Back in the early 1970’s, I was a pre-pubescent awkward teen fully consumed with coins. I was also poor which made this gift of two GSA Morgan’s from my granddad an incredibly special gift to me. I was enthralled with the holder. I could prop them up on my nightstand and look at them every waking moment, though I didn’t even consider that permanently encasing coins would become the standard in numismatics. I believe that these GSA holders were the first time coins were commercially encased. We had Capital type holders, but this GSA holder was something different. I have often wondered if these GSA holders were the inspiration that created the TPG industry. Were there commercially encased coins prior to the GSA Morgan’s?
Gee whiz, I need a grandpa like that! He did give me a Silver Eagle back when they were worth about $15... No CC Morgans tho.
The GSA holders were the first as far as I know and I referred to them as such in my book. The GSA holders came out in 1972 and no other slab type holders were used in the US until 1984 (Accugrade). Worldwide though the second hard plastic slab type holder came from SAGCE (South Africa Gold Coin Exchange) in 1975. They only slabbed proof Kruggerands and used a their own scale which was either a 102 or 105 point scale.
The SAGCE was a one-man operation run by Eli Levine in South Africa. I met him when he visited Coin World to promote his service on his way to or from some convention where he had a dealer table.
Those Paramount Coin holders look kind of old too, but I don't know if they're before or after the GSA Morgans.
Please send me information about this reference guide to TPG slabs. I collect mostly graded US silver dollars and stick mostly with the big TPG slabs. l'm interested in knowing how to spot fake slabs and steering clear of them. Thank you in advance for the info!
But as the GSAs in early 70s were from the mint...not commercial as in TPG or other private, etc...wouldn't the early SMS (65-67) and proof set holders starting in 68 count, here...?
Here’s an example of a 1967 SMS that I have taken out of the cardboard box for the second time in 54 years. Don’t forget that the Capitol Plastics holders have been around for quite a while, too. These Special Mint Set holders look much more like the TPG slabs, though.
I’m not 100% sure what you are asking. A TPG slab wouldn’t add value to a coin.... A government GSA holder may add a little intrinsic value, but that is debatable. What kind of holder are you asking about?
GSA holders came first, then Paramount holders, but both were just marketing devices. You could not submit a coin to either to get it holdered.
Nice GSA Dollars, Randy. I’ve recently come across these... a pre-PCGS David Hall sealed holder/coin and a Gen. 1.0 PCGS holder V Nickel. Those holders were only used for the first 3 days of PCGS’ opening in February of 1986.
New Gen1.0 rattlers by C-B-D posted Mar 25, 2021 at 3:39 PM New Gen1.0 rattlers by C-B-D posted Mar 25, 2021 at 3:39 PM