Archive for September, 2009
American Coins
American Coins may be just what you are looking for if you have ever had an interest in historical figures or locations. With depictions of various presidents, locations such as the Lincoln Memorial, and historical scenes such as those found on the recent state quarters, collecting coins can be like taking a step back in time.
For many people, collecting American Coins is something they stumble upon rather than plan to take up. A new coin catches your eye as you are handed change at your local supermarket, or you happen to spot an old silver quarter or dime in a handful of coins you pull from your pocket. All of the sudden, it seems like a good time to start collecting. Or, you might be lucky enough to have inherited a collection from a family member.
Unless you are in danger of losing your home, it generally pays to hold onto those unique coins you find, at least until you’ve had a chance to check them out to see if they hold any special value. Or, should you decide, it would be an excellent time to start a collection to hand off to a child, grandchild, or other family member.
Collecting American Coins can be either formal or informal. At one end of the spectrum is the enthusiast who gathers a collection of every coin, in every increment, for every year, from every mint, and organizes them neatly in storage books or coin holders. At the other end is the guy who throws all his coins in a jar with the intent of sorting through them someday.
While purist collectors would look at the guy who throws the coins in a jar as unworthy of being called as true collector, those purists are in the minority. The biggest group of collectors in the country is the “throw them in a jar” group.
Once you get started in collecting, you’ll find that you start paying more attention to the years, metallic makeup, and special markings that are found on coins. You’ll start looking to fill the spot in a collection that you know you are missing. At first, that opening is likely to be a 1977 dime, or a 2003 quarter, but as time goes on, you’ll start looking at mint marks and more.
Most people find that, while collecting American Coins is fun on its own, having knowledge of the value of the coins they’ve collected is even more exciting. That’s when it is time to buy a book such as F & W Publications’ North American Coins and Prices or Coin Prices magazine. These guides give price estimates for a large selection of coins, in a wide variety of conditions.
The condition a coin is in is reflected in its grade. Grading coins is instrumental in determining value. There can be a huge variation in the value of a coin based solely on the grade the coin is in. One common misconception that beginning collectors make is to see a coin’s value in a guide, and assume that their coin is worth that much. There is an appreciable difference between an untouched mint condition coin and one that has been in circulation for a number of years.
One of the quickest ways to learn more about collecting American Coins, as well as the values of coins at different grades is to visit a coin show. Keep an eye open for when might be held in your area by watching your local newspaper or talking to local coin shops. Most towns have one or more shop listed in the Yellow Pages or on the internet.
When you go, bring a selection of coins from your collection that you may have questions about. Talk to other collectors, as well as several of the vendors that are at the show. Just don’t go nuts and go overboard with buying new coins at the show. Make sure your first visit or two is mainly about learning. While you are there, share your contact information with other collectors. See if they have any gatherings that you can attend.
Related Blogs
- Are bedtime stories really in decline? | Tidy Books – The Children's Storage Solution
- R Love.us- Rising Leaders’ Organization of Volunteers for the Elderly. » Blog Archive » With a view to preserve the State Quarters
- Stevens & Tate Announces New Webinar: Search Engine Marketing for Grocers – Twitch
Sorting Through a Pile of American Coins
One of the many relaxing tasks related to collecting American Coins is sorting through a pile of coins. One of the rules of coin collecting is to never let an unprocessed coin leave your hands. While the number of valuable coins found in circulation is limited, there are still enough unusual coins in circulation to make it worth a collector’s time to sort through the piles.
To get started in the process, you’ll want to make sure you gather all the coins you can. Empty your pockets and purses of all the change that you get each week. Put the coins in an open bowl that allows easy access to the coins.
To make the sorting process easier, and to assure you don’t miss anything, I would recommend you purchase at least a low-power magnifier (3x-5x). If you can afford it, a 15x-20x model would be a good second purchase, since it will allow you to see finer details if the low-power magnifier shows an odd mark. You’ll also want a good lamp to light the sorting area.
In addition to filling your initial collection, you’ll want to look for oddities. Look for odd marks on the front, back and sides of each coin. At first, you’ll spot lots of oddities, but after a while you will come to realize what is really odd and what isn’t, and your sorting will speed up.
Set all of the oddities to one side. With the remaining ‘normal’ coins you can start a new collection for a niece, nephew or grandchild. You can also start roll collections, in which you collect an entire roll of New York State quarters, for example. Or, you can simply put the coins back into circulation.
Once you’ve accumulated a good stack of ‘different’ looking American Coins, it is time to visit a coin shop to have them looked at.