The Coin Collectors of the World...

Greetings All,

As some may have noticed I've been absent lately from the discussions. It has been a pretty difficult month of November. My mother passed away, three days later our youngest daughter (Meghan) was diagnosed with appendicitis and her appendix was removed, add the daily grind of trying to run a business and you can quickly find yourself "Wrapped-Around-The-Axel" so to speak, but things are getting better. Megh is home now and the final plans for the funeral are all set...

My coin question now. In your opinion what percentage of households in the world have at least one coin collector. I would consider a collection to be five or more coins and the household can be a large extended family or as small as one person.

I know that in some global areas of turmoil and poverty this would be considered an absurd question, but you can also answer with only the statistics from your homeland and in the thread forming below let us know what nation your referring to.

Thanks to all who participate and a Wonderful Holiday Season to all

Take Care
Ben

 

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Sorry about your Mom and your daughter's problem. Glad your daughter is home and doing well. I'd have to say less than 1%. I'm using the total world view for this answer. My feeling is that most of the world would consider coin collecting an outrageously expensive hobby.

 

Looks like 10 and 20% are winning but with 80-90% in hot pursuit..LOL..not sure what that means.
My question would be whether a larger percentage of casual collectors would mean that our (full blown collectors) coins will be worth more or less.If you think about it,it could go either way,especially in the long run.The statehood quarters program was a good experiment,adding millions of new collectors at least temporarily.
How do you all think will affect the hobby over the long haul?

 

I've always thought it was a pretty tiny percentage. But lately I've been discovering more and more people I know who collect a little bit.
I think the hobby is probably biggest in the U.S. than it is in other countries

 

Well I think there is a difference between "collectors" and "accumulators". A lot of people are accumulating the statehood and Jefferson nickels from pocket change and not actually "collecting". That is what may seem like a lot of people are collecting but are in fact just going through change.

 

I voted other - it is too hard to answer since everyone at work(and most in my family) have at least statehood quarter collections or proof sets. I know others that throw all wheaties and old jeff nickels into cans at their houses, but I would not call them collectors, and yet they meet your criteria. My brother travels all over the world with several others - they all bring back local currency for their kids(except my brother). So they all meet the criteria - heck I think everybody I know tosses coins into a jar or something. I really do not know how this is handled through out the world or if it even counts. So OTHER it is.

 

Ben,
I am sorry to here about your mom and daughter my prayers are with you.

 

Sorry to hear about your Mom, Ben, and I hope your daughter is healing well.

 

Sorry about your loss Ben.

I put in a vote for half. As defined, I think it's just as likely as not for someone in a family to have saved at least a few coins that have some special meaning beyond their face value. This might not qualify as numismatics, but it's still collecting.

 

I am also sorry I am sorry I didnt Know sooner I just havent been on in a while

 

Hello Ben,

I can relate to your difficult times and I have shared your sorrow. Great news that your daughter is recovering and may you find peace in knowing that your Mom is in hands much larger than ours.
May peace be with her.


RickieB

 

Thank You everyone for the kind thoughts, but things are getting easier daily

Thanks and Take Care All
Ben

 

I think you should have raised the minimum. I don't think there's a household where there isn't a dish or somewhere in the house that those "strange" coins ( sacs, kennedy's, wheats, etc.) find themselves. Just ask someone if they have a "penny" jar.

 

Yes, your right. Placing emphasis on collecting (knowing the distinct facts about their coins, etc.) instead of accumulation. That was my objective, but alas, the post is posted Also adjusting the choices somewhat, like 10% or less...

 

Not everone in the world is fortunate enough to keep coins as luxury goods like us forum members.
I highly doubt many people in densley populated places (i.e. China, India, etc.) collect coins for fun. Yes, they may have some old coins that they keep as keep sakes, but collecting them is a different story.

I would max my guess to somewhere around 3-4% globally, 40% in the U.S.
I consider a family as being your immediate family: Mom & Dad, Bro &/or Sis, and Son &/or Daughter.

 

I have a sister-in-law who has one of each ¥500 coin minted. She buys one from her bank, puts it in a little box, and doesn't open the box again until she needs to put another coin in it. Under the poll standards, is she a "collector"? She sure as doesn't fit my definition of a numismatist!

 

What then, is the criteria for someone to be considered a numismatist?

 

Not a big fan of Wikipedia, but in this case I agree.

IMHO "study" is the key word.

 

I would think its very low as well...I am the only person I know outside the internet that collects coins...nobody in my family collects, nobody were I work, no friends collect...just little ol me

IMO...most heavy duty collectors are numismatists...IMO one cannot be a numismatist without having looked and studied many coins, coin types, money through history and the best way to do so is to collect them...It had NOTHING to do with grading and EVERYTHING to do with the knowledge gain through years of collecting and reading.

IMO a good little write up on it:

nu·mis·mat·ics The study or collection of money, coins, and often medals

Numismatics is not just the study of money, it encompasses history, art, archeology and borrows bits from geology, mathematics, metallurgy, economics, statistics, genealogy, sociology, and government. Numismatists studying coins, banknotes, stock certificates, medals, medallions, and tokens. It is a field almost as ancient as the money and medals it studies.
A coin collector is not a numismatist, but can be. A numismatist is almost always a coin collector or a collector of money and medals. It is more than just collecting, it is a desire to discover the history, minute details of the monetary system in general whether modern or in antiquity. A trained eye for detail and a good memory is a must.
Collecting coins often leads to expertise in that field thus Numismatists almost always are collectors of coins often specializing in general aspects such as World or Ancients, Paper, Coin or even further specializing in more specific areas of interest such as Conder Tokens, coins of one era in time, coins of one country, one ruler, etc.
Every coin, every bill, every medal is a small piece of history that helps paint a picture of the society it was made for. The time, the place, the man, the government, current concerns, Past accomplishments, political propaganda, or just pleasing designs....all in the palm of your hand and more often than not there are thousands more just like it. Money serves an important historical purpose as well as its primary purposes being propaganda and a system of exchange and valuation. Along with its primary purpose for commerce all money has a message from the government, the ruler, or the society to the populous who spends that money, the world, and the future generations that coin makers know will be their audience.
Currency is a great visual and tactic way to take a look into another culture or another time in human history. It is a great device for learning as there are a wide range of choices at just as wide ranging prices. Un-cleaned roman coins are a cheap affordable way to introduce young people to archeology, numismatics and make learning history fun and hands on. A jar of coins from around the world is a great way to help teach students about another culture.

It goes on but you get the idea..