Jeff

Establishing the value of a rare coin is one of the basic requirements for being a professional coin dealer. Most use the usual price guides, such as the Greysheet or the Red Book, auction records, grading service price guides, population reports, and many [...]

Among the most short-lived series of United States coins are the Twenty Cent pieces struck from 1875 to 1878. Although the coins were made for a very short time, the series contains several interesting and, in some cases, very rare issues. Collectors usually seek [...]

This afternoon, I saw another slip in the prices for gold and silver. At the time of writing, the spot price of gold stands at $1,710, and the price of silver just slipped below $18 for the first time in [...]

Each year about this time (leading up to the ANA World’s Fair of Money), Heritage Auctions and Stack’s Bowers Galleries send their catalogs for their summer auctions. This year’s editions feature over 20 separate catalogs covering ancient and world coins, colonial coinage, early copper coins, [...]

One of the more interesting kinds of coin made by the United States Mint over the last 200-plus years are those that can be called “transitional issues.” These coins straddle both an old design and the new one replacing it, often the [...]

In Part I, I began a date-by-date analysis of the very popular Indian Head Half Eagle series. This week, we conclude the series by examining those coins struck from 1911 to 1929. There are some real “killers” in this series, but it [...]

Recently, I discussed the very popular Indian Quarter Eagle series. The Indian Quarter Eagle set consists of just 15 coins and can be completed with moderate effort and modest funds. This week, I will start with a date-by-date analysis of the Indian Half [...]

During a recent visit to the vaults of the Smithsonian National Numismatic Collection (NNC), I ran across some amazing numismatic paraphernalia. One of the metal cabinets contains several shelves from the estate of Charles Barber, the Chief Engraver of the United States Mint from [...]

Whenever someone sits down with a financial consultant to make determinations for investing, one of the first questions that might be asked is: “What is your tolerance for risk?” This question is crucial for several reasons and can be applied [...]

After a nearly three-year hiatus, the ANA Summer Seminar returns to Colorado Springs this year. Strict COVID-19 restrictions at Colorado College forced the cancellation of the iconic numismatic education event for 2020 and 2021. Summer Seminar is one of the best programs the American Numismatic Association conducts. Each [...]