You know Medoraman, I hate to admit it, but that is 100% correct! Ah, who cares? I love my mole hills! Lol!
I'm taking a break from collecting, too. Financial reasons. I still go my local coin shows and look around, say hi, and pick up something cheap and weird that catches my eye. If I can't find anything, I'll just buy a 1 oz. silver something (Aussie, Canadian, or Panda). I stay interested in the hobby by researching and writing about coins.
I'll just say that I have been on a break (from buying) for over a year. It sucks. But I'm always here learning and participating. Living vicariously through the newps of others. Helps take the sting out a bit, and constantly gives me reason to re examine the current collection for newly discovered varieties. It also helps that when I was last buying I bought individual coins as well as bulk holdings several times over and still haven't looked closely at much of it.
Lol, I do that too. Sometimes when I am in a lull I dig up old purchases. For example, I have always wanted a large Iranian silver from the early 1900's with the lion holding the sword. A few weeks ago I went through a large lot I bought about 6 years ago and there were two in there! Sweet, I guess I don't have to buy another now.
I realize at least two folks have said this is accurate, but this is actually incorrect and a correction should be pointed out. The part in bold is the definition of a die marriage and not a variety. The last sentence in the above is, of course, simply opinion.
+1 Got to pay down the Christmas debt, and focus on some house projects. I'm hoping getting some books from the ANA Library will keep me in the hobby for first quarter of 2015, without making it cost much. But of course, I continue to check CT daily, and GC, and HA, and SB, and EB, oh boy!
This is a quote from www.largecents.net, "My specialty is collecting the early dates, 1793 to 1814, by Sheldon variety. A variety is simply a coin struck from a unique obverse/reverse die pairing. There are 295 different Sheldon varieties in all." While this is the definition of a die marriage, they are also considered varieties in early coppers.
Splitting hairs IMHO, since many early collectors collect by Sheldon or other applicable number. Effectively they have numbered every die marriage and collect them as each is a unique Type. Ask any early copper collector as to what constitutes a "complete collection". Please inform me as to what other series on earth are as collected, and collected by die marriage as thoroughly, if my "last sentence, of course, simply opinion". I am fairly aware of most coins from throughout the world and ages, and I have never seen such a thing except in very limited instances, such as signed Syracusan Tets which of course are horribly rare and expensive. Another example of the hyper collecting of US coins is things like doubled dies, repunched dates, etc. Can you point me to another country series where such defects are as horribly expensive as they are here?
I guess it is splitting hairs, but as written originally I don't know that you would receive universal agreement among those who work in the hobby/industry about the definition and, since this is in a thread started by someone new to collecting, I thought another viewpoint might be useful. You know a well as I do that anyone can define a "complete collection" so that isn't very helpful. Also, extending the definition of die marriage to mean "a unique Type" goes too far, too, in my opinion. The opinion part of my post was your supposition that US coins are collected so intensely along die marriages "because we have so little history here". Is that really the reason? If so, for what percentage of those collectors is that the reason? Are there other reasons? Do all researchers agree that this is the only reason? That was my point about opinion. Another country that appears to go as far in some areas and beyond the US collector base for minutia is Canada. Regardless of if we are in complete agreement or not, and it appears we might not be, there is a whole wide range of grey.
Don't get bogged down by the minutia. Well, unless of course you are looking for some excuse to take a break from this hobby.
I am sure we are in agreement sir, I hope so anyway given your exemplary reputation. I always read US coin collecting really delved into the die marriages because when it started in earnest in this country around 1858 there wasn't a lot of US coins to collect. Hence, early collectors divided up existing coinage as finely as possible for it to appear there were more US coins than there really were, since countries like France and Great Britain had just hundreds of varieties to collect. Combine this with the great explosion of popularity in collecting here 100 years later, (unprecedented in the world), and you have a tradition of collecting and making a big deal out of tiny little variations. At least that is how I have read our numismatic history. Btw, I always welcome a good discussion. Sorry if my previous post did not infer that. I think every assertion should be challenged.
I take a break quite often sometimes I don't look at coins for a month or 2. I've taken years off from collecting. Lately finances don't permit a lot. Maybe one or 2 purchases a month just had a major one so it'll be a couple months before I can buy anything
Great thread as I just logged on (and started back w/ coins) after a self-induced 4-5 month hiatus. As most have said, I think it's a good thing as everything at the LHS and eBay is now new again!! (well, save for a few Au58 Peace Dollars a seller is crazy high on) hehe