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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Orfew, post: 5223870, member: 74968&quot;]Provenance may indeed become very important over the next several years in terms of the free trade of our coins. It is also important for other reasons. My friend Brian ([USER=51347]@Alegandron[/USER] ) has an amazing collection that could not be more different than my own. However, there is one thing that brings our collections together, Brian and I both collect the stories of the coins as much as we collect the coins themselves. (I do hope that when it is safe to do so he will join me at my house in the great white north where we will consume too many steaks and too much of our fine Canadian beer) He has a standing invitation to do just that. For me the story of the coin is paramount and in some cases the provenance of a coin can be an important part of that story. If I were to own a coin of Brians in the future it would be because of a personal connection. There are other less personal stories as well that might make the provenance meaningful.</p><p><br /></p><p>As to coin hoards, I find that owning such a coin from a known hoard enhances the story for me. If we can trace the coin back to the ground it begs questions such as: Who buried it? Why was it it buried? Did the owner go off to war or bury the coins because of an invasion?How did the owner come to amass such a group of coins? Is there a thematic connection between the coins that may imply a collection? Were they buried in a time of plague? Did the previous owner keep slaves? How many languages did the previous owner speak and which ones?</p><p><br /></p><p>Knowing the name of a previous owner also means something to me. Again a previous owner is part of the story of the coin. I am thrilled to own coins from the collection of fellow collector and friend [USER=82616]@David Atherton[/USER] . Though I value the friendship there is also value in the fact that David is a well known collector of Flavian coins, and a coin from his collection has been curated by someone who knows the subject very well. Though I never knew Harry Sneh, I respect coins from his collection because David respects these as well. In short, provenance is about trust. It is not 100% of course but it does increase the probability of buying an authentic coin if it has passed through the hands of people I trust.</p><p><br /></p><p>I count myself lucky to own coins that were owned by people like E.E. Clain-Stefanelli, William Stancomb, Michel Prieur, Michael Kelly, Richard McAlee, Giovanni Dattari, Paul Schurer, Fritz Reusing, J Eric Engstrom, Phil Peck, and others of note. It so happens that where these refer to authors I try to have a copy of the book as well. In a number of cases these books include the publication of the coin as well. After all of the above have added their stories to the stories of the coins. Who would want to lose those connections.</p><p><br /></p><p>Will I pay more for provenance? I certainly will if the name is important to me or to the curation of my collection. One thing I know for sure is that having a coin from a collection such as David&#039;s changes the complexion of my collection. </p><p><br /></p><p>In short, provenance may become important for legal reasons in the future but it will always be important for adding to the stories these coins can tell.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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