An Introduction to Coin
Collecting
Part
art, part science, part history lesson... but all adventure!
That's coin collecting.
It's
sometimes hard for 'outsiders' to see the attraction. There's the
inherent value of the coins, of course. Money is money, after all. But
beyond the dollar value of metal currency, there's all the excitement
of the chase, the intrigue of sleuthing and the rush of snaring a great
catch.
Pursuing
a rare coin requires patience. There are dusty old books to
read and sellers to visit.
Correspondence
with other collectors can put
you on the trail of a 1917-S Lincoln Cent. Or, an old coin book can
alert you to a fraudulent 1878 Morgan Silver Dollar.
The
Internet, as it has with so many pursuits, has transformed coin
collecting. Research no longer requires spending hours in a library or
driving around town from seller to seller. You don't have to wait a
week to receive a reply via snail mail from a numismatic expert. And
you can get a first class introductory education by searching around
the web to read those who really know their stuff.
But
even with all the advantages the Internet offers, there is still
the need to sleuth out those great deals on a mint Buffalo nickel. And
nothing beats finding that 1856 Flying Eagle cent that you thought was
extinct. There's no substitute for patient clue gathering and careful
study to find those rare deals.
Coin
collectors enjoy learning all about the minutia of different
types, years, mints and the history behind all the designs over the
years. They see the world in a small, round piece of metal with an
interesting design.
And
like other areas of history, there are frequent and continuing
debates about a wide variety of issues. Did Anna Willess Williams
really model for the Goddess Miss Liberty? The answer affects not only
the value of and historical interest in the coins, but branches out
into the worth of the estate of the model, the designer and others.
But
along with the art and adventure, there is much detailed science.
Minting practices over the centuries, grading systems - which have
grown significantly more complex and detailed in the last 25 years -
and many other areas where the border between art and science meet must
be mastered.
Not
quite gone are the simple days of PO (Poor), Fair (Fr), Very Fine
(VF) and the rest. But, though these designations are still used,
they've been expanded and supplemented to encompass a much more
precise, though still something of an art, grading system.
The
current trend began in the 1950s with the Sheldon scale, a numeric
system ranking coins from 1 to 70. Beginning in 1986 with the
incorporation of PCGS (Professional Coin Grading Service),
authentication and grading has been taken to new heights.
Today,
many are experimenting with computer grading systems. None has
yet captured the imagination. But with the increasing sophistication of
image analysis software, it may only be a matter of time.
But
no one need fear that using the modern tools of science will quash
the art and romance that is coin collecting. No matter how clever
machines become, there can never be a substitute for good taste, clever
insights and the Eureka! phenomenon that is supplied by the collector.
And
no machine will in the foreseeable future stand in awe as it gazes
upon the latest unearthed numismatic treasure.
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