Posted on December 14, 2011 by Ron Guth
The Numismatist thinks of nothing but rare coins, muses on them, dreams of them.
His enjoyment involves all species of pleasure and mental excitement.
He is a sportsman, a gamester, an artist, a detective, a critic, an expert.
He follows the scent of a rare coin as a hound does that of a rabbit, and is never satisfied till he has traced it to its burrow.
The passions excited are ambition, hope, desire and envy; but never any to an extent to be injurious.
Your true Numismatist is usually a man of gentlemanly instincts, and scholarly attainments. His associations are with men who think, reason, compare, sift evidence, and judge. He is little likely to be gulled, being always on the look-out for counterfeits; still less likely to deceive others, having a wholesome contempt for base fabrication. On the whole, this hobby is one which should be encouraged, because it leads the workings of the mind into proper channels, trains the faculties, and educates and encourages a sound, healthful taste for the aesthetic.
– From “Numismatics As A Hobby” in the American Journal of Numismatics, Vol. 1, No. 10 (New York, February 1867), p. 73.
Posted on December 2, 2011 by Jaime Hernandez
Donald Trump recently leased an entire story in the Trump Building located in New York City.
At one time, The Trump Building was the tallest builing in the world. Trump leased the 50th floor to AMPEX, one of the worlds largest precious metals company.
APMEX used three 1-Kilo .9999 pure 24kt gold bars to secure the 10 year lease contract. Thats about a $175,000. deposit based on todays’ price of gold.
Trump provided a stetement indicating the following, “The legacy of Gold as a precious commodity has transcended to become a viable currency and an accepted universal monetary standard. Central Banks around the world are holding Gold as a reserve asset. It is also a terrific, potentially lucrative diversifier in a portfolio, especially with such volatility in the stock market.”
The Trump Building is 72 stories high and is located in 40 Wall Street which is in the center of New York City. (The Trump Building is imaged on the right of this page – It’s the tallest building with a light blue triangular roof).
Images Courtesy of APMEX.com
Posted on November 18, 2011 by Ron Guth
The coin pictured about is a PCGS MS65 1892-O Micro O Half Dollar, the rarest and most desirable of all the Barber Half Dollar varieties. This one is owned by Dr. and Mrs. Peter K. Shireman and resides in their PCGS Registry Set (currently ranked #1).
“Micro O” is an apt name for this variety, as it describes a mintmark that is substantially smaller than normal.
Posted on November 18, 2011 by Jaime Hernandez
There are millions of collectors out there in the world. Some collect paintings, antiques, cars, currency, cards, stamps comic books, lamps, statues, cans, bottles and I can go on and on. And then there is the wonderful coin market.
In a sense, all these other collectibles markets can be a great benefit to the coin market as it gives collectors the confidence that there is a real market for collectibles and including coins. What kind of confidence? Well, some of the following examples are just glimpse of what other collectibles markets are doing. If you think coin prices are high, some of the other collectibles prices will blow you away!
For instance, in July of 2011 a Marilyn Monroe Dress sold at auction for $5.4 Million, it was originally expected to bring 1-2 million. A 1936 Buggati (car) sold for over $30 million last year in a private deal. Bill Gates also paid $30.8 million for a historical notebook written by Leaonrado da vinci.
A Statue called “L’Homme Qui Marche” which was sculpted as a representation of humanity, fetched $103 million in a Sotheby’s auction.
Finally, the art market has also realized some staggering prices. For example, a painting featuring the “Portrait of Adele Bloch Beauer” sold for $135 million in a private sale. These are just a few examples of some of the records that other collectibles have been selling for.
There are tens of thousands of other collectibles that are not mentioned here which have also realized staggering prices. In the meantime, the single highest price paid for a coin so far is $7.85 million for a 1794 Dollar.
Based off how other collectibles markets are performing, I wouldn’t be surprised if the record price of $7.85 million is broken in the coin market sometime soon.
Posted on November 10, 2011 by Jaime Hernandez
The U.S. Mint has already spent an amazing $3.75 billion on buying precious metals in 2011 alone. This is an increase of over $1 billion more than last year, despite last year also hitting record numbers.
The Mint purchases precious metals from at least 5 different bullion suppliers. One of its main precious metal suppliers is Sunshine Minting, which also happens to supply 13 other World Mints with precious metals. The Sunshine Minting Company has also had to quadruple its work staff, in order to keep up with other World Mints increased demand for precious metals.
As we can see precious metal demand is definitely not just taking place in the U.S. as World Mints are also experiencing a huge demand in selling bullion related coins. 
Posted on November 10, 2011 by Ron Guth
A lovely, colorful example of the Proof-only 1879 Trade Dollar, in PR67! Learn more here.
Posted on November 3, 2011 by Ron Guth
Here’s a beautifully toned 1801 Silver Dollar in PCGS MS-64. Learn more here. Pleasant dreams!
Posted on November 1, 2011 by Ron Guth
An exceptional 1829 $5 gold piece from a collection certified by PCGS in October. This exceedingly rare coin is now in a PCGS PR64 holder. You can see larger images of this coin here.
Posted on October 27, 2011 by Ron Guth
1851 $50 RE Humbert 887 (Proof)
Learn more here
Posted on October 26, 2011 by Ron Guth
The 1851/81 Large Cent — more than an overdate, it’s an 1851 over an inverted 81!
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