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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;ExoMan, post: 2037490, member: 72588&quot;]Yes, Bruce, that Flanagan CWT is the one.&nbsp; I&#039;m wondering if it will remain listed as a CWT though; could be earlier than 1861.</p><p><br /></p><p>I just acquired another Wood&#039;s Minstrel silver token as a &quot;companion&quot; piece for my Wood&#039;s counterstamps that are on Spanish 2 Reale pieces. </p><p><br /></p><p>My best buys on counterstamps have been at shows. Prices realized in the Stack&#039;s and Heritage auctions, particularly for the pedigreed pieces, have set a very high mark ... IMHO, too high.&nbsp; There&#039;s no way that the average collector can keep pace with prices paid by those deep-pocket guys - in effect, the market-makers.&nbsp; I do suspect that prices realized at the major auction houses will settle in time.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>The HOUCK&#039;S PANACEA pieces were generally selling for over $1,000, each, a few years back. Prices tend to now be about half that amount. While these are among the &quot;classics&quot; as counterstamps go, and fairly plentiful in number when compared to most issuers, there are some collectors who &quot;hoard&quot; or &quot;intensely focus&quot; on these.&nbsp; I call it the &quot;Orphan Annie Effect&quot; - akin to the phenomenon of the hoarding of 1844 dimes.&nbsp; Collectors with sufficiently deep pockets have, over the years, been able to lasso large numbers of scarcer, rare date coins, like 1856 Flying Eagle Cents and 1893-S Morgans.&nbsp; In comparison to counterstamped coins, any issuer as such, those &quot;rare date coins&quot; are extremely plentiful and relatively common in the marketplace.&nbsp; As I see it, the values for counterstamps can easily be driven by this &quot;Orphan Annie Effect.&quot;&nbsp; The supply is ever so limited that demand can easily be leveraged.&nbsp; I suspect that this effect is sometimes at play.&nbsp; Then too, there are increasing numbers of us counterstamp researchers it seems. I&#039;ve learned to be more patient, backed off on bidding too high to acquire desired pieces.&nbsp; I continually tell myself that, in time, a similar specimen may come my way, and that often is the case - sometimes, years later!&nbsp; <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie15" alt=":arghh:" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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