In the past few years, I’ve noticed an interesting trend in relation to the pricing of rare date gold coins. I refer to this as “value compression.” Let me explain what I mean.
When I mention this term I am referring to a small price premium between grades. The classic value-compressed issues have long been the Iowa and Roanoke commemorative half dollars. According to the most recent CDN Greysheet , the difference in value between an MS60 and MS65 Iowa half dollar is a whopping $12 (!) while a Roanoke shows a value increase of just $70 between MS60 and MS65 ...
Full Article: Value Compression: A New Trend in the Dated Gold Market - RareGoldCoins.com
A few weeks ago, I wrote an article that analyzed the recent population figures for Type One Dahlonega gold dollars. As I’ve done more research on gold dollars for my upcoming third edition Dahlonega gold book, I thought I would share the findings for the Type Two and Type Three issues. Read on for some interesting ...
Full Article: PCGS/NGC Figures of Type II - Type III Dahlonega Gold Dollars - RareGoldCoins.com
The 20-cent piece was an interesting but rather short-lived denomination. In fact, business strikes of the 20-cent piece were produced only in 1875 and 1876, and if the mintages were large there would still not be a large supply. As it worked out, the mintages were not generally large, making any 20-cent piece tough. However, some are tougher than their mintages might suggest simply because ...
Full Article: Mintage Makes Carson City 20-Cent Piece Rare - NumisMaster
In their recently concluded January 2010 Americana sale held in New York, there were two record-setting Dahlonega gold coins that I think are worth taking a closer look at. What were these two pieces and why did they sell for as much money as they did?
The first piece was an 1861-D gold dollar graded AU53 by PCGS. I had sold this exact coin a few years ago and was familiar with ...
Full Article: Stack’s Sells Two Importnat Dahlonega Rarities - RareGoldCoins.com
During the course of the January 2010 FUN Convention in Orlando, arrangements were finalized for the sale of a 1907-Denver Mint Double Eagle that is possibly unique in Proof format. It is NGC certified as “Proof-62” with a “Farouk” pedigree noted. It is thus indicated that it was formerly in the epic collection of ...
Full Article: 1907 D Double Eagle Sells for More Than Half Million - CoinLink
During 2009, I wrote a series of "ten rarest" articles on all the major denominations of Liberty Head gold coinage. These articles were well-received and I enjoyed producing them. It’s a logical progression to apply this topic to the early gold series. Except it’s not quite ...
Full Article: The Ten Rarest Early Quarter Eagles - RareGoldCoins.com
It is a rarer and rarer occurrence when I get to feel like I am a 12-year-old kid again, but when Heritage sold a specimen of the 1913 Liberty Head nickel Jan. 7, I did.
I didn’t have a spare $3,737,500 to buy the coin for my collection, leaving the rarity to a fortunate East Coast coin collector to pick up. What I did have was the memory of another sale. I did not ...
Full Article: Do rare coin buyers feel like kids again? - Numismatic News
As recently as a few years ago, collecting Type Two Liberty Head double eagles was very popular. A marketing firm located in the Southwest had actively promoted this series, other firms had jumped on the Type Two bandwagon and the series had caught on with collectors. Then, with little warning, the aforementioned marketing firm shifted their focus onto ...
Full Article: Better Date Type Two Liberty Head Double Eagles: A Re-Evaluation - RareGoldCoins.com
In fields such as fine art and jewelry, market commentators have pointed out the growing divide between the best and the rest. Heritage Auction Galleries' Platinum Night U.S. coin auction at the January Florida United Numismatists shows that more than ever, well-heeled collectors are all gravitating toward a handful of landmark rarities.
The performance of top rarities at auction is important because ...
Full Article: The best and the rest - Coin Values
