Articles by Jeff Garrett

Collecting United States coins by die variety has its origins in early copper coinage. Some of the first specialty books for U.S. coins were for Colonial coinage and Large Cents. Generations of collectors have been searching for rare varieties of these early copper coins. Over [...]

One of the greatest innovations in the history of the hobby was the introduction of coin boards in the 1930s. Coin collecting was a fad during the Great Depression for those seeking a distraction from the world’s maladies. The process of filling holes in [...]

Hardly a day goes by that a collector or dealer does not call me to consult on the value of a rare or unusual numismatic item. One of the skills most frequently utilized by professional coin dealers is the ability [...]

The rare coin market was profoundly changed about 25 years ago when the internet started to become a tool for business instead of something for computer hobbyists. Forward-thinking dealers began to build websites and find ways to capitalize on this [...]

In recent years, the demand for rare coins at the top end of the marketplace has soared. Multi-million-dollar hammer prices have become commonplace. The most recent collecting trend that continues to amaze me has been the emergence of mega-rich collectors [...]

Numismatic publications are full of headlines about seemingly low-value coins bringing amazing sums in ultra-condition. I have personally observed lines of people at rare coin conventions submitting handfuls of coins that are not worth the cost of the submission. How [...]

Several years ago, while attending the Whitman Baltimore Convention, I had the pleasure of spending some time talking to numismatic legend Harvey Stack. When Harvey passed away early this year, we all lost an important link to numismatic history. Thankfully, Harvey had [...]

The Gobrecht silver dollar is a complicated yet fascinating series. At first glance, many would think that the Gobrecht silver dollar series would be rather simple to understand. The coins are dated 1836, 1838, and 1839. How hard could that be? It [...]

The recently completed Stack’s Bowers sales featuring the first and last American Silver and Gold Eagles saw record prices for pedigreed modern coins sold at auction, stunning most observers. Touted as the Dusk to Dawn Anniversary issues, the coins were the last 500 Type 1 and first 500 Type [...]

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 [...]