Coins are meant to be enjoyed, to be appreciated, to be owned with pleasure. This is connoisseurship.

Dorothy Parker, the celebrated writer and member of the Algonquin Roundtable, once said, "You can lead a horticulture but you can't make her think." Neither I nor anyone else can make you become a connoisseur if you don't want to become one.

Is connoisseurship necessary in order to buy coins advantageously? I believe this question will answer itself as you consult this text.

"I have been looking for three years to find an 1877 Indian cent to match the color of the others in my set," a New Jersey client said to me.

"Now I have found it," he continued, pointing to a glittering Proof 1877 he was viewing just before one of our New York City auction sales. A day later when the sale took place, the coin was his. After three years of careful collecting his Indian cent set was now complete!

"I have read quite a bit about the Saint-Gaudens High Relief $20 gold piece of 1907 with the date in Roman numerals," a Colorado client mentioned to me at a Midwestern convention, "and I would like to begin collecting gold coins by getting one of these." It so happened that I had brought one with me to the show, and a few moments later a transaction was consummated. This man had done his homework, knew what he wanted, and now was set to experience the joy of connoisseurship, the pleasure of owning something which at once is beautiful, interesting, and rare.

What do you see when you contemplate a coin? Like the Sphinx, a coin keeps many secrets. We can learn the answers to some. Others will remain forever unknown, which perhaps is all for the best, for nothing makes something more interesting than having a certain mystique. Why does Mona Lisa smile?

When I view a coin, I consider the following aspects concerning it: