Written by Q. David Bowers, Chairman Emeritus
Welcome to my latest weekly
e-column, a collection of clippings, comments, things that amuse me, numismatic
comments, and more. You can contact me at qdbarchive@metrocast.net.
Enjoy your week!
The lower price of gold, good
news! As to the price of gold, what
happens next month or next year is anybody’s guess. Recent news has it that
Russia, a key buyer in the bullion market, has started selling in quantity.
Other accounts have it that as the economy appears to be getting better,
holding gold as a precaution against financial woes is not as important as it
was a year ago. On the other hand, I can’t blame citizens of Greece, Spain,
Italy, and other countries with unstable currencies desiring to have a hoard of
bullion coins.
The
good news for numismatists is that
common-date gold coins that are priced in step with bullion—such as Liberty
Head and Saint-Gaudens double eagles—are much more affordable to collect now.
If you enjoy collecting and also like gold, why not consider collecting as many
different $20 coins as you can that are priced in MS-63 grade for only a small
advance over the bullion price? This involves dozens of dates and mintmarks.
What a nice display this will make!
•
Round and around we go. A study by the Department of Transportation,
recently reported in The Economist,
stated that replacing crossroads with roundabouts (rotaries or traffic circles)
leads to a 35% fall in crashes, a 76% fall in injuries, and a 90% fall in
deaths.
•
Chuck of The Little Mint, a coin dealership in Reedsport, Oregon, sent
me the other day notice BM-28 dated April 1963, titled “Cleaning Coins.” It
said the following:
“There
are many questions regarding the cleaning of coins. There is no way by which
the newly-minted luster can be completely restored, once tarnishing has become
severe. If the coins are in reasonably good condition, they may be cleaned by
rubbing them with cheesecloth or cotton, which has been moistened with a paste
consisting of baking soda and a few drops of water.
“Silver
coins may also be cleaned with any good commercial silver polish. One-cent and
five-cent pieces can be cleaned nicely with any good commercial metal polish.
Usually the soda paste cleans the coins well. The use of acids, caustics and harsh
abrasives, is not recommended.”
•
Civil War tokens are front row
center in activity these days, and I like to think
that my new Whitman Guide Book of Civil
War Tokens is partly responsible. The latest word from the publishers is
that it is selling very well. If you’d like a copy check your favorite
bookseller or the Whitman website. It has over a thousand color pictures, is
several hundred pages in length, is on fine paper, but lists for only $24.95—a
low price made possible by a large press run. Otherwise you might expect to pay
$50 or more.
•
The Whitman Coins &
Collectibles Expo is where I will be on November 7
and 8. If you plan to attend, be sure to track me down and say hi. This is
always one of the top shows of the year. Our auction is front row center there,
what with rarities galore plus many very affordable “collector coins” as some
call them.
•
The Colonial Coin Collectors Club
(C4) has its yearly meeting /
conference on Friday at the show. That evening our auction will feature many
important colonial coins starting off with David M. Sundman’s spectacular
collection of New England silver coinage. Some of the coins have pedigrees
dating back to the 19th century, and all are among the finest of their kind.
•
The new $100 bill, officially released on October 8, attracted
a great amount of attention in the media. I was interviewed by several writers
who were interested in my reaction, particularly from the aspect of collecting.
A common question was and is this:
“With
other countries putting out colorful designs, different people, and constantly
changing currency, why does the $100 bill stay more or less the same?”
The
answer is that ever since they were first issued in 1929, the small-size $100
notes have featured Ben Franklin and have had common characteristics. There
have not been many changes except for signatures. Over a long period of time,
up to recently, these have been the world standard for easily convertible
money. A $100 bill can be spent in Hong Kong, Singapore, Zurich, Buenos Aires
or, probably, on Pitcairn Island. Bankers and merchants all over the world have
learned to recognize them and, in many instances, to detect counterfeits. If
new motifs were regularly issued -- a butterfly, Elvis Presley, John Kennedy,
Yellowstone Park, or whatever -- this would be very confusing to users all over
the globe who would have no idea whether an unusual appearing bill was the
latest issue or whether it was genuine.
That
said, the October 8 changes will probably remain in effect for many years. They
are strictly based on security, to prevent counterfeiting by use of
photographic and computer copies. These will become well known worldwide and
will also be a recognizable standard.
•
See you next week!
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