It still makes me laugh. In fact, it was not the coin itself that was funny but rather the way the 1979-P and other Susan B. Anthony dollars from the first year were promoted and trumpeted as "the Dollar of the Future."
As it turned out, the 1979-P and other 1979 Anthony dollars probably had one of the worst receptions in history and that made the claims and promotion on the part of officials seem all the more ridiculous ...
Full Article: SBA Reception Not Exactly Warm - NumisMaster
The first silver dollars minted by the US government in 1794 are rare, so rare that one of them sold for more than $1.2 million this weekend at a Boston auction.
And there's a reason for their scarcity: Even back in the first years of the Republic, people hoarded dollar coins rather than spend them. The story goes that on Oct. 15, 1794, chief coiner Henry Voigt coined the silver dollars ano ...
Full Article: $1 coin, now worth $1.2 million, was hoarded in 1794 - The Christian Science Monitor
Who doesn't like the Walking Liberty half dollar design? The Saint-Gaudens design for the gold $20 might win the honor of being called the most beautiful coin of the United States, but the Walking Liberty half dollar surely was the most beautiful coin design accessible to the average person.
Only the Buffalo nickel might dispute that title with the Walking Liberty half dollar. If we didn't all collect Walking Liberty half dollars ...
Full Article: Philadelphia Walkers: strange story - Numismatic News
The first Shield nickel design was supposed to be a Confederate trick, wasn't it?
With the usual distaste for any new coin issue, the rumor got started that the rays and stars represented the Confederate "Stars and Bars," and claims this was why the rays were dropped in 1867. The more mundane and real reason was that the very hard nickel alloy was ...
Full Article: Nickel caused Confederate rumor - Numismatic News
For many years there has been an obvious bias among collectors in favor of coins made of precious metals and coins of large diameter.
The winners of this set of preferences have been coins like Morgan dollars, Walking Liberty halves and American Eagles. In the case of the silver American Eagle, it copied the basic size of the Morgan dollar and swiped the design of the Walker.
To be technically correct, it should be noted that the Morgan dollar is 38.1mm and the silver American Eagle is 40.6mm. But that is close enough to make the point: Big and precious is good, small and base metal is, well, not bad but not quite as desirable, either. ...
Full Article: Three-cent victim of size, metal bias - Numismatic News
The idea that the 1962 Franklin half dollar would be selling for anything more than a slight premium would be stunning to most people who had the chance to acquire one when it was new. Of course, the fact that those very same people did not save the 1962 at the time of issue is probably a large part of the reason why the 1962 today is a better date in top grades and one of the keys in MS-65 grade with full bell lines.
To understand why this is so, we should consider the situation in 1962 ...
Full Article: Melting Attractive Option for Franklin - NumisMaster
The list of most historic coins of the United States is one where many can disagree. That is especially true in the case of the 1792 half disme, but as with all other early half dimes, the 1792 is certainly an interesting item.
For those with a love of history and an interest in the early workings of the U.S. Mint it is hard to do better than a collection of the early half dimes as they all tell a story and usually a very interesting one ...
Full Article: Half dimes started with 'half disme' - Numismatic News
Before the first coinage act in the United States, citizens of the U.S. exchanged goods and services through the barter system. At this time no coins were available except for various foreign coins such as the widely traded and trusted Spanish real dollars. With the signage of the constitution and with a newly formed nation that allowed Congress to coin money, the first coinage act was proposed and passed Congress under the Presidency of George Washington. This article will cover a brief history of coins and events ...
Full Article: History Of Coinage In The U.S. - San Francisco Chronicle
David Vagi finishes his discussion of some of the most familiar designs of ancient Greek coins in the last of a multi-part series.
1. Celts. Some of the most fascinating coins of the ancient world were struck by Celts and contemporary Iron Age cultures in Spain, Britain and Europe north of the Mediterranean rim. The Celts have long been admired for their ...
Full Article: Ancients: Classic Greek Coins, Part V - Numismatic Guaranty Corporation
