Weekly Market Report: Early Gold, Bust Material Continue to Lead Market as ANA Convention Nears

This is the final week that most dealers around the country are going to be in their shops and offices before taking off for Atlanta and the pre-ANA/PNG/ANA conventions. The two busiest weeks of the year are usually preceded by the slowest week of the year, as dealers rest, prepare their inventory, and take whatever other steps are necessary to get ready for the two-week extravaganza.

"This has been a much stronger summer than usual," says Charles Anastasio of Numisprop, Inc., in Saddle Brook, New Jersey. "The frenetic pace in generic gold has slowed considerably after a nice rally, but I believe the weakness is only momentary. There are a lot of strong areas in the market, including some where you can just throw away the price guides."

Okay, Charles, such as? "The pre-1834 gold coins are in great demand. So are type coins with exceptional eye appeal, such as Barber and Liberty Seated pieces. Gold commemoratives continue to be in high demand as well, as they continue to disappear from the marketplace."

What about silver commemoratives and silver dollars? "Both silver commemoratives and dollars are selling well, but they're trading within the so-called market levels while the other areas I mentioned simply can't be bought without stretching on the price."

Veteran dealer Thomas Caldwell of Northeast Numismatics, Inc., in Concord, Massachusetts, returned from vacation just in time to find that things haven't changed at all. "The same items that were selling well when I left are still the market leaders. That includes early numismatic material, especially Bust dollars, plus the popular modern issues. There's also a lot of new activity in California gold and high-end Colonial coinage."

What else is selling? "The Walking Liberty half dollar series is doing well, and Proof Walkers and Mercury dimes are extremely active. This is a marked turnaround for the Proof issues, as they were extremely slow sellers only a few months ago."

Did the pre-ANA summer doldrums hit Massachusetts? "The market definitely slowed down a little with so many people taking time off. Everyone is getting back now, though. I've found that all of the dealers with a web presence are still doing well."

Have you ever seen a Proof Hawaiian commemorative half dollar with the original box of issue? This is but one of the many exciting items in the upcoming "Rarities Sale" to be conducted by Bowers and Merena Galleries. This one-day sale will take place August 6, 2001, in Atlanta, Georgia. If you would like to peruse the lots and/or bid online, click here.

We mentioned many of the highlights in this sale in last week's column, and here are a few more:

1787 New Jersey Copper PCGS AU58
1793 Chain cent (AMERI) PCGS VF30
1863 Two Cent Trans. Pattern PCGS PR65RD
1866 Rays Nickel PCGS PR65
1879/8 Nickel PCGS PR67
1829 Capped Bust Dime PCGS PR63
1863 Liberty Seated Quarter PCGS MS66
1838 Reeded Edge Half Dollar PCGS MS65
1950 Half Dollar PCGS PR66 Cameo
1799/8 Bust Dollar PCGS AU50
1891 Morgan Dollar PCGS PR66
1883 Trade Dollar PCGS PR65 (Eliasberg)
1799 Half Eagle PCGS MS63
1824 Half Eagle PCGS MS64
1879 Half Eagle PCGS PR64
1879-O $10 Gold PCGS AU53
1862 Pattern $10 (J-298) PCGS PR66BN

Kingswood "Enfield Sale" coming soon.

The Kingswood Coin Auctions "Enfield Sale" is on the docket for August 16, 2001. These highly popular sales are exclusively offered through the Internet, fax, e-mail and telephone bidding. The "Enfield Sale" is one of the most comprehensive and exhilarating Kingswood sales ever, and it will be available online at the end of the week (Friday, July 27). Be sure to check back on this one!

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).

Proof Hawaiian half dollar in Bowers sale comes with original box of issue

Proof Hawaiian half dollar in Bowers sale comes with original box of issue