by Kaptain Kobold

Coin Collection Facts – Simple Guide To The Hobby

Coin collection is a wondeful hobby. While some coin collectors enjoy hunting for rare coins, others take it as an investment to make money out of it. As a coin collector if you know something about the grading and evaluation of coins, you will have a better idea about what others may be looking for.

Types of coin collectors

Normally coin collectors collect only some specific type of coins so as to add value to their collection and also to make it interesting to the buyers. Some other collectors do it only for personal satisfaction and are more interested in the uniqueness of coins. Series coin collectors are interested in coin series with yearly marks and design changes. They will not like to miss any coin of their series. The type collectors are people interested in the series of coins which have been changing.

There are ancient coin collectors: these are people interested in coins of the period spanning 650 BC to 450 AD. During this period coins were supposed to be invented and used. These coins are made of bronze, silver or gold. The Romans ruled in this period and these coins feature Roman emperors, their towns and gods, etc.

Token collectors collect tokens which were used in place of the actual currency when the coins were in shortage. Though these tokens might not have been authorized by the government, they were in use in place of the local currency.

Grading of Coins

Coins can also be graded for evaluation purposes. The condition of the coin decides its grading and that in turn will govern its price. It will be useful if a coin collector knows grading coins so that he can safeguard himself from cheating.

The term “uncirculated coins” refers to coins which show no wear or tear, they are also refered to as being “in mint condition”. The MS (mint state) grading is determined by the coin’s shine, visible contact marks or hair lines scratches, and the overall look. The MS grading ranges from MS-60 (implying dull luster) to MS-70 (meaning flawless). While the grade, MS-70, is unachieveable, coins with grades MS-65 or higher will fetch good prices.

The circulated coins are graded less harshly — amount of scratches or dirt on the coins with years of use are ignored while grading. Instead, the quality of physical appearance such as luster of the coin, visibility of design elements, letters and numerals, etc., determine the grade of the coin. Their worth is indicated by the following grades:

AU (about “uncirculated”), EF (extremely fine), VF (very fine), F (fine), VG (very good), G (good), AG (about good), F-2 (fair) and as
P (poor).

Since, these coins had been in circulation unlike the uncirculated coins which were never used, the grading of circulated coins do not drastically affect their value. This is a useful situation for those who need them merely to complete their collection.

The basic laws of economics applies to the world of coins too. The price of a particular coin will also be governed by the usual demand-supply situation, disregarding the grade of the coin. The low supply coins with heavy demand will be expensive compared to those in good supply.

It is the coin dealers who establish the demand, and hence the coins’ worth, by comparing the number of buyers and sellers. As a coin becomes hard to find, the coin dealers raises its price, and more people come forward to sell it.

You must know that grading and pricing of coins usually require a good deal of experience. While there are plenty of tips and guide books about grading and coin evaluations, it is the professional coin dealers who have the final word on the coins’ worth. It may be a good exercise that you grade and evaluate your coins yourself and then talk to some professional dealers to find out why your results are different from theirs.

While the investment and profit part will be always there in coin collections, it can certainly be made to be a joyful hobby. Besides knowing a thing or two about grading will be always useful so that no one can exploit your ignorance.

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by ariel.chico

Why You Need To Consider Your Coin Collection Value

The coin collection value is the most important aspect of coin collecting for most collectors. Many people regard coin collecting as an investment, so they need to be updated with market demands. In general, the valuation of a particular coin depends on its condition, mint rarity and denomination which is why collectors must build up their knowledge in these areas.

 There are many price guides which are used for referencing by coin collectors. “The Standard Catalog of World Coins” by Chester L. Krause and Clifford Mishler manage to cover coins starting from 1601, all the way down to the present time in five volumes. In the book, coins are identified and their prices are listed.  When trying to determine my coin collection value I have often referred to this publication and can personally recommend it as a good source of information.

A guide book for United States coins called the “Red Book” is published annually and is also a respected authority as a retail price guide. The “Blue Book” and the “Black Book” are also well established price guides to determine the value of a coin and thus the coin collection value. The “Coin Dealer Newsletter”, more popularly known as “the Greysheet”, is a price guide for coin dealers. The Numismatic News publishes prices for dealers, bidders and retailers. There are even online resources which maintain prices of coins like the “NumisMedia” website and a price guide for U.K. coins maintained by Tony Clayton can be found on his personal website.

As a rule rare coins are more expensive but rarity does not necessarily have to do with the age of the coin. Some Chinese coins which might be a thousand years old do not sell at high rates because they are common. The price of the coin also depends on the demand for the coin. If a lot of collectors want a particular coin, its price will get higher.

Collectors must also think about grade when establishing their coin collection value. Coin grading is a method of assessing the condition of the coin – the grade of the coin has a high determination of the eventual valuation of the coin. If a coin has been damaged its price will be reduced. Similarly, bullion also plays a role in determining value – the presence of precious metals like Gold and Silver increase the price of the coins as well. The aesthetical appeal of the coin has an effect on its price as well; it makes the coin more attractive for the collector. The American Numismatic Association has a 1-70 range for assessing coins, where 70 represents a faultless coin. The Numismatic Guarantee Corporation (NGC) and the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) are two organizations that go through the meticulous task of grading coins. Coins that have been certified by these reputable organizations have a higher value as their authenticity is more valid and reliable. ICG, Independent Coin Grading, and ANACS, handled by the American Numismatic Association are two other reliable grading services available.

Many people have accumulated tables of coin values which show coin collectors the values of particular coins – these tables can be built up over the course of a lifetime and can prove invaluable when establishing the coin collecting value; they give the collector the knowledge regarding which coins are worthy to be collected. There are also lists of coins worth collecting available with coins that are scarce ranked considerably higher. For example the 1909-S VDB Lincoln cent would be one of these coins. Items such as the legendary 1913 “V” nickel can be worth over 0,000. These hefty prices show why so many investors are willing to invest in coin collecting and expect high rates of return to their investments.

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