What Books are in your Numismatic Collection?

The propose of this thread to share what books you have in your Numismatic Library
Please post the number of reference books you use in your hobby. Any specials editions,autographed editions, or out of print editions that others may not know existed .
Hopefully it may lead members here to the information they need to better their collection.
So let see what's in your library....

 

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Sitting next to me within reach are the following.
The United States Half dimes Valentine
Authoritative reference of seated half dimes Flynn
Authoritative reference of three cent silver coins Flynn
The F.IND.ERS Report Flynn /Steve
Breens encyclopedia
Treasure hunting buffalos Wexler,Pope,Flynn
The complete guide of shield and Liberty head nickels Peters / Mohon
The 2011 & 16 Red book other dates filed away including signed copies.
The guide book of Morgan silver dollars Bowers
A Charlton Standard catalogue for Canadian coins
Cherry pickers guide both vol 1 and 2
The best of Jefferson nickels Wexler/Ribar
God only knows how many otner books I have in the office.....the above list is my quick go to reference...As well as about 20 web sites booked marked on the puter and pad.
The tip of the ice berg....

 

I only have a 1975 Red Book that I found at work a few months ago. I wouldn't mind having other references but most of what I have needed I've found online. My wife says I have too many books anyways haha.

 

I imagine a few were hard to let go....either giving or selling.
One day I will need to make a decision to down size....as the 4 bed room home is no longer needed....and down sizing means a lot needs to go...Like a life time of knowlege and passion.

 

I have 62 numismatic books. Some of them are familiar general references, some of them are very rare specialized works on the series I collect or have collected.

 

Some here have impressive collections. (drool)

My limited library includes:
A Guide Book of United States Coins: 1956, 1965, 1968, 1969, 1977, 1996, 2003 & 2015
Always on the lookout at used book stores for missing issues.

The only other book I have is Penny Whimsey by William H. Sheldon.

 

Sort of sad in a way especially to us baby boomers who always relyed on books rather then a computer or the web as out first choice to find a reference.
I've just sort of got a flash of a a YN today using a card catalog in a libary to seek out a reference.....I love the old card files and know they do hold a nice premim when you can find an old oak file.
It has been years since my last libary visit other then to vote...... so my best guess file catalogs are long gone.

 

Twenty years of red and blue books. Two apraisal books, 5 how to collect and sell collections books, 5 world coin books, silver dollars, 4 issues of cherry pickers guides and many more!

 

Too many to list right now.
I need to create a digital file of them.
Then it would be easy to copy/paste.

 

I picked this one up on E-Bay, not long ago, for $20.00. There is some very interesting reading inside the cover.

 

Nice score...and looks to be in like new Condition

 

I have about a dozen of the basic books..
Red Book, Coin Digest, Paper Currency and Mint Error books.
This one I really recommend and it is my favorite!

 

At one time, I was up to about 24 feet and a dozen large boxes, maybe more. Now I'm down to about 8 feet and a couple of dozen boxes in storage.

Before the web, books were almost my only resource. I did have a great dealer friend that loved to teach and help me find the books I needed. His library was probably 20 feet long and 8 ft. tall but he would never sell me a book from his collection. We would get talking about some coin and he would start pulling books with the information.

In the last few years I have added Jason's grading book, two books from Roger Burdette and Paul Cunningham's book on Lincoln tokens, medals and plaques.

 

I like to pick up old SCWCs for less than $10 each (including shipping) so I have many different volumes of each century. Also have the set of paper money catalogs (and an old set of stamp catalogs). No idea how many but I like to look occasionally to find the price history over the years. Also got several old Red Books which I picked up used in bulk and a few Blue Books. As I am not a collector of US coins I don't buy new ones. I have several books on Germany coins, mostly in German which I don't read very well but can use as references with an online translator. Plus around ten other general ones which I heard about here and thought sounded interesting. Probably got a total of 25 books plus the catalogs. I also have around 200 old issues of the Numismatist from the period 1935-1960 in addition to the newer ones I got as an ANA member.

 

Then you do not know what you need. In other words, you do not appreciate how little you actually know or (worse) how little your sources are providing you. Take the best cases, say, PCGS CoinFacts. It is just a thumbnail. Similarly, for ancients and world, you can read CoinArchives or Wildwinds or VCoins all day and never actually get to the true histories and deeper facts that make material interesting to yourself and valuable in the marketplace.

Even books, nice as they are, are secondary sources. The journal articles come first, Bust Half, Seated Series, Lincoln Cents, etc., etc., whatever you pursue, there is a club of collectors pushing forward the boundaries of knowledge.

See my reply to GDJMSP: I also have been getting rid of books, but they are books that I have used in the past, though I no longer need them now.

And (1) I live near a major university with a library and a classics department (2) as an ANA member, I have access to their library.

 

The 100 Greatest Errors book has an error of its own if you compare it to the 100 Greatest Modern US Coins. Not my area, but when I brought both books in to a coin club meeting, one of the error collectors opened both books to the relevant pages for me. Things that make you say, "Hmmm...."

 

If I could find all my answers on the internet, then I wouldn't have the need to buy books. Guess what? The internet does not have all the answers. There is more copy and paste nonsense posted than in-depth factual information on many websites. The book I posted had info I could not find on the world wide web of one think. The internet is the modern day burn pile for books.

 

Sorry to hear that you are not in the ANA now. You would have electronic access to all 125 years. There's nothing like the electronic search to locate information. The Library and the Numismatist archives are the reason that I belong.

 

I collect Roman and Greek coins. I have something like 500 books with a few Auction cats and some individual articles I have copied. On average I buy about 5 to 10 books per year. There is an old saying "Buy the book before the coin" I agree with that statement completely. I would add "Buy the book during and even after you bought the coin."