Close on the heels of the Baltimore Coin & Currency Convention the ANA National Money Show in Charlotte, North Carolina has come (and gone). Usually called the "Mid-Winter ANA" or the "Little ANA," this show closed to good-but-slightly-mixed reviews due to the ever-increasing problem of fresh fuel for the flame.
"There may have been too many major shows in a row, but the market still proved to be quite strong," said Tom Caldwell of Northeast Numismatics in Concord, Massachusetts. Mr. Caldwell was referring to the fact that Long Beach, Baltimore and the Charlotte ANA all took place within a four-week period.
Which areas of the market were creating the greatest interest? "Proof type is selling better than ever, and that includes both the Barber and the Liberty Seated coins. Also, MS65 and MS66 commemoratives are active, and there are some new buyers for this series who were ignoring it just a few weeks ago."
I want fresh coins!
"The balance in my checking account is the highest that it's been in well over 20 years," says Robert J. Riethe of Mainline Coin & Stamp in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. "That's because there's not enough out there to spend my money on."
What are you looking for, Bob? "Fresh coins. That's what everyone is looking for. Nice, fresh coins. It's easier to sell coins now than at any other time in history as far as I know, and the customers are buying everything from copper to type to dated gold, but they want something that is new and nice and hasn't been sitting in the showcase for six months."
Is the market still as healthy as it was two months ago, even in the face of war and tax time and weakening gold prices and increasing unemployment? "It is as strong as ever," Riethe said. "There is no indication of a slowdown. MS63 to MS65 gold is still in great demand and dated $20 gold pieces -- especially $20 Liberties -- are great sellers."
Prices heroic in Heritage "Signature Sale."
A 2,00-lot "Signature Sale" was held March 20-22 in Charlotte by Heritage Numismatic Auctions. Here are a few of the highlights from this $4.4 million sale:
- 1910 Lincoln cent (PCGS PR67RD) - $36,800 (!)
- 1920-D Mercury dime (PCGS MS67FB) - $34,500
- 1932-D Washington quarter (PCGS MS65) - $20,700
- 1921-S Walking Liberty 50c (PCGS MS64) - $25,300
- 1794 Silver dollar (PCGS Fine-15) - $36,800
- 1880 Trade dollar (PCGS PR67) - $32,200
- 1862 $3 Gold (PCGS MS64) - $17,250
- MCMVII $20 High Relief (PCGS MS65) - $24,150
- 1907 $20 St. Gaudens (PCGS MS66) - $12,650
Also showing great strength were gold ingots recovered from the S.S. Central America, led by a 19-ouncer from Blake & Co. at $103,500 and a 57-ounce Henry Hentsch ingot at $97,750.
Bruce Amspacher has been a professional writer since the 1950s and a professional numismatist since the 1960s. He won the OIPA sportswriting award in 1958 and again in 1959, then spent eight years in college studying American Literature. This background somehow led him to become a professional numismatist in 1968. Since then he has published hundreds of articles on rare coins in dozens of publications as well as publishing his own newsletter, the “Bruce Amspacher Investment Report,” for more than a decade. His areas of expertise include Liberty Seated dollars, Morgan and Peace dollars, United States gold coins, sports trivia, Western history, modern literature and the poetry of Emily Dickinson. In 1986 he was a co-founder of the Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS).
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