"The rare coin market's appetite is voracious," says Laura Sperber of Legend Numismatics in Lincroft, New Jersey. Having just returned from the Central States Numismatic Society's convention in St. Louis, Ms. Sperber was as enthusiastic as ever about the market.
"We sold a lot of big-ticket coins at the show," Sperber continued, "including Proof gold, Liberty Seated and Bust material. We also did a lot of business in DMPL [deep mirror prooflike] dollars. We were actually able to buy a few of the tough CC dollars for a change. They only lasted a few hours."
What else was selling at the show? "Any nice dollar under $5,000 is a red-hot item. We're also doing a lot of business in slightly better date Saints, such as the 1910-S or 1914-D in MS65. They're not going up in price at the moment, but the public is sure buying them up."
Auction is "strong" at CSNS.
There was no price information available on the auction at Central States as of this article's deadline, but Sperber reported that it was "strong."
"It wasn't a runaway auction like many of Heritage's sales have been, but that was because there wasn't runaway material in it. Even so, everyone that I talked to felt that it was strong, well attended and verified the overall health of the market.
"There is a runaway auction on the horizon, though," Sperber said, "and that's the upcoming Stack's sale of the L. K. Rudolf collection on May 13-14. It's filled with rarities, nice condition and fresh material."
Modern coins maintain momentum.
"The market is modern coins is doing great," reports Rick Tomaska of R&I Coins in Solana Beach, California. "The top quality DCAM [deep cameo] coins from the 1950s and '60s are setting records every time they come up for sale. The only problem is that they don't come up very often.
"There is no question that the PCGS Set Registry has been the major force behind the interest in modern coins. But the Registry is not a fad like many of the things that have driven the market for a short time in the past. The Registry is permanent, and it gives world-wide recognition to every collector who builds a great set of coins."
What about the Internet? "The Internet has fueled the demand for eye-appealing coins," Tomaska continued. "The fact that the images can be reproduced has let the people see that not all PR68DCAM coins are the same."
Are there any new price records to report? "The price records are coming out of the auctions now. I used to get offered many of the modern condition rarities because other dealers and collectors knew that I had a big customer base for those items. Nowadays they put the coins into auctions. I'm sure that you've seen some of the recent prices for Proof DCAM coins. I could definitely set some new records if some of my customers wanted to sell, but they're quite happy sitting on their collections."
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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