Amazing finds are often hard to find, but when mountainman2 on coincommunity.com found the highly acclaimed 1955 Doubled Die Lincoln Wheatie on June 28th, the emotions started to pour. Initially, MM2 picked up a bank box of cents from his local bank and does what every aspiring treasure hunter sets out to do, and that's to find the pick of a lifetime. And boy did he nail it. The 1955 was a dark patina, pretty grimey, but the diagnostics were unmistakable. Few members doubted the authenticity, and rightfully so as there are counterfeit examples that exist in the market. MM2 enlisted the aide of C.D. Daughtrey of coppercoins.net to verify the diagnostics by using nice, high quality images provided by the owner. After a day or so, Mr. Daughtrey was able to deliver the great news to MM2.
As of now, the owner is going to submit this coin to a third party grader to get the "genuine" tag, as a real grade is not expected with the reverse damage. This way there won't be any doubt to the authenticity if the even he decides to sell what would be dubbed, the most sought after Lincoln cent in history. Initial estimates look for the coin to achieve $1,000-$1,200.
Now a bigger incentive for prospectors to continue bugging our banks for rolls!
Friday, July 20, 2012
Wednesday, July 11, 2012
Preparing for Silver's Season of the Running with the Bulls
Predictions are a long and funny joke running around the precious metals market these days. A burning candle at the end of summer's play usually signifies a tide shifting in the economy. Holiday spending brings a ramp up in manufacturing, an increase in jewelry sales, and a long borne ideal that precious metals "should" be heading higher in outworldly markets are all characteristic examples of after-summer market should be's. Sadly, the last four years of silver activity has been anything but consistent. High prices in 2010 didn't occur during the holidays, in fact, it was the beginning of the year through May, close to the end of the fiscal year for business. In addition, it's been told that gold should be dropping to a closer ratio to silver by now or silver rising sharply to that same ratio, nope, not even close. So what makes us think that our precious metals market should be running with the bulls at the end of the year?
Investing in silver, let alone precious metals, should be treated like preparing for a big natural disaster. Buying insurance in the event something bad happens, but mostly never does, but there's the peace of mind. Preparation and longevity are the keys to being a successful investor in this market. Even if you buy now, I sure would pull the trigger with the low $27 spot prices of silver, you can ensure that you're locked into a historically positive performing investment. It's better to have ownership of the paper or physical means than to not have it when the time arises that silver is shooting to the stratosphere. In essence, making a move now will not look foolish, but an intelligent move to make sure you have a play in the metals market come October through the end of the year.
So when exactly is a good time to prepare for a bullish silver market? Right now, when the market is cool and the summer breezes are warm. Anything scrap with a purity of .999, .925 , .900 and even .800 are phenomenal choices. They are a bargain close to melt than any "made for market" bullion that the world's mints sell. Scrap or junk silver is so plentiful right now, most dealers are taking a loss to make the sale, often times selling with no premium whatsoever. So if you have some free money sitting around for a silver investment, try going after some of these pieces before early September rolls around. You won't get the bargain if you wait longer, let alone the opportunity to prepare of what could be a burgeoning silver season.
Investing in silver, let alone precious metals, should be treated like preparing for a big natural disaster. Buying insurance in the event something bad happens, but mostly never does, but there's the peace of mind. Preparation and longevity are the keys to being a successful investor in this market. Even if you buy now, I sure would pull the trigger with the low $27 spot prices of silver, you can ensure that you're locked into a historically positive performing investment. It's better to have ownership of the paper or physical means than to not have it when the time arises that silver is shooting to the stratosphere. In essence, making a move now will not look foolish, but an intelligent move to make sure you have a play in the metals market come October through the end of the year.
So when exactly is a good time to prepare for a bullish silver market? Right now, when the market is cool and the summer breezes are warm. Anything scrap with a purity of .999, .925 , .900 and even .800 are phenomenal choices. They are a bargain close to melt than any "made for market" bullion that the world's mints sell. Scrap or junk silver is so plentiful right now, most dealers are taking a loss to make the sale, often times selling with no premium whatsoever. So if you have some free money sitting around for a silver investment, try going after some of these pieces before early September rolls around. You won't get the bargain if you wait longer, let alone the opportunity to prepare of what could be a burgeoning silver season.
America the Beautiful Quarters Are Flies On the Wall
Stranger than fiction these days, can anyone imagine what it's like to be the modern collector that often steps over pre-1965 silver to find America the Beautiful quarters? Following on the heels of an exhaustive campaign for value driven Americana, speaking in terms to the state quarters fiasco, the ATB series comes with little to no fanfare as a mere followup with the hopes that it will succeed like it's predecessor did. And it's with good reason, ATB quarters rival the state editions with a fraction of the mintage, making their existance in circulation null and void.
A long suppressed coin roll hunter found a scant few in his $1000 box run, as scarce as finding pre-1965 90% silver and probably long overlooked as a possible collector piece 100 years from now. And if you think this is remotely relevant, then how about the massive five ounce hockey pucks the mint has decided to produce at miniscule rates to shadow the ATB series? It's a clear and deepening trend toward, what's a fad/trend today that we can take advantage of tomorrow and be profitable? Or how can we capitalize on a hot precious metals market? But you know what, I think what it really comes to is...so when are we expecting the release of the five ounce gold and palladium variety of the ATB? Yeah right...and now we know why collectors and bullion stackers are a dwindling breed every day. The existing releases of five ounce silver bullions are selling as slow as the final run of new Pontiac Azteks while they have no problem charging a knife wielding premium in relation to the actual bullion value.
The ATB is longing to be what the two and three cent pieces are in it's day, a low mintage fly on the wall. And it's also awaiting another 7+ years of agonizing releases with even lower mintages. In conclusion, it's with this careless and ungratifying gimmick driven marketing that might one day turn the coin collecting hobby into stamp collectors obscurity.
A long suppressed coin roll hunter found a scant few in his $1000 box run, as scarce as finding pre-1965 90% silver and probably long overlooked as a possible collector piece 100 years from now. And if you think this is remotely relevant, then how about the massive five ounce hockey pucks the mint has decided to produce at miniscule rates to shadow the ATB series? It's a clear and deepening trend toward, what's a fad/trend today that we can take advantage of tomorrow and be profitable? Or how can we capitalize on a hot precious metals market? But you know what, I think what it really comes to is...so when are we expecting the release of the five ounce gold and palladium variety of the ATB? Yeah right...and now we know why collectors and bullion stackers are a dwindling breed every day. The existing releases of five ounce silver bullions are selling as slow as the final run of new Pontiac Azteks while they have no problem charging a knife wielding premium in relation to the actual bullion value.
The ATB is longing to be what the two and three cent pieces are in it's day, a low mintage fly on the wall. And it's also awaiting another 7+ years of agonizing releases with even lower mintages. In conclusion, it's with this careless and ungratifying gimmick driven marketing that might one day turn the coin collecting hobby into stamp collectors obscurity.
Why the US Mint Needs to Go Old School to Save Our Coinage??
Let's face it, when it comes to our modern coinage, the US Mint is no longer winning the popularity contest of classic, etched in memory, designs. Instead, what is generated on our monetary landscape, are countless low relief designs that are uninspiring to the eye. And as thankfully as we can attribute the proper credit, our high tech machines and computers are making it all easy. What I think is happening in this day and age, is a feeling of "content" in regards to how these coins are designed and laid out for a specific release. There really are not engravers preparing the final die plates, but only the conceptual cast molds. The first initial mock up, is generally hand graved, but the final product becomes computer rendered and finally laser etched to prepare the final dies to be used in the minting process. The transition began sometime in the mid-1980's at the advent of modern commemorative coinage. Additionally, the heralded American Silver Eagle had been a by-product of computer generated design.
The Need To Go Back To Open Design Competitions
Let's take a step back in time for a moment... George T. Morgan was the "go to" mint engraver for engineering some of the most wonderful designs in US coinage history. After a lull in our dollar coin, the Morgan series proved to be an American icon. It's what made the west, and it turned some pretty remarkable trademarks with the utilization of the unique New Orleans and Carson City facilities. Morgan dollars have become some of the most sought after pieces to this day, not just because of the silver content, but of what symbol they have created in the 19th century. What Morgan and Barber accomplished, opened a wide door for future opportunities within the craft of engraving and design. And the beginning of open design competitions paved the way for overnight success for would be artists that want a piece of the pie. The treasury department recognized this and quickly sent out broadcasts for the next series, and the next and so on.
Our early US commemorative coinage launched the campaign of "outside" artists to test their skills at designing some of the storied pieces we collect today. Give credit to James Earle and Laura Gardin Fraser for masterpiecing what would become the most popular of such coin, the Oregon Trail Commemorative. The pair won the rights to design the master concept for the coin, a splendid obverse of a wagon riding through the prairie sun while the reverse has a backdrop of the United States with the depiction of an indian with an outstretched arm to stop these travelers. Today, it's the consumate key piece that most collectors want in any grade. This is what today's coins need, symbolic, traditional, high relief, and unique content to symbolize our coinage. We need to go out and find our talent in the field, to this day, there are many more willing professionals that want the chance to make an impact in today's numismatics. In the end, the coins don't need to be silver anymore, but they do need to be works of art that inspires tangible thought about what America needs it's roots to return to.
The Need To Go Back To Open Design Competitions
Let's take a step back in time for a moment... George T. Morgan was the "go to" mint engraver for engineering some of the most wonderful designs in US coinage history. After a lull in our dollar coin, the Morgan series proved to be an American icon. It's what made the west, and it turned some pretty remarkable trademarks with the utilization of the unique New Orleans and Carson City facilities. Morgan dollars have become some of the most sought after pieces to this day, not just because of the silver content, but of what symbol they have created in the 19th century. What Morgan and Barber accomplished, opened a wide door for future opportunities within the craft of engraving and design. And the beginning of open design competitions paved the way for overnight success for would be artists that want a piece of the pie. The treasury department recognized this and quickly sent out broadcasts for the next series, and the next and so on.
Our early US commemorative coinage launched the campaign of "outside" artists to test their skills at designing some of the storied pieces we collect today. Give credit to James Earle and Laura Gardin Fraser for masterpiecing what would become the most popular of such coin, the Oregon Trail Commemorative. The pair won the rights to design the master concept for the coin, a splendid obverse of a wagon riding through the prairie sun while the reverse has a backdrop of the United States with the depiction of an indian with an outstretched arm to stop these travelers. Today, it's the consumate key piece that most collectors want in any grade. This is what today's coins need, symbolic, traditional, high relief, and unique content to symbolize our coinage. We need to go out and find our talent in the field, to this day, there are many more willing professionals that want the chance to make an impact in today's numismatics. In the end, the coins don't need to be silver anymore, but they do need to be works of art that inspires tangible thought about what America needs it's roots to return to.
Thursday, July 5, 2012
Treasure Hunter Finds Rare 1870-CC Seated Half While Metal Detecting
Back in mid-May, a buddy of mine, Joe had the opportunity to come across one of the rarest Seated Half Dollars known in existence. There she was, an 1870-CC gray plug sitting in some dirt in a remote field in upstate New York, little what he knew what treasure was hiding among the attached dirt and grime of that little gray disc. The most remarkable aspect of this story wasn't just the find, but the fact he used an entry level $250 Garrett Ace 250 metal detector to pull what could price out to be...a new car, a 2 carat engagement ring, or simply pay off $15-20k in bills! With that said, get the big picture as to the potential value?
There was some early speculation among buddy numismatics of the authenticity of the aforementioned 1870-CC half, as most believe that only these would exist more on the west coast. The closer you are to the Carson City mint, the more likely you will come across a Carson City minted coin in any denomination. So in turn, words like "counterfeit" or "fake" made its way around the room of tenured collectors like wild fire. There was only one thing Joe could do to debunk the mystery, and at the advice of his fellow collectors, he sent it off to NGC to get graded and authenticated. But before hand, the coin made it's way to NCS, a company that restores coins better than any doctor in the business. If everything plays out according to plan, this will chronicle to be one of the best finds in metal detecting history in the U.S.
So here we are a month and a half later, the coin came back a nice AU-50 Details by NGC. It's a high grade, and the details designation won't detract would be buyers from obtaining one of the rarest half dollars. And it's a remarkable grade for something that's been buried for over 100 years. For more on this story and the current progression of this year's Philadelphia Heritage auction, check out: http://www.coincommunity.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=119362&whichpage=1
There was some early speculation among buddy numismatics of the authenticity of the aforementioned 1870-CC half, as most believe that only these would exist more on the west coast. The closer you are to the Carson City mint, the more likely you will come across a Carson City minted coin in any denomination. So in turn, words like "counterfeit" or "fake" made its way around the room of tenured collectors like wild fire. There was only one thing Joe could do to debunk the mystery, and at the advice of his fellow collectors, he sent it off to NGC to get graded and authenticated. But before hand, the coin made it's way to NCS, a company that restores coins better than any doctor in the business. If everything plays out according to plan, this will chronicle to be one of the best finds in metal detecting history in the U.S.
So here we are a month and a half later, the coin came back a nice AU-50 Details by NGC. It's a high grade, and the details designation won't detract would be buyers from obtaining one of the rarest half dollars. And it's a remarkable grade for something that's been buried for over 100 years. For more on this story and the current progression of this year's Philadelphia Heritage auction, check out: http://www.coincommunity.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=119362&whichpage=1
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