It was 100 years ago this week that the Wright brothers soared to heights previously unknown to man. It was less than two weeks ago when the Baltimore Coin & Currency Exposition did the same thing. They're still talking about both events.

"Baltimore was off the charts," says Laura Sperber of Legend Numismatics in Lincroft, New Jersey. "We did so much business before the show that we didn't even need to go to the bourse floor to have a great show. It was an event dominated by the demand for gold."

Is there anything to add to the words of praise that flowed forth last week? "Proof gold was really hot," Sperber said. "These were coins being bought by collectors, too, so there's no problem selling five-figure coins to the public. I also found a lot of action in Proof type coins and especially No Motto Proofs. And, as usual, we sold every Gem-quality DMPL Carson City dollar that we brought or bought at the show."

"Gold is as hot as it's ever been."

What's happening this week in the world of certified gold coins? "Gold is as hot as it's ever been," says Richard Schwary of California Numismatic Investments, Inc., in Inglewood, California. "By that I mean that you can sell everything that you can get your hands on in any denomination. The relatively expensive coins, such as $3 gold pieces, are selling just as quickly as the most generic items."

Where is the greatest demand? "MS64 Saints are selling in 100 and 200-coin lots, so I guess you could say that that's the biggest area of demand. I could also sell 100-coin lots of MS64 $20 Libs if I could find them. Actually, anything in MS63 through MS65 is gone instantly, so they could all fall in the 'greatest demand' category.

"The price of bullion appears to be stalled in the $400-$410 range, but this hasn't slowed the calls for certified gold. This market is garnering new interest throughout the country and there are some big players entering the stage for the first time," Schwary said.

North Shore Collection highlights Heritage F.U.N. Signature Sale

Over 17,000 lots will fall under the hammer at the Heritage Numismatic Auctions sales at the 2004 F.U.N. show in Orlando, Florida, with the spotlight on the "North Shore" collection in the "Signature Sale."

A nearly complete set of $20 gold pieces, both Liberty and St. Gaudens, is up for bidding along with many other spectacular gold coins. Dates of special interest include:

Bowers & Merena sale realizes $3.9 million

Rare coins of all denominations proved strong in Baltimore as the auction by Bowers & Merena Galleries realized $3.9 million on December 4-6. Here are a few of the highlights from this highly successful sale:

This 1776 Continental Dollar in PCGS AU58 sold for $20,998 in Bowers and Merena Galleries' recent sale in Baltimore.