The Beloved PCGS Old Green Holder (OGH) Passed Approximately 15-Years Ago This Month

I’m not a historian of TPG holders and slab generations, but I have been around the hobby-industry continuously for the last two decades or so and I’ve noticed quite a few changes. One change has been in the acceptance and/or later rejection of various TPGs, the generations of holders used and the standards employed to grade coins (and to determine problem coins) over time. Another change has been the much later creation of a formal, though not universally accepted, process to review grades and determinations on already certified coinage.

Over time, the previously ubiquitous OGH went from the holder du jour at PCGS, to recently phased out, to somewhat appreciated and now to pursued or, with some, near-rabidly hunted. The coins grouped under the OGH umbrella are generally separated from the rattler era, but within the OGH grouping there are at least four distinct subtypes that can be readily distinguished from one another. This is not meant as a holder generation article since Conder101 has already produced a fantastic series of posts on the subject as well as written the most complete reference work within the niche. Rather, this is more of an homage to a retired holder style that brings back fond memories of a time when grading standards were a little different, when what one might expect to find on the bourse would not be the same as today and when the market definitely had a different feel to it.

The rattler holder used until late 1989-



The four distinct OGH slabs used from late 1989 through the fall of 1998 (green label without PCGS on the front, doily label, dot matrix printing style and then the most commonly found OGH with smoother printing font)-






I purchased a raw Columbian half dollar at the Parsippany, NJ show on September 6, 1998 (I keep meticulous records) and submitted the coin shortly thereafter to PCGS for grading. At that time I had never seen one of the new blue insert holders and when I received the coin back from PCGS in mid-October, 1998 I was stunned to notice the dramatic color change and overall layout change for the holder. I brought the coin to the November, 1998 Parsippany, NJ show and walked it around to other dealers only to receive the same reaction from them in that no one had seen this new holder previously. Recall that in late 1998 the internet was not the all encompassing behemoth that it is today and that information about coins was not nearly so well shared. Additionally, ebay was only a tiny fraction of what it is today and I can recall going through all the US coin listings on ebay within a few hours during this time period. Therefore, announcements and images would not be on everyone’s radar.

I had high hopes for that Columbian half dollar because the reverse was just so dang nice. Alas, it only graded MS64 and, even after holding it for fifteen years, I would lose money on the coin if I were to sell it today. Below is an image of the coin-



Over the years it was at first somewhat comical to read descriptions of coins in OGHs as somehow being more desirable or worth more than other coins. It was probably a full three or four years after the change that I realized there was something more to this “fad” than marketing, or at least the marketing had much better staying power than previously anticipated. For those of you who missed the entire OGH era, who were there and wish you still owned more OGH coins or who snicker at the entire slab generation obsession, please feel free to add coins, information or better nail down the date of transition from the venerable OGH to the more modern blue insert holders.

 

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I never collected during this period and it has only been resntly that i have had enough money to start buying slabbed coin, i must say i do like the old greenies and personally have 2 in my collection a 1944 ms66 merc and a 1935 Arkansas Comm in ms63 with CAC !! Thanks for posting Sean

 

Very interesting. Thank you for posting this.

Yes many dealers are working the OGH resubmit phase right now for profit. If you pick the right ones you can usually get a plus grade. I just talked to someone that did just that with a 1946S Walking Liberty half dollar. Sent in an OGH MS67 and got back a new MS67+. The coin went from $3600 to $6000 just like that.

 

The OGHs and rattlers are routinely broken out for shots at upgrade. Of the 120-or so coins that I have submitted to CAC from my own collection, I have received 13 gold CAC stickers and 11 of those that received gold CAC stickers were in OGH era holders.

 

I had let Conder know about the date of these a few years ago as well as a few other minor tweaks or corrections to previously published date ranges so this should already be incorporated in any new work.

Yes, the third OGH was not always colorfast so one might end up with something like the coin and slab below-

 

Interesting writeup . Though I think the resubmit game with the OGH has been mostly played out with most already being cherrypicked . Not to say there isn't more out there just that the majority that would qualify for an upgrade have already been resubmitted . But there are always OGH that have been in someones collections since they 1st came out that are now reentering the market . To play the game you must know how to grade and tell a high end coin from an average for the grade coin . JMHO . Good hunting .

 

these are few and far between now. i see pcgs has a new blue fade insert now lol ,I miss holders without the edge view prong nonsense that overlaps on the coin.

 

It occurs to me that over the years I have never owned a PCGS Doily or an NGC generation 1 black slab. I have owned a bunch of 1st generation PCGS rattlers though. Nice thread Tom, very informative.