Hitting the books at coin school

acanthite · 07-08-2009, 01:18 AM

As some of you know I am presently at the ANA Summer Seminar at Colorado Springs, CO. I have been here for close to two weeks now, classes end in a few days.

Last year Hobo gave a detailed and very informative account of the event. I cannot do equal justice to everything I have experienced here, but will at least give a basic sketch.

The first week here I took a basic grading course to US coins. The instructors were former and present graders at PCGS and ANACS. Since I have never had 'instruction' at grading coins, I went ahead and did the first course of the series. I was not disappointed, as the classes were rapid and engaging, and involved grading plenty of US series that I do not collect and therefore do not know how to grade. In addition most coins were uncirculated, another area I know relatively little about. Most days we graded non-stop both morning and afternoon sessions, spending between 30-45 seconds per coin, then reviewing our results with the grades of the instructors and with the grades marked on the slabs (covered with stickers when we did the grading). Everything was on the table, from circulated merc dimes to $20 gold. I got plenty out of the course, and could do another just like it and get as much out of it again.

Also last week I went to a few different lectures on Mexican coinage, taught by a numismatist who is also a member of CT (Ricardo de Leon Tallavas). These talks were very well done and I got a great deal out of them.

This week I am taking a five day course on counterfeit and alterated coin detection, taught by J.P. Martin and Bob Campbell. This course has been very useful and I think will be the most important information I will get out of this trip. We have been able to handle counterfeits and forgeries of all types, all from the ANA archives. The class normally runs over the mandated time, in order to get in as much information as possible.

Also this week I took night courses in varieties and errors, and a course taught by George Cuhaj and Joe Paonessa on the minting process. The latter was hands-on, using a jeweler's punch and press to create coins out of pewter. Naturally the attraction is to create errors, such as brockages, strike-throughs, clips, chain strikes, etc. Just as fun was making ancients using a hammer and a blob of silver.

What is as valuable as the courses in this seminar is the chance to speak to a great variety of collectors, some of whom are leading experts in their fields. The format is very informal, everyone eats lunch in the cafeteria, so it is possible to talk to just about anyone in attendance. The names of the more well-known numismatists here this week reads like a list of many of those authors CT members probably have in their numismatic library. In addition several of the senior graders at PCGS, NGC, ANACS, and DGS are instructors in many of the courses. For someone in the coin business or doing research in a numismatic field, the networking potential is rich.

I will not regret attending this seminar and will make a great effort to come back next year. It is encouraging that there are so many YNs here, and that the ANA is trying hard to get as many as possible to stay interested in the hobby. At the auction last week about $20000 was raised for the granting of YN scholarships next year.

Any specifics on the above I would be glad to answer but I will leave it to anyone interested to ask questions.

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