Should proof sets from the early 40's 1940,41,42 be kept in the original mint box and plastic? I thought that I read somewhere that the plastic would damage the coins and should be put in plastic holders..Thanks RB
The short answer is, it depends. Many buyers are enamored with the idea of buying such sets in their original packaging and will pay strong money for them. On the other hand, the coins are not as well protected in the cellophane and are more subject to toning, which can be a good or bad thing. Additionally, if there are some especially high grade examples, it might be better to have some of the coins graded. Can you post images?
I would agree, it does depend. But there is this to consider when making such a decision. In 30 years of searching I managed to see 1, let me repeat - 1, '36-'42 Proof set in original packaging. It was a '41. That's it, never even got a whisper of another in all that time. So anybody who has one of those Proof sets from those years, in original packaging, has got quite a rarity on their hands. So great care and a lot of thought would need to be taken before making such a decision. Now bear in mind, the packaging needs to be original. With many of the boxed Proof sets, those from the '50s, the packaging is not original. There are many made up sets, or sets where the original packaging has been altered or changed.
I've probably seen a couple of dozen such sets over a 30 year period, but, as Doug said, they are quite scarce. The cellophane and old style staples should make them fairly easy to identify. Sometimes the cellophane is torn and the staples have potential to cause problems/damage, as well.
I sure wish I had known you during all those years I was searching for them Mark. You're probably only the 3rd or 4th person I've ever talked to who claimed to have ever even seen one of those sets.
I purchased a 1938 set from the original owner who ordered it from the mint. It was still in the original packaging. But I think that is the only original set from that era I have ever seen. You have to remember that a lot of the proofs from that era were probably not sold as sets. Up through 1942 collectors could order the individual coins and that is probably how most of them were sold. The "sets" mintage you see in the reference books is the lowest mintage of the individual coins. It is a theoretical maximum number of sets that could be assembled.
