My son who is almost 4yrs old received a old ceramic barrel coin bank full of coins from his Great Grandmother who passed away. We decided to take it all out and have a see. We have lots of cool stuff but most of the older stuff is worn pretty bad. For example I have 15 standing liberty quarters with only 1 showing a date still, 1925. I have one, based on the little research I've done, that is either a 1916 or 1917 type 1. No date so I'm not sure. Is it of value without the date since its at best a 1917 type 1? We have standing liberty half's that again are badly worn also. I'm not interested in selling as they are for my son but I don't know what to do for storage. Should I buy coin books or individual coin holders etc. or should I just put them back into the coin barrel/bank? I don't think there is any crazy good stuff here but I really don't have the knowledge to know. Should I put the effort into separating them for proper protection or let them be as they've been for many a year. Standing liberty quarters Standing liberty half's 1917-40's Kennedy half's 1964 Franklin half's 1950-63 Mercury dimes 1917-45 Quarters, dimes and nickles from the 30's to the 70's Thanks for any suggestions.
Welcome to the neighborhood! Since they were left to your son, I would leave them in that old ceramic bank for him to go through when he is older. The surprise of not knowing what coin will emerge from the slot (assuming there is one) when it is turned upside down will be the biggest part of the fun for him. I assume that all of the coins are in circulated condition, but you should try to store it in a relatively cool and humid-free environment. No basement! No attic! Chris
Agree. Give them to your child when they can begin to understand the value of a present from a great grandmother. Not only coins, but anything.
I agree - back into the bank for when the youngster is older. Also keep the back in a nice dry protected area. Enjoy!
Thanks all. I figured in the bank was the better choice for my son. I just wanted to be sure I wasn't causing unnecessary damage seeing many of the older ones were worn so badly. For all I know his college education is in there lol.
Also, when you put the coins back into the bank, make sure you deposit them in a random order so your child doesn't think you were messing with his money. Chris
I agree with what everyone else said....keep the coins in the bank for him until he's a bit older. Even if there isn't anything of much numismatic value inside, it'll be a treasured momento from a family member. That in itself is priceless. Guy~
Papa, It is always worth checking the diagnostics on no date Type I standing liberty quarters. What you think may be a $20 coin could actually be a $1,000+ coin.
As a father of five, I suggest that you use the opportunity to combine learning of numbers and coin collecting as a joint hobby. I started at about 7 so you don't have long to go. Teach him where to look on coins and go through change. Pick up an abum for cents and nickels for him and quarters, halves and dollars for you. Maybe pick up a redbook to show him how to read about coins he doesn't see everyday. Tell him about your grandmother and how she collected coins too. When he is getting into this, tell him his grandmother has left him some coins for when he is an adult, but don't give him a date or year. Then you can present them when appropriate and he's not likely to blow the inheritance on something trivial like a car or girl. From the sound of it, I wouldn't plan on paying for his college with it. It will have far more value as a legacy.
Welcome. You should check out the type 1 quarter. It's probably not the 1916 but it's worth checking. This link has some great images of what to look for. http://www.anacs.com/contentPages/ShowArticle.aspx?ID=16&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1
