Weekly Market Report: The Year 2001 Definitely One to Remember as Numismatists Gear Up for 2002 F.U.N. Show

The year 2001 has been one of the most exciting in the history of numismatics. An overstatement? Hardly! From the beginnings at the 2001 F.U.N. show last January through the recently completed Bowers & Merena auctions in early December, this will be a year that will be talked about for generations to come. For instance:

The PCGS MS68 1889-CC Morgan dollar sold for $529,000.

The King Farouk specimen of the controversial 1933 $20 was declared legal to own and will almost certainly be coming on the market via auction in 2002.

The gold bars from the S. S. Central America recovery were made available to the public for the first time, and the granddaddy of them all sold for $8 million.

The finest known 1913 Liberty nickel was auctioned for $1,840,000. It is now in a PCGS PR66 holder.

The King of Siam set of coins that includes an original (Class I) 1804 silver dollar sold for over $4,000,000 through private treaty.

Interest in the PCGS Set Registry continues to escalate. There are now more than 1,690 sets listed on the Registry, with additional sets being added every day.

The annual summer convention of the American Numismatic Association (ANA) proved to be best in a decade and one of the finest of all time.

The rare coin market is not only resilient, it's considered to be even stronger than ever despite outrageous world events and economic uncertainty.

The suburban Washington/Baltimore Coin Convention at the end of November/beginning of December was a smashing success, especially the auctions offered by Bowers & Merena Galleries. One price of note was the $874,000 for the Flannagan 1804 silver dollar, PCGS PR58, which is a world record for a Class III restrike.

Such events only scratch the surface of what has happened in the past year. It's no wonder that 2002 is looked forward to with such anticipation.

Great News! Everything is status quo and A-OK.

If it works, don't fix it. That sage piece of advice hangs on the wall of a local auto mechanic, but it applies to the coin market most of the time, too, so it's no surprise that there are few major changes to report.

"The market continues to be excellent for affordable coins and surprisingly strong for items over $5,000 each," says John Dannreuther of JDRC, Inc., in Memphis, Tennessee. "We talk to dozens of dealers each week and find it to be consistently true. While the market doesn't look bullish from a statistical standpoint because prices are almost unchanged over recent months, there's no denying that the high activity at current levels is extremely promising."

In the past year I checked in with Mr. Dannreuther more than 20 times to see what was happening in the market. Thanks, JD!

Check out the "Rarities Sale" from B&M.

One of the first numismatic events of 2002 is the "Rarities Sale" conducted by Bowers & Merena Galleries. This auction features a large, diversified offering of numismatic treasures to start your year off right. The sale closes to Internet bidders on January 6, so to peruse the lots and to bid online, click here.