Weekly Market Report: Long Beach Show Rated ''Excellent'' Despite Supply Problems in Many Areas

By Bruce Amspacher - March 4, 2003

1884-CC Morgan dollar

It was very, very good, but it could have been great. That was the consensus of opinion of the dealers that I talked to at the just completed Long Beach Coin & Collectibles Exposition [February 26-March 2]. Why not great? The same old refrain of "lack of material," as many want lists went unfilled due to the fact that the coins simply weren't available.

"There were no fresh supplies," says Dale Larsen of Spectrum Numismatics in Irvine, California. "Don't get me wrong. The show was excellent, but the action was down about 20% from the F.U.N. show because there weren't nearly as many coins to pick from."

What about gold? "Gold coins have quieted down a bit, which is a wonderful deal for us since we're buying all that we can get. Our supplies were totally depleted during the big upswing in early February."

Auction prices reported as "extremely strong."

What were dealers and collectors asking for? "The most frequent requests were for Morgan and Peace dollars, with a lot of people looking for Carson City issues. Next on the list were Walking Liberty half dollars and Standing Liberty quarters."

Did you attend the auctions? "The auctions were highly competitive. The dealers and collectors were slugging it out for want list coins, inventory and anything that was nice. That's been the story with all of the auctions in recent months," Larsen said.

Heritage sales realize over $7 million.

Two of the auctions held in conjunction with the Long Beach show were conducted by Heritage Coin Auctions. Their "Signature" and "Bullet" sales realized in excess of $7.1 million. Here are a few of the highlights:

1919-D Mercury dime (PCGS MS65FB) - $29,900
1924-S Mercury dime (PCGS MS65FB) - $18,975
1942/1 Mercury dime (PCGS MS65FB) - $24,150
1889-CC Morgan dollar (PCGS MS64DMPL) - $50,600
1796 No Stars $2½ gold (PCGS AU53) - $65,550
1876 $3 Gold (PCGS PR65DCAM) - $41,400
1853-C $5 Liberty (PCGS MS64) - $33,350
1885 $20 Liberty (PCGS PR64DCAM) - $42,550
1901 $20 Liberty (PCGS PR64CAM) - $31,625

Kingswood "Meredith" sale is March 6th.

It's here! The Kingswood Coin Auctions "Meredith" sale is not only online, it's nearly over! The 1,034-lot is nothing but coins, coins and more coins, and it features an exceptional selection of silver dollars from the Larry Shapiro collection. The sale runs through March 6th, so the time to act is now!

In addition to the "Meredith" sale there is also a nice group of Morgan dollars from the Shapiro collection in a separate mini-auction. To view the "Meredith" sale, click here. To peruse and bid on the "extra" Shapiro coins, click here.

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).