Just a heads up guys... the "last" batch of DC 2022 morgans and peace dollars went up for sale this morning... Yeah I've known this for a few days now but kept mostly quiet until I had my CC ordered... (to go with my p and s) They won't last long Beat's the hell out of the US mint offerings
I sold most of my DC coins. I got tired of the fantasy restrikes, as they are not legal tender coins, but copies of extant coinage. They break no new ground. His alternative currency tokens are interesting, though. No doubt that he is a skillful ingraver, and the 1964D Peace Dollar fantasy issue is cool, for its association with a celebrated coin.
Most of my DCs are outright fantasy coins... 1815 LC, $40 silver St G.. etc but a few restrikes as well.. in the case of the morgans... I got skunked by the US mint 3 times on the 21s and similar for the 22s.. On review of the offerings I think DCs 2022 morgan restrikes far outshine the crap coins the mint produced. I'll probably never be a "major" collector of Dan's work but the 7-8 pieces I have now I enjoy looking at and showing off as well. I can't say that about anything the US Mint has produced in the last 20 years.
I guess I don't stay close to Morgans and Peace Dollars. Since I don't see them listed in the Product 2022 list of coins released, I am assuming that an independent company/individual minted the 2022 coins. OR... I was out to lunch for something? As for the 2023 Morgan and Peace Dollars, I only got the Peace Dollar. I had a doctor's appointment when they were released and the Morgan was already sold out. As for the 2023 Morgan and Peace Dollars.. are they better than the 2021 coins?
Yes an "independent" company/individual... Specifically and individual by the name of Daniel Carr (DC for short) the company "Clark Gruber and company" Now "Moonlight Mint"... Dan's work appears on many modern US coin and his/moonlight mints coins and medals have been certified and graded by all 4 major TPGs now. Admitted they are exonumia or fantasy coins, but his work just shows how crappy (read that as CHEAP) the work of the us mint has become. If I'm gonna spend the amount of money the mint is asking for the new morgans, I'm gonna spend it on a piece I love to look at and show off... as for value... In the present market fantastic... the future will tell but I'm betting on Dan Here's a bit of the history of the company from their home page... The firm of Clark Gruber & Co. established operations in Denver during the Colorado Gold Rush. Beginning in 1860, Clark Gruber began converting miner’s gold into coins which were readily accepted and circulated locally in the Denver area and beyond. The firm was so well-respected that the US Government bought them out in the mid-1860s, first running the operation as an assay office and then eventually converting it into the Denver Mint. In an ironic twist, in 2001 the Denver Mint sold one of their surplus Grabener coin presses which became a core asset of Moonlight Mint in 2008, and now a reanimated Clark Gruber & Company. Clark Gruber coins are today highly-prized by collectors for their rarity and history. The tradition of Clark Gruber is now carried on. And here's a few of his other pieces (note the "bronze" and "gold tone" pieces I had to take the pic's in a dark room as they reflect ANY light lol The dollar at the bottom was a submitted prototype but sacagawea won I was lucky to find one of the extras
I don’t understand people’s fascination for his work. The “restrikes” are fine because he uses what are already considered to be good designs. But his original creations? “Buzz’s girlfriend, WOOF.” His rendition of the St Gaudens Liberty looks like a 4th grade clip art project. The eagle and sun on that dollar coin are not aesthetically pleasing at all. I only mention those two because they were posted in this thread. But most of the other original designs I’ve seen have been blah at best. It’s probably an unpopular opinion but I felt like ranting.
I "liked" your post. Not because I agree with you, or disagree with you (I've heard of Daniel Carr but knew nothing about him until this post), but because I "liked" your ability to express your opinion. I love CoinTalk!
This is how I see it, too. He's a skilled technician. Straight copies of original designs he does well. Some of his inanimate object designs are good. People and animals have always been not good. If he worked with an actual artist that could design stuff, producing galvanos he could digitize, the original designs would be much better. I'm more of a Ron Landis/Gallery Mint person, myself.
They are no doubt high quality pieces, very well made. But the designs not so much. The wings and shield look out of place and the stars make the whole thing way too busy. Not only that, it’s another copy of someone else’s design, just with clip art added.
