what you like the most in coin collecting

I thought this would be a nice flip side to the other thread...


let me see, I have a few things...


For me, I do enjoy owning something rare - most of my coins are not 'rare' - but more than that, I like coins because it feels like owning a piece of history - not just any piece of history, either. To me, it's like holding a piece of history that built the world we live in today.

Plus you get to meet interesting people that know interesting things.

 

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Hmmm, there are several things that I love about this hobby, the following only scratches the surface:

-The memories it brings back of time spent with my father when I was a little girl is probably the most priceless to me

-The quality time spent with Joe, I'm so fortunate that his interst has blossomed to the point that he's probably as hooked as I am!

-The excitement you feel when you happen to stumble upon the 'perfect' example to fill a hole in your current pursuit

-And let's not forget...the PEOPLE. I've met some interesting folks through this hobby that have since become dear friends; dealers, fellow collectors, authors. Coin-folks...there's nothing quite like them/us

 

Medieval coins and 17th/18th century coins with guys in wigs.

 

I like the silver and gold coins, which recall times when money had real tangible value that didn't depreciate instead of being an electronic blip created out of nothing and existing nowhere except on an irredeemable piece of paper or in a computer someplace.

 

This is a very good Thread.

Some will say they just love the history. For a lot of us, this is true. Who may have actually held this coin in their hand. What was happining at the time this coin was minted.

Some will say, it is an investment, perhaps something I can reap a reward or pass on to my children. Although this sentiment should never be a primary reason for collecting, it should not be dismissed.

Some will say, "I dunno why", I just like them, and like plugging holes in an album.

Some of us are egotistical, and want to say "I have the best you can have"

hmmmmmm............ very good thread

 

New Here

Hello. Looks like a good group here. My interest is ways that postage was paid in the United States between 1792 and 1921. I have a web site here:
http://www.rfrajola.com/features/coins/coins.htm

 

Nice site covers!

 

Thanks bzcollecktor. I am having a hard time figuring out how to use this board. I have a philatelic discussion board here: http://www.kbnet.com/book/html/frajolaboard.html which is easier for me (in my old age).

 

The coins, the history, the people, etc. etc. Showing off your collection and explaining the story behind a certain coin or error. Seeing the look on someone's face when you hand them a coin that's over 100 years old and then say, "keep it it's yours".

But most of all, and most important. Finding out that that ebay purchase was actually worth more than what you paid!!!

 

I hear this works well with ancients too, here it's Roman and 1000 years old. "Woow!"

Although you can get the very same reaction when giving kids coins from 1982.

 

Fantastic site. Thanks for sharing.

 

I like the way that it makes me think about my father and time spent with him.

I also like thinking about the history and what coins were used for in the past - Buying a horse, prospecting equipment, whiskey, etc.

 

The history, the beauty, owning something of value, and the hunt. Also the feeling of filling in an open slot.

Plus...it gives me an outlet away from the news and all of daily stress of work and islamic suicide bombings...for the most part.

 

im still working a type set, my original goal was to get one example of every design in VF or better ( barring variations of major designs IE seated's 8000 variations). since i started filling my book out, i have expanded my goal to making sure that i also have one coin from each mint ( still missing O and CC doh). still yet, i have expanded to aquiring a coin from each year the US was involved in a war ( including viet nam which WAS a war , i dont care what people want to call it) , now im missing the 1st gulf war because ive filled all the newer slots with old proofs lol.

for me its the thrill of the hunt ( trying to win at the last minute on ebay, or praying from work your bid holds out), the beauty,and the history (i mean c'mon there are so many interesting stories out there behind coins).

ever since i was like 6, i always wanted a type set. took me 19 years, but im rollin.

 

With me it is mostly the aesthetic qualities. You cannot go wrong buying beauty. Within my definition of beauty I include the historic significance or story (both the story of the coin from a larger viewpoint, e.g. how it fits into society and history; and the story of the individual coin, e.g. the type of album it was stored in and the type of patina that caused). I really love lusterous silver coins with a colorful patina. I do not mind paying a bit of a premium for them.

 

Coming back from the mail box!

 

NUMISMATICS is the art and science that studies the forms and uses of money.

1. "Money is the material shape of the principle that men who wish to deal with one another must deal by trade and give value for value."
http://www.atlasshrugged.tv/speech.htm

HISTORY is the record of human achievement.

2.a. "The Greeks were the first people to say that the world was knowable, because they believed in man's power of reason."
http://www.hol.gr/greece/grkpg1.htm

2.b. "Classical Greece was the birthplace of the Olympic Games because it was a culture that admired individual human greatness."
http://www.command-post.org/oped/2_archives/014315.html

2.c. "Western civilization was the child and product of reason -- via ancient Greece."
http://freedomkeys.com/faithandforce.htm

2.d. The highpoint of commercial culture was the 19th century, which had its roots in the Enlightenment and which continues even today the way the shoreline remains wet after the tide recedes.
http://www.chicagoobjectivists.org/course.htm
http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=1308
http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=60

COLLECTING is an intellectual effort for relaxation.

3. "A collector is not a passive spectator, but an active, purposeful agent in a cumulative drive. He cannot stand still: an album page without fresh additions becomes a reproach, an almost irresistible call to embark on a new quest."
http://ellensplace.net/ar_stamp.html

 

I enjoy the feeling of holding a piece of history in my hand, and the artistry on most of the coins and currency. But what really gives me pleasure is telling a non-collector that I paid 10,000 times face value for a coin, and watching the shocked look on their faces! (Note: $50 for a 1/2 cent)

 

Don't forget C (Charlotte) and D (Dalhonega) since those branch mints produced US coins too! Granted, they only produced gold coins, (which may cost as much as or more than the rest of the set combined), but they still count.