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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;robinjojo, post: 8108436, member: 110226&quot;]There was a time, not so terribly long ago, before the digital technology revolution took hold, creating nano-seconds flows of information, correspondence and instant gratification, when collectors ordered coins from price lists and bid on coins in auction catalogs.&nbsp; Coin slabs did not exist.&nbsp; The only grading and authentication service was the ANACS, along with some services offered by some dealers and authorities in given fields of specialization.</p><p><br /></p><p>It is a cliché to say that life was relatively slower back then when compared to today&#039;s sometimes frantic pace.&nbsp; Back then, collectors would generally build their collections slowly and methodically.&nbsp; They acquired knowledge over time, providing them with the means to distinguish legitimate coins from fakes, to learn about die varieties, determine overall grade of a given coin, and to recognize what coins are common, scarce or rare.&nbsp; In short, most collectors learned to think on their own, with the assistance of references, time and experience.</p><p><br /></p><p>Now, I am not denigrating slabbed coins, or TPG services.&nbsp; I think that they provide a useful service for collectors unfamiliar with a given coin, and their opinions do, for the most part, hold sway with the collecting public. </p><p><br /></p><p>As it is with life, something is gained and something is lost.&nbsp; I think, on the lost side, we have a situation where coins previously collected for their value as historical, artistic merits have been reduced for many people to commodities, akin to stocks, real estate and currency speculation, including Bitcoin.&nbsp; The collecting of ancients, as well as other coins, is now a numbers game, in the case ancients, surface and strike conditions.&nbsp; Overlooked, often, are a coin&#039;s historical context and significance, as well as a coin&#039;s aesthetics.&nbsp; Perfection, or the approximation of it, is of tantamount concern; the presence of any flaws, wear, deposits or corrosion serve to downgrade the numbers, as I guess they should.&nbsp; Unfortunately, from my view, this approach has compromised and diminished the joys of collecting today and, indeed, how the public and many collectors, especially relatively new ones, view our hobby.&nbsp; Marketing now dominates the landscape when it comes to slabbed coins.</p><p><br /></p><p>Let me say that I do have some slabbed ancients, all from various purchases, some of which I intend to remove, but, due to inaction on my part have not done. I have, however, removed more coins from their surrounding plastic prongs.&nbsp; Once I do that, and am able to hold the coin, examine it in all angles and to marvel at yet another time traveler for the collection, then the pleasure and rewards of collecting are renewed once more.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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