31, 2008 5:16AM

They stopped sending me catalogs about 2 yrs ago. Either that or my wife has been trashing them before I see them!

But, the website has plenty of utility that the catalogs really aren't necessary.

Nic · October 31, 2008 12:54PM

More and bigger pics, longer descriptions, same old coins. It's just the current state of the auction market. I ran out of "board feet" for cat.'s awhile back.

A one night session of Eliasberg would now be 6" thick.

K

Edit for More and ...

MacCrimmon · October 31, 2008 1:28PM

Their catalogs from back in the 1980-1984 time period were scarcely over 1/4" thick, and they all had centerfold stapling, except for maybe their early ANA cats. I just rescued my original 1980 Cincy ANA catalog (then Steve Ivy Auctions), and one of their Dallas Sales from 1982 or so. 90% of the Ivy auctions were Dallas-only affairs until the 1982-83 timeframe, IIRC.

And yes, the earlier cats. only had sections with smaller plate images; seldom, if ever, were there individual lot images.

RYK · October 31, 2008 1:44PM

<< 

<< The solution to the shelf space problem is to get the DVDs form them of the cataogues. Has all of the imaged lots in better detail. The print ones are good for marking up and taking to the auction floor for bidding. >>

The key for me is to retain my original notes for each lot. I often refer back to them and remember clearly what I did or did not like. >>

Those notes (taken by other dealers from past sales, in my case) have saved my rear on numerous occasions.

Interesting Heritage Finding

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