August Hong Kong shows

Dawg144 · August 8, 2016 3:10PM

It appears there will be two shows in Hong Kong on consecutive weekends later this month (some information at the end of this post).

By fortune, I'll be in HK for work during the intervening week, and plan to spend a day at each show. Is anyone else coming? Any interest in meeting up?

Also, a quick question to the international show veterans: Is local currency king, or might it be helpful to bring some USD along? (And yes, I realize how Americentric that sounds.

)

By the way, it's really nice to break 6-7 years of going Yeti, but to see so many familiar "faces," as well as quite a few new ones!

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Hong Kong Coin Show (HKCS)
Location: Mira Hong Kong Hotel, 18th Floor
Show Dates: 8/19-21
Auctions: Stack's-Bowers 8/15-17, Rarehouse 8/16-17, Spink 8/17-18

Features ~100 exhibitors and PCGS/NGC submission. Also looks to be the first time the show is being held.

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Hong Kong International Coin Convention (HICC)
Location: Holiday Inn Golden Mile, Crystal Ballroom (B3)
Show Dates: 8/26-28
Auctions: Ma Tak Wo/Baldwin's 8/25

I couldn't find a real website for this, but there will again be PCGS/NGC representation. Seems to be conflated with the Ma Tak Wo Coin and Watch Show.

bkzoopapa · August 9, 2016 12:40PM

Originally posted by: Dawg144
It appears there will be two shows in Hong Kong on consecutive weekends later this month (some information at the end of this post).

By fortune, I'll be in HK for work during the intervening week, and plan to spend a day at each show. Is anyone else coming? Any interest in meeting up?

Also, a quick question to the international show veterans: Is local currency king, or might it be helpful to bring some USD along? (And yes, I realize how Americentric that sounds.

)

By the way, it's really nice to break 6-7 years of going Yeti, but to see so many familiar "faces," as well as quite a few new ones!

--------------------------------------------

Hong Kong Coin Show (HKCS)
Location: Mira Hong Kong Hotel, 18th Floor
Show Dates: 8/19-21
Auctions: Stack's-Bowers 8/15-17, Rarehouse 8/16-17, Spink 8/17-18

Features ~100 exhibitors and PCGS/NGC submission. Also looks to be the first time the show is being held.

--------------------------------------------

Hong Kong International Coin Convention (HICC)
Location: Holiday Inn Golden Mile, Crystal Ballroom (B3)
Show Dates: 8/26-28
Auctions: Ma Tak Wo/Baldwin's 8/25

I couldn't find a real website for this, but there will again be PCGS/NGC representation. Seems to be conflated with the Ma Tak Wo Coin and Watch Show.

bkzoopapa · August 9, 2016 12:48PM

Having done 8 HK shows in the 80's and early 90's , I can tell you the USA Dollar is as easy to use as the HK Dollar anywhere. The Golden Mile show had a currency exchange set up at a table and you could change any currency virtually at the exchange rate so that you could take any currency in over the table, and frequently did. it is a great place to visit and do business. Many collectors of varried tastes. I had a dozen collectors building US currency type sets over there. The only thing you have to get used to is the bargaining. It's is a challenge to go through their way of dealing, but a deal can usually be made. The food is wonderful and it's a lot of fun.

Stork · August 9, 2016 2:09PM

Click on the terms of sale for the auction and it gives some info re: payment. US dollar looks quite acceptable for the Baldwin auction.

Sixbid linkage

Stacks is represented on Sixbid as well.

Great timing for a trip!!!

Dawg144 · August 14, 2016 1:23PM

Thanks a lot for the tips! It should be a fun, and certainly educational experience.

LochNESS · August 14, 2016 1:31PM

Dude, congrats on breaking 6-7 years of yeti. Excited for your trip. Please take photos and post 'em. I've seen HK in movies, and I can handle Google Earth, but it's more fun to see it from a collector's perspective.

Travel safe and bring home some NewPs

pruebas · August 14, 2016 2:59PM

Some of the poop behind the new show. In a nutshell:

Mr. Ma, who owns the HKICC, decided only his auction would be allowed to be held in conjunction with the show. But since Stacks Bowers is now pretty firmly established in Hong Kong, they weren't going to be pushed out. So they, along with other auction houses, formed a new show where they could hold auctions. The reason they are back-to-back is just a simple matter of capturing those traveling long distances to one show or the other for a second show/auction.

We'll see how this all plays out. As someone mentioned, this will be the first HKCS.

bkzoopapa · August 15, 2016 2:53AM

There was one year in the late 1980's when Richard Nelson's original Hong Kong Intl show was run against by his rival Ron Gillio on the very same dates just down the street. It forced some of the big houses to take tables at both shows. It was interesting. Nelson moved his show from his original first week in Sept to May for the next two years.

LochNESS · August 15, 2016 4:16AM

Sounds like small town drama for such a big international city. I'm surprised the government was not involved (or maybe they were?) in the decisions of whose show would be allowed, and when. Here in my little southern Georgia county it feels like I can't wipe my own arse without a permit from city hall.

Dawg144 · August 20, 2016 5:32AM

Hong Kong is a stunning metropolis built on a hot and steamy swamp. This time of year, there's intermittent rain, occasional thunderstorms, and stifling humidity.

The show took place on the top floor of the Mira Hotel.

After staying up for the whole 16 hour flight, I fully expected to reach my hotel room, crash, and sleep through the better part of the show. Of course that did not happen, and I woke up at 5AM, giving me plenty of time to slog through a day's worth of email from the West, get breakfast, take a shower, get second breakfast, take a shower, and make it to the show before it opened to the public at 10:30.

At that time, a massive horde of people stormed the bourse.

A few observations about business at the show (influenced by nice conversations with some of the dealers):

-Friday morning was well-attended, with most dealers entertaining 2-3 people at their tables. Good quality coins and medals (especially raw) looked to be trading well.
-There appeared to be noticeably more public interest in paper money than in coins.
-There were many dealers exhibiting slabbed modern Chinese. But they seemed to be getting comparatively less attention, which was surprising to me given the demand for these at auction.

There were several impressive displays of large-size Chinese moderns. The oversize slabs are pretty goofy.

I made a couple of passes over the floor, looking primarily at British Hong Kong offerings, but didn't buy anything until after lunch. It was then that I found a nicely toned Vatican piece in a dealer's miscellaneous silver box (crap-tacular cell phone picture below).

Vatican 1942 5 Lire. Struck during the papacy of Pope Pius XII. From a mintage of 4000, reflecting wartime shortages.

I came back to the show on Saturday morning to pull the trigger on a pretty Hong Kong piece.

British Hong Kong 1902 20 Cents. Struck during the reign of Edward VII. A nicely struck example with no real distractions.

After that, I spent a few hours at the Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre, an interactive museum showcasing some of the archeological discoveries from the area. The "interactive" part mostly took the form of surprisingly difficult thematic video games (e.g. excavate the artifacts, exterminate the termites). There were also some nice exhibits on Chinese bronze coins found in the area.

I'm curious to compare this new show with the one being held next week, and will report back with comments on that. Thanks for reading!