I know, printed catalogs are a thing of (mostly) the past, but I printed my last catalog in 1999. I was looking about my bookshelves and was reminiscing. Here is the last catalog I published, printed and mailed. Possibly of interest to some. It does show an insight into where the market was then and where it is now. CT software has not put them in the right order, but here they are:
While there are stories behind each coin, of interest: Lot #86. Unique, now published in RPC Lot #97. Now owned by a CT member. Lot #113. I showed it to one well known major dealer. Yea, we all know him. Unapproachable. He said he could use the pit on the obverse and create a well known royal countermark, thus 'creating' a very valuable provenance for it and thereby increasing the value by nearly 10 times. No. I didnt sell it to him! Lot #131. Far as I know still unique and as yet unpublished. Lot #157. Never dud sell it, kept it for myself! Lot #222. Never did sell it, I kept it for myself! The Luristan weapons. Well, a story behind those! I was nearly arrested at customs in London as I was accused of attempting to smuggle weapons on an airplane. Remember this is before 9/11, so I cant even figure what they were thinking. I only barely got them on the plane, and almost did not recover them when I landed in San Francisco!
Very interesting, I just wish I was collecting ancients in those days, could have picked up a few bargains by today's standards.
Old catalogs and price guides are fun to look through. It shows how much a hobby has changed. Mainly due to the internet.
