Free Updates
Navigation
Categories
| March, 2010 (13) |
| February, 2010 (19) |
| January, 2010 (19) |
| December, 2009 (23) |
| November, 2009 (19) |
| October, 2009 (25) |
| September, 2009 (21) |
| August, 2009 (21) |
| July, 2009 (22) |
| June, 2009 (23) |
| May, 2009 (20) |
| April, 2009 (22) |
| March, 2009 (22) |
| February, 2009 (20) |
| January, 2009 (21) |
| December, 2008 (20) |
| November, 2008 (19) |
| October, 2008 (24) |
| September, 2008 (22) |
| August, 2008 (21) |
| July, 2008 (23) |
| June, 2008 (23) |
| May, 2008 (22) |
| April, 2008 (22) |
| March, 2008 (21) |
| February, 2008 (22) |
| January, 2008 (23) |
| December, 2007 (19) |
| November, 2007 (20) |
| October, 2007 (24) |
| September, 2007 (18) |
| August, 2007 (23) |
| July, 2007 (24) |
| June, 2007 (21) |
| May, 2007 (23) |
| April, 2007 (3) |
Search
Archives
More Links
|
 Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Eunice Shriver made a difference
Posted by Dave
Eunice Kennedy Shriver died yesterday at the age of 88. News of her passing evokes some memories for me.
The Special Olympics silver dollar of 1995 bears her portrait. In the debate over what the design should be for the coin, we in the hobby relearned something we probably knew generations ago but had forgotten: living persons can appear on U.S. coins.
The precedents were there. Gov. T.E. Kilby of Alabama appeared on a 1921 half dollar marking the centennial of that state’s admission to the Union.
The Sesquicentennial half dollar of 1926 shows President Calvin Coolidge during his term as President.
Shriver then appeared on the dollar as the founder of the Special Olympics, though the origin of the program was an athletic event in Chicago in 1968. Shriver took it up and made it international.
During the debate on the coinage, I wrote an editorial favoring the coin. It was a single silver dollar design, which I found refreshing. The Olympic program for the 1996 Games was going to be 32 pieces. That was at the height of the commemorative proliferation era when we in the hobby were recoiling from the excess. Imagine settling for just one coin.
It was a good cause. It was modest.
My support for the program also elicited two interesting telephone calls.
I was telephoned at home one evening by Sargent Shriver, the founding head of the Peace Corps and a former vice presidential candidate. He was also Eunice’s husband. He thanked me for my support. That graciousness set him apart.
A second phone call reached me in the office late one afternoon to help keep the universe in balance. The man from Pennsylvania was irate. Didn’t I know I was supporting a Kennedy? A Kennedy!! He canceled his subscription on the spot.
I never met Eunice Kennedy Shriver, but she obviously made a difference with her life.
Wednesday, August 12, 2009 2:14:21 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00) 
|
|
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Fast start for Mishler at ANA
Posted by Dave
I had a telephone call from Cliff Mishler yesterday afternoon. He was in Colorado Springs, Colo., at the headquarters of the American Numismatic Association.
He was laying the groundwork for his two-year ANA presidency after being sworn in Saturday night and he wanted to fill me in on a few things. He also telephoned other media outlets to tell them the same thing.
Already he has a schedule for the board that board members can look at and plan for and so can I. That is something that I have never had in such detail before.
Consider the board’s schedule in the next 12 months.
There will be four face-to-face meetings and four telephone conferences.
The meetings will start with one in Colorado Springs Oct. 12-13. There will be executive sessions and public sessions. In recent years this has most often been simply executive sessions. Any open sessions had been dropped in at the last minute. Do I want to come? I have to do some pretty fancy dancing for my publisher to justify the last-minute expenses. Our budget, like many others, is set a year ahead of time.
The next board meeting will be at the Florida United Numismatists convention Jan. 8, 2010.
Then Fort Worth March 25-28 for the National Money Show and then the Boston World’s Fair of Money starting Aug. 11, 2010.
Board conference calls are already scheduled for Nov. 17, Feb. 16, May 11 and June 22. There will be public portions that I and others will be allowed to listen in on.
Mishler pledged to do as much business as possible in open session to even avoid an impression of doing too much in secret.
He admits that even in light of the many lawsuits that are currently in the process of resolution, too much business was conducted out of sight. He is working to change that.
I wish him luck. I think most ANA members feel as I do.
Has a new era dawned? We’ll see.
Now we have to stand back and let the new board function. I can write up a report card next year.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009 2:09:22 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
Monday, August 10, 2009
Still traveling, mulling ANA observations
Posted by Dave
My trip to the American Numismatic Association World's Fair of Monday has taken an unexpected turn. I am sitting here this morning in a La Quinta hotel in suburban Milwaukee. I arrived in my room at 3:30 a.m. after a delayed departure from Los Angeles International Airport.
It has been a short night, so if you find any typos, I hope you can cut me some slack.
One of the most interesting happenings at the ANA was the repeated runs on the supply of Ultra High Relief Saint-Gaudens gold $20s at the U.S. Mint booth. Long lines would form in the morning to buy them and before the day ended, the supply would be gone.
This isn't something you would think would occur for a product that has been available since January, but it did.
The increase in the order limit to 10 coins per person presented dealers with opportunities to assemble a large supply quickly. They were paying people a $60 per coin bounty for the pieces. Intrepid individuals could earn $600 for their time standing in line by simply walking from one side of the bourse to the other with their 10 pieces. Even ANA award winners were spotted in the line.
Why would dealers be assembling positions in this coins? As it was pointed out to me, the coins are still trading at a premium on the secondary market, but the first stop with the new supply is the grading services. Finding a few pieces in each 10-coin lot that make Proof-70 will add significantly to their value. The rest of the coins can be bulked out for a small profit.
Buying coins one at a time through the mail just didn't make this type of thing possible.
Another thought that was expressed to me by a hobby observer was that since a 10-coin transaction was almost $13,000, it was a quick way to do cash deals without filling out cash transaction forms. Was that a motive? I don't know.
Whatever the case, it was interesting to see the Mint booth being the most active spot on the bourse floor.
Now I will turn my attention once again to getting home.
Wish me luck.
Monday, August 10, 2009 2:38:13 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
Friday, August 07, 2009
Rosen wins top NLG award
Posted by Dave
Last night Maurice Rosen was given the Clemy Award at the Numismatic Literary Guild Bash held at the Wilshire Grand Hotel in Los Angeles during the American Numismatic Association World’s Fair of Money.
I would like to congratulate him.
The award is one of those delightful anachronisms in numismatics. Even though it is an NLG-sponsored award, it is also very personal. It is personal because the prior year’s recipient makes the decision who the next winner is from a list of nominees given to him by the NLG board.
Some years the award is kind of an “atta boy” given to someone who is prominent in numismatics. Other years it goes to someone who has truly worked hard on behalf of NLG. Rosen falls in the latter category. He has worked hard to make the annual literary awards process function. Those of us who participate in the competition year in and year out have every reason to be grateful for his efforts to assure a fair evaluation of our body work.
Rosen was selected by last year’s winner, Anthony Swiatek. Swiatek could not be present this year because he is recovering from surgery. David T. Alexander stood up in his place to extend the recognition. Alexander is a stalwart in the organization of the bash itself.
Rosen further made the award presentation unusual because he offered an extensive list of persons to whom he was grateful. It is not unusual to offer thanks, but the sheer number of individuals recognized was extensive. Those who were present in the room, he asked to stand up. By the time he was finished, I counted 15 people who were standing. Most of the people he mentioned were not present. He also cited individuals who have helped him over the years but who are now deceased.
It was a pleasant event with good food and good company. NLG was founded in the late 1960s by individuals who believed you could have some fun and comradeship while at the same time being serious professionals and competitors. In citing his list of thank-yous, Rosen reminded us all of the many talented people who have been active in numismatics over the years.
Friday, August 07, 2009 2:01:00 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
Thursday, August 06, 2009
Ambassadors get up early
Posted by Dave
It was a short night for me, but I got up early for a good cause. Numismatic News sponsors an Ambassador Breakfast on the Thursday of every World’s Fair of Money. To get to the room at the convention center and to be ready to greet the more than 100 guests as they enter requires that I get there no later than 7:30 a.m. for an 8 a.m. start.
On an ordinary business day, that timing would be no problem, but at an ANA convention where it is difficult to get in the night before in a sensible fashion, the early morning hours day by day get ever more difficult to witness.
The breakfast is a tradition. The invited guests are holders of the Numismatic Ambassador Award, an honor that Numismatic News has been bestowing on the hobby’s volunteers since 1974. Today five more people will become part of this select circle as voted on by the current award holders.
Because the award is being presented in her backyard, Ginny Bourke should be mentioned first. She is heading up the exhibits at this year’s convention. Michigan’s Paul Cunningham, New Hampshire’s Bob Fritsch, Florida’s Tony Swicer and Canada’s Paul Johnson are the other honorees.
Accepting for Paul Johnson will be Cliff Mishler and Stan Turrini. Johnson, who usually attends the ANA summer convention could not attend this year because he is preparing the Royal Canadian Numismatic Association convention in Edmonton, Canada. Usually this convention is in July, but not this year. The fate that led to his getting the award somehow threw him a curve also, and he will be getting the plaque from the duo who will be attending RCNA. It doesn’t hurt that Mishler was the creator of the original Ambassador Award. I am grateful that he is available to take the handoff to present the plaque to Johnson in person.
Congratulations to one and all.
Thursday, August 06, 2009 1:58:13 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
ANA provides beer to cry in
Posted by Dave
Impressions from the first day of a coin show are important. My impressions of yesterday’s Professional Numismatists Guild Day seem to be comprised of many snatches of conversation as the day progressed.
One dealer told me that it was the worst PNG Day ever in his experience, but he did not elaborate as to just what it was that made it to the top of his list. Another dealer commented that the market had been down around 35 percent in recent weeks but it was starting to come back. He said he had seen downturns before and knew how to survive them.
None of the conversations I had seemed particularly unusual or out of place given where we were and what we were experiencing.
What hit me as out of place was one of those show happenstances that occurs from time to time. It was about 10 minutes before 5 o’clock and the three of us at the Krause table were just finishing up the job of setting things up. The display was assembled, the papers were placed on the table and all of the other materials were properly located.
Then down the aisle walks Art Benjamin. I’ve know him for years in the souvenir card field. I usually see him at paper money shows. I kind of spied him out of the corner of my eye as he approached the table. You know how it is when someone you know is approaching but you haven’t quite turned your attention fully to him. Well, I thought I spied him carrying something that you don’t usually see on the bourse floor. He got closer and by golly what he was carrying was indeed unusual. He had a full glass of beer in his hand.
“Is that beer?” I asked quickly followed by my second question of, “Where did you get that?”
“Out in the lobby,” he replied. “You can get some if you hurry.”
You just don’t see beer on bourse floors, so I had to go find out what he was talking about. It’s reporter’s duty, you know, to investigate this kind of thing.
Sure enough, dealers were being given tickets in the lobby for a free beer that was being served just a few feet away. The beer wasn’t in a plastic cup, either. It came in glasses or bottles. With my dealer credentials, I was given a free ticket as soon as the woman passing them out saw me. I ordered a Corona. I took a few swallows. Put the bottle down and went back to the Krause table.
“Yup. They are serving free beer in the lobby,” I told my colleagues.
I had drunk just enough to say I had done it, and to provide fodder for my blog. Its all professional interest you understand.
Wednesday, August 05, 2009 1:04:01 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
Tuesday, August 04, 2009
American Samoa nips Guam for quarter title
Posted by Dave
After traveling most of the day yesterday to get to the site of the American Numismatic Association convention in Los Angeles, what do I find myself doing? Sitting at the computer and looking at the Mint Web site to see what the production numbers were for the month of July.
I hardly needed to get out of bed to do this, let alone travel on a continental scale.
But since I am looking at the numbers, I can say that the American Samoa quarter, which just became available for sale on the Mint’s Web site and through the banking system has narrowly beaten the Guam quarter as the scarcest design in 2009. Only 39,600,000 Denver American Samoa quarters have been struck. Add 42,600,000 Philadelphia American Samoa quarters and you get a grand total for the design of 82,200,000. That is less than Guam’s combined total of 87,600,000 by 5,400,000 pieces.
The Denver American Samoa quarter is now the scarcest of the 2009 quarters while the Philadelphia version ties with the Denver Guam for the title of second scarcest.
Denver continues producing more nickels as it did in June. In July another 6,960,000 were cranked out while the nickel presses remained idle in Philadelphia. That brings the total to 46,800,000 this year compared to Philadelphia’s 39,840,000.
No dimes were struck at either mint in July.
There were only 13,000,000 quarters struck in Denver while Philadelphia produced none.
Philadelphia also hardly cranked up the dollar presses with an output of just 1,960,000 Presidential coins in July compared to 27,440,000 for Denver.
However, just when you think there might be a pattern here, the P-mint struck 141,600,000 cents to Denver’s 120,400,000.
Half dollars and Golden dollars saw no additional coins produced.
Now perhaps I can go hunt for the ANA convention.
Tuesday, August 04, 2009 1:47:23 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
Monday, August 03, 2009
Two new Lincoln cent sets coming
Posted by Dave
Two things are on my mind this morning. You might even be interested in one of them. I am scheduled to take a flight to Los Angeles to attend the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money later today.
I look forward to the event to see how the commercial part of the hobby is holding up in the aftermath of the bankruptcy of National Gold Exchange.
It doesn’t hurt that gold is on the strong side this morning. It helps both market psychology and the cash flow of some of the other dealers. This all helps to give commercial activity a push.
Naturally, too, the ANA is a place to see and be seen. There are few places where you can meet so many active and interesting people that you then can continue to deal with by e-mail or telephone during the remaining months of the year.
We are still a hobby and a business where personal relationships matter. That probably is why the NGE affair stings so much whether there is any long-lasting financial fallout or not.
The second thing on my mind this morning has to do with additional Mint products that offer the new Lincoln cents in other packages.
I was in the office yesterday to try to get ahead of the curve before I hit the road today.
Peter Fisher had sent me an e-mail asking about a proof Lincoln cent set that is going on sale Aug. 26. He asked if a Lincoln commemorative dollar was in it.
I fired off an e-mail to the Mint and got a response the same day – Sunday no less – for which I am grateful.
The set going on sale Aug. 26 is a four-coin proof set that features just the four new Lincoln cent designs. Production will be unlimited and order limits, but price and numbers are yet to be announced.
Also, a date is yet to be determined for the availability of what is called the Lincoln Coins and Chronicles Set that will include a proof Lincoln commemorative silver dollar as well as the four proof Lincoln cents.
This second set will have a maximum mintage of just 50,000, because that is the number of proof commemoratives that had been set aside earlier this year.
These will probably sell out in just hours or days when they finally go on sale.
There it is. Time to dash to the airport. I hope to see you in Los Angeles.
Monday, August 03, 2009 2:07:41 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
Friday, July 31, 2009
Court ruling on 1933 $20s inspires dreams
Posted by Dave
Nearly everyone enjoys a good David and Goliath story. The idea that size and power that would usually overwhelm the little guy can be beaten inspires all the would be Davids of the world.
The news that a court in Pennsylvania will make the U.S. government prove its ownership of 10 1933 double eagles seized from the Langbord family by having to prove that the coins left the Philadelphia Mint illegally three-quarters of a century ago warms the heart of most collectors.
This ruling on July 28 doesn’t mean that the government won’t muster the proof and won’t eventually seize and then destroy the coins. But it raises the possibility that this will not be the outcome, that suddenly there might be 10 more 1933 double eagles available to collectors.
That might make the owner of the only legal example in private hands upset that he paid $7.59 million for it, but it would open the door to other collectors to add the coin to their Saint-Gaudens $20 gold piece set.
Even though I knew I would never own a 1913 Liberty Head nickel, I have followed it since Aubrey Bebee bought one for $46,000 in 1967. The price has since escalated into the multi millions of dollars. Every collector who as ever looked at a hole in a Whitman album and wondered how it would ever be filled knows what it must be like to be one of those special buyers who can afford to finally acquire that missing key to their coin set.
Dreams are part of what motivates collectors. Individuals don’t know what they can do until they try to do it. Some Davids do win. Some difficult sets are eventually completed. Some numismatic Davids do get their names placed on auction catalogs.
Even if the 10 1933 gold $20s never leave government hands again, this court ruling has helped inspire further numismatic dreams.
Dreams do come true, whether it is through the luck of the lottery, or by hard work. Dreams that come true are the essence of being a collector.
Friday, July 31, 2009 2:18:59 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Keep an eye on those low mintages
Posted by Dave
Nothing seems more hopeless than a new coin series in which the average hobbyist has lost interest.
The First Spouse half-ounce gold coin program is just such a program.
Perhaps that means now is the time to bottom fish. The future of First Spouse coins on the secondary market will be heavily dependent on where gold goes over the next few decades, but even in the shadow of precious metals, mintages will sooner or later have an impact.
The 20,000 mintages for both proof and uncirculated Martha Washington, Abigail Adams and Thomas Jefferson pieces will probably forever be common – just so much bullion in an attractive numismatic package.
However, the sales of First Spouse coins that we are currently going through are the wives of Presidents that Americans have long forgotten. This is what yields opportunity.
The Julia Tyler coin goes on sale Aug. 6. She is the second wife of John Tyler, who served in office 1841-1845. Before this program I didn’t know he had two wives.
See? The educational mission is being performed.
But back to my point. So far only 1,517 uncirculated first wife Letitia Tyler coins have been sold.
That’s darn few.
If numbers continue to fall in this neighborhood for the First Spouse coins of the Presidents just before Lincoln, when the inevitable revival of interest occurs for the 16th President, there might be a pleasant pop in interest for these low-mintage pieces, too.
Thursday, July 30, 2009 2:04:56 PM (GMT Daylight Time, UTC+01:00)
|
|
|