Pedigree hoards

Unfortunately, NGC is bad about promotional slab labels with nonexistent "hoards", like the so-called "Colosseum Hoard" labels seen on a variety of ancients from different time periods and therefore highly unlikely to have been found in an actual single buried hoard. I've seen some other dodgy ones.

I wouldn't put it past PCGS, either. I'd not be surprised to find they'd done similar promotional labels, too, though I can't think of any examples offhand.

You're right to be skeptical about TPG labels touting some hoard pedigree or another. That being said, the majority of such pedigrees do have a legitimate provenance. I suppose it's up to the buyer to do the research and learn what's legit and what's hype. Caveat emptor.

Edit: I suppose my objection to NGC Ancients' "Colosseum Hoard" marketing is the misuse of the word "hoard", and what that implies. The average, uninformed buyer is likely to assume that those coins came from a buried hoard found in the Colosseum (the Flavian Amphitheater in Rome). The fact that they're merely a grouping of coins assembled in modern times for promotional purposes is much less romantic. "Hoard" is misleading in this context. "Colosseum Collection" would have been less objectionable.

 

So, in summary, I suspect the sad answer to that is, "Just because they want to". Or "to make a buck". Both, actually.

 

Aha. I did not stop to consider that it was other private individuals and bulk submissions that were creating these imaginary "hoards". I was putting too much blame on the TPGs.

Still, I think they need to tighten up on this sort of thing somehow. I'm not sure how they'd implement that, though.

Maybe if they realized they're tarnishing their brand images by allowing it.

Disallowing the use of the word “hoard” without legitimate provenance would be a good first step.

 

I find this objectionable.




I do not find this objectionable. Tacky looking, perhaps, but not ethically objectionable.
(The use of red on the slab label is a poor choice, since a red border denoted a "problem" coin on some other companies’ slab labels in the past. But that's irrelevant.)



Interestingly, I also found this. Note the word "hoard" on the label has been changed to "collection", though “hoard” is still used on the papers. I think this is better. Perhaps NGC got a clue. Maybe they got complaints about the fake "hoard" pedigree? Who knows.


Random examples plucked from eBay. No aspersions cast on the sellers. And I'm not targeting NGC specifically. I'm sure PCGS has made a few of their own faux pas with promotional labels.

(I was going to credit the image sources but botched those links.)

 

Yes. They're fine if they are pedigreed to an actual historical hoard. And if they are, it's sort of up to you to decide whether that's worth a premium to you or not. But be wary of marketing hype.

This is from a real hoard of medieval coins found in 1970, as stated on the label. I didn't pay any special premium for the hoard pedigree, though I did pay to have the coin slabbed (and had to submit documentation to PCGS to prove the pedigree).

England: silver penny of King John, ca. 1213-1215, from the Gisors hoard found in Normandy