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Susan's Coins Blog

Cheerios Pennies

by Susan's Coins Blog on January 14, 2010

in Blogs, Susan's Coins Blog, U.S. Coins

I recently wrote about the Cheerios Dollars, which are the Sacagawea Dollars that were put into 5,500 lucky boxes of Cheerios cereal back in early 2000. These coins are fascinating because they were struck from a different set of dies than normal Sacagawea Dollars were struck from, and they're currently worth as much as $10k each because very few of them have come onto the market.

I should have foreseen the email avalanche I was about to be buried under! Although almost ...

Full Article: What About Cheerios Pennies? - Susan's Coins Blog

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Coin Grading Made Simple

by Susan's Coins Blog on January 6, 2010

in Blogs, Coin Certification or Grading, Susan's Coins Blog

Learning how to properly grade coins is perhaps the biggest challenge new coin collectors face. Understanding the proper grade for a coin is core to establishing its value. Whether your goal is to make more savvy coin purchases, or to appraise your own collection, being able to grade your own coins is a skill that is not optional. Although ...

Full Article: Coin Grading Made Simple - Susan's Coin Blog

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Every once in a while, I come across a coin related site that is just so well-done and fascinating that I am eager to share it with everyone I talk to. SmallDollars.com is one of those sites!

Its entire focus is on the smaller U.S. One Dollar coins of the past 30 years, specifically the Susan B. Anthony Dollar, the Sacagawea Dollar, and the ever popular ...

Full Article: Those Wonderful Small Dollars! -  Susan's Coins Blog

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There are a number of fairly valuable U.S. error coins and die varieties in circulation today. These coins are overlooked by people because they have small distinguishing characteristics, such as a modest doubling of the coin image, or minute differences in the size or spacing of the letters in the legends. Learn which of your pocket change coins is worth a large premium over face value, and why...

Full Article: Most Valuable U.S. Coins Found in Pocket Change - Susan's Coins Blog

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Have you ever wondered why some error coins are so well-known and worth so much money, while others are virtually ignored? Take, for example, the 1937-D 3-legged Buffalo Nickel. The missing leg was caused by a Mint worker being careless while cleaning a coin die; he accidentally erased part of the leg. This sort of accidental erasure is known to exist on most circulating coin types to a greater or lesser degree.

Why do we know about the 3-legged Buffalo Nickel, and why are specimens worth many hundreds of dollars or more?...

Full Article: The Most Hyped Coin in History - Susan's Coins Blog

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When it comes time to find a local coin dealer, either to show him some coins to learn what they are and how much they're worth, or you want to sell some coins, you shouldn't go to the yellow pages first.

Many of the people listed under "Coins" in the yellow pages are pawn brokers, junk bullion buyers, jewelers, and others who don't collect or study rare coins; they just buy them cheap, often for the bullion value of the metal only...

Full Article: How to Find a Local Coin Dealer - Susan's Coins Blog

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Many people like to start a coin collection for their children, or grandchildren, as a sort of investment for them. These collections are typically held by the parent or grandparent on the child's behalf, with the intention of giving them to the child at a certain age, or as an inheritance, although sometimes the coins are given directly to the children.

Full Article: How Do I Start a Coin Collection for My Children? - Susan's Coins Blog

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Rare Coins at Face Value!

by Susan's Coins Blog on June 3, 2009

in Blogs, Coin Collector Education, Susan's Coins Blog

Like many coin collectors, I got my start in the hobby as a child, by finding something strange or unusual among the daily pocket change.

As a kid in the '60s, Wheat Cents were plentiful, and my heart always skipped a beat when I saw a 1955 as I scrutinized it to decide whether it might be the 1955 Doubled Die or not. (Little did I know that had I actually found one, the doubling was so severe that it would jump right out at me!)...

Full Article: Rare Coins at Face Value! - Susan's Coins Blog

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The Breen Book – Online and Free!

by Susan's Coins Blog on April 30, 2009

in Blogs, Coin Books, Susan's Coins Blog

One of most important coin collecting books about U.S. coins is called Walter Breen's Complete Encyclopedia of U.S. and Colonial Coins.

Often referred to as "the Breen book," this seminal tome was published in 1988. Its 768 pages are crammed full of numismatic minutia about every known U.S. coin, from the early colonial period all the way to the date of publication...

Full Article: The Breen Book - Online and Free! - Susan's Coins Blog

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20 Questions With the U.S. Mint

April 15, 2009

U.S. Mint Director Ed Moy recently held a Coin Collectors forum in Puerto Rico in conjunction with the launch of the Puerto Rico quarter.
U.S. Mint Collectors Forums are public question-and-answer sessions where a U.S. Mint executive, usually the director, provides information to the public and tries to gain a feel for how the public is [...]

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Mint to Resume Signature Req By March 13

March 4, 2009

Maybe today will be the Big Day when we get some statements from the U.S. Mint about long outstanding issues. I found this in my email this morning from the Mint’s Office of Public Affairs:
The United States Mint does not currently require delivery signature for packages. However, due to customer demand, the United States Mint [...]

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Beware of 2009 Penny Scams!

February 25, 2009

The new 2009 pennies still aren’t circulating anywhere, judging by the research I conducted yesterday. I called 21 banks around the country Tuesday afternoon, talking mostly to supervisory tellers and assistant bank managers (whoever handles the currency and coinage inventory), in an effort to discover whether any of them have seen the new Log Cabin [...]

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U.S. Mint Issues Statements Regarding Fulfillment and Web Site Issues

February 23, 2009

The U.S. Mint has issued two statements this morning regarding the recent issues on its Web site. I’m going to publish both statements in their entirety because I know everyone will want to read them for themselves.
The first statement seems to be a lot of blather that surrounds one very important point, which I have [...]

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Busy Week Ahead for the U.S. Mint

February 12, 2009

It will be a very busy week for the U.S. Mint in the next seven days, with three coin releases coming up. Two of them are very high-profile coins, including the first of the new Lincoln Cent designs, (the Log Cabin Penny), and the Lincoln Commemorative Dollar.
The third coin, launching on Feb. 16 (Presidents Day) [...]

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How Do Coin Dealers Get So Many Coins That Are Limited to One Per Person?

February 5, 2009

David A. in Kentucky writes in to ask, “If we are only allowed to order one 2009 ultra high relief gold coin, how do the coin dealers get so many?”
The way coin dealers get so many limited-issue, one-per-person coins is that they have all of their employees each buy as many as they can in [...]

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