sorry if this deserves to be in the resource forum but it seems nobody looks there. i am looking for dedicated to a single type of coin books, not a red book or cherry pickers guide. something that goes through every year the coin was made, showing different varieties, die pairings, and such. i am interested all the way from liberty cap half cents to early 20th century. i have been collecting for years but realized i can be missing special coins by just not having the literature to look it up. anything would be greatly appreciated, thank you
There is nothing that is all inclusive, but you may wish to consider Breen's encyclopedia (of US and colonial coins). While it's not perfect and is near 25 years old, and if I understand you correctly, it is about the closest you will come. The book is not cheap, but should be in every decent numismatic library. IMO, it's worth the price of admission.
Agreed. Its the closest to a "general" specialized book there is. Second I would recommend, (although in two volumes), the cherry pickers guide. Short of that, there is no alternative to buying the series specific books IMO.
If you are looking for a single book that covers all of these areas then there is none. However, if you want multiple books dedicated to various series then you can find those. Of course, they are written by myriad authors and have different styles. The Breen book might be mentioned as a good general guide, but it does not go through die marriages, does not have all that many images, has rarity ratings that can be wildly inaccurate and the work carries the reputation of having many half-truths within the text. Be careful if you rely on this work.
i am looking for multiple books each dedicated to a single type of coin. one book for indian head cents, another for capped halves and so on. i have heard that about Breens text being exaggerated sometimes on rarity ratings. they are not to bad $125/150 on the bay. and thank you for the responses
If you are looking for a single book on a particular series, I would suggest just asking here. We have many knowledgable collectors of each series. Myself I am more of an expert in ancient references, but know enough of US and world ones to pretend to know what I am talking about.
I don't know if this is what you're wanting but doesn't the red book series have books just on Morgan's, peace, etc etc?
i am asking about books because i have seen people here talk about special varieties on indian head cents and capped halves that are not in the red book and not sure if they are in the cherry pickers or not. i have knowledge on US coins and have several years experience of buying and selling so have seen a bit, i am always at a lost though when people post things similar to 09-947 die pairing variety error, thats something i just made up but thats the sort of thing i am talking about. also is there a book on snow varieties for the early small cents?
Google, or a visit to his site would have given a near instant answer to this question, but yes.... Mr. Snow does have a book ($100 IIRC and if still available) covering his FC/IHC varieties. If you're not interested in this, he has smaller books that just cover certain date ranges.
For Capped Bust Halves, a book to consider would be Early Half Dollar Die Varieties: Third Edition, I have not acquired it yet because it is pretty hard to find for a good price, but I have heard good things.
Here is a start...and it's free. Click the link, and pick a title on the left. http://blog.davidlawrence.com/
OK it sounds like what you want is a list of THE variety book for each series. I can give you some of them and some alternates. Hopefully some of the others can chime in with the series I don't know and flesh out some of the details. Half cents Breen Encyclopedia of United States Half Cents 1793 to 1857. Alternate is The Little Half Sisters by Roger Cohen Large cents Early dates Walter breens Encyclopedia of Early United States Cents 1793 - 1814. Alternate would be United States Large Cents 1793 to 1814 by William Noyes second Alternate would be Penny Whimsy by William Sheldon (Any edition but 1990) Middle dates. The Cent Book by John Wright. Alternate United States Large Cents 1816 to 1839 By William Noyes. Second alternate United States Cents 1816 to 1857 by Howard Newcomb. Late Dates U.S. cents 1840 to 1857 by Robert Grellman. Alternate are two new books by William Noyes don't know titles. Second alternate by a wide margin is The Newcomb book listed earlier. Indian Head cents. Snow has several books on theis series I don't know which is best. Lincoln cents This series to too vast to have one dedicated book There are literally thousands and thousands of varieties. Best choices are probably Looking through Lincoln cents by Charles Daughtery, Encyclopedia of Lincoln cents by Sol Taylor, and the Cherrypickers Guide. Two cent pieces I think Flynn's book on two cent pieces is probably the best, I don't know the actual title. Three cent silver Flynn has the only book I know of on this series. Three cent nickels The Ultimate Guide to US Three Cent Nickels 1865 to 1889 by Allan Gifford (This book is impossible to get. Only a few hundred copies and it has been out of print for over 20 years. There has been a copy up on Abesbooks for $500 for some time now but it is the only copy I've seen listed for over five years.) Alternate is another book by Flynn, not as good but it's a little more available. Half dimes Everything except Seated Federal Half Dimes 1794 to 1837. Long out of Print shows up from time to time. Seated Liberty Seated Half Dimes 1837 to 1873 by Al Blythe. Dimes Everything til 1837 Early United States Dimes 1796 to 1837 A great book but nearly impossible to get, will run you from $250 to $450 if you can find one. Seated The best book isn't a book it's a website http://www.seateddimevarieties.com/ Alternate is Liberty Seated dimes by Brian Greer. Barber Dimes Book by Flynn Mercury Another book by Flynn Roosevelts I'm not aware of one Twenty cent pieces Not aware of a good one Quarters 1796 to 1837 Early Quarter Dollars of the United States Mint Seated Liberty Seated Quarters 1838 to 1891 by Larry Briggs Barbers Book by Larry Flynn Standing Liberty Standing Liberty Quarters Fourth edition by J H Cline Washington I think there is a book but I don't know what it is. Half dollars 1794 to 1836 Early Half Dollar Die Varieties: Third Edition by Overton Alternate is the fourth edition. Reeded edge halves There is a new book that just came out Seated halves standard reference is by Wiley and Buggart, long out of print and not as complete as it needs to be. it can be read on line at http://blog.davidlawrence.com/ As a work in progress they are revising the book listed ALL of the known varieties and it is coming out one mint at a time. I think they have published three volumes so far. Barber halves Another book by Flynn There are books on the walkers, franklins, and kennedy's but I am not familiar with them Early Dollars Early dollars 1794 to 1803 by Jules Reiver (a revision of the Bolender book.) The Fantastic 1804 dollar by Newman and Bressett Seated Liberty Seated liberty Dollars by Wilmar White Covers series but not much on varieties. Trade Dollars The United States trade dollar: America's only unwanted, unhonored coin. by John M. Willem Morgan and Peace dollars The Comprehensive Catalogue and Encyclopedia of U. S. Morgan and Peace Silver Dollars by Leroy Van Allen and George Mallis fourth edition There is a book on Ikes I have a copy but don't remember the title I don't know of anything on the small size dollars although there is a good website on the, http://www.smalldollars.com/ I'm out of my league when we get to gold so I'll let someone who knows more take over.
Another option is to pick up auction catalogs for a series that you are interested in. I collect large cents so I found a set of auctions where premier collections (nearly every variety) were sold and I bought those catalogs. Look through the major auction companies past auctions until you find one for the type of coin you are interested in. Here is my example- http://images.goldbergauctions.com/php/toc_auc.php?site=1&lang=1&sale=54 The Dan Holmes and Naftzger collections are 300+ page books with amazing pictures and information on each variety of each year. I was able to pick up each of these for $25, much less than many of the books being sold.
