The Great RYK/DWN Mashup Redux: Two Numismatists, Nine Questions, Eighteen Answers

One of the most popular blogs that has appeared on this website was entitled "The Great RYK/DWN Mashup" and it appeared around two years ago. In it, I volleyed back and forth with collector Robert "RYK" Kanterman and discussed gold coins, the coin market and more. After much pleading from our respective fan clubs (OK, actually from me pleading with him to help me come up with another popular blog...) we've decided to agree to disagree, 2012 style. And away we go!

Note: For each answer, "RYK" represents Robert Kantertman while "DWN" represents Douglas Winter Numismatics.

1. If you could own any shipwreck gold coin, which would it be?

RYK: I have a strong preference for the SS Central America coins. In my opinion, they were the best preserved and best conserved. Even though I am a "dirty gold" guy, I would choose the nicest 57-S $20 I could afford, and these are available in a range of price points. I would be tempted to find one of the branch mint gold specimens, a territorial piece, or even a 55-S or 56-S $20, if I wanted to get a little more exotic.

DW: Agreed. I've become a fan of nice, natural-appearing 1857-S SSCA double eagles in the MS64 and MS65 grades. But, and this is a big but, I caution buyers to be highly selective and stick with PCGS coins in original gold foil holders that haven't changed. The coins were conserved; some very successfully and some not so successfully. Take a look at any Heritage sale and you'll see coins caked with white gunk from conservation gone awry. Yuck....

2. Should established US gold coin collectors consider territorial gold?

RYK: I would say a resounding "Yes!" A nice Bechtler piece or set complements a southern gold collection nicely, and some of the California private mint or assay gold pieces go well with any set that includes early San Francisco gold. The Colorado, Oregon, and Utah gold pieces are also a good fit for 19th century gold enthusiasts. One drawback is that they are generally fairly expensive, and might burn coin money required for the big hole in the set.

DW: I like Territorials but am not sure that I share RYK's enthusiasm for them in a rare date gold set. Now, if you are collecting Charlotte gold dollars than a C. Bechtler and A. Bechlter dollar makes sense. Or, if you collect Liberty Head double eagles from the No Motto era a Moffat double eagle makes sense. But I'm not sure how an Oregon or a Mormon piece fits into a regular issue set. And as RYK said, the big bucks that such a coin costs might take away needed funds from a regular issue that is more integral to your set.

3. What is your favorite Dahlonega coin for someone wanting just one for their collection?

RYK: In the sub-$2500, an original, choice VF or XF quarter eagle or half eagle from the mid-1840's would be my choice. They are generally well-produced, nearly 170 years old, and made from gold mined in the southeast.

At the next price level, there are two choices that I see: going up in grade from my lower price point selection or choosing a more interesting coin. I would do the latter, like an 1839-D $2.50, 1838-D $5 or 1839-D $5 in original XF-45.

If money is unlimited, I would wait for on of the super high-grade pieces that come on the market once a year or so. The most recent was the 1855-D quarter eagle in 63.

Overall, unless I was a half dime or trime collector, I would avoid the gold dollars as a consideration.

DW: For a first purchase in the $1,750-3,000 range its hard to argue with a nice EF half eagle. Look for an original coin with nice surfaces and color. They still only command a 15% premium over the junky coins I see daily.

For a "tier two" coin, I like Robert's idea of buying something snazzy like a one-year type or a first-year issue. Coins like this have become very popular and the value isn't quite as good as it used to be but the liquidity of, say, a nice EF45 1838-D half eagle is better than ever.

If you are lucky enough to have the budget for a five figure "exotic" issue, I'd look for a high grade example of something really rare, not a high grade example of a common date. I like coins like 1856-D quarter eagles, 1854-D threes, 1842-D Large Date half eagles, etc because they are so seldom seen in high grades.

I disagree with RYK about gold dollars. Don't hate on the little guys, RYK. Gold Dollars are a great series to collect and the 1849-D is a wonderful first coin for the collector. Plus its hard to not like rare dates such as the 1855-D, 1856-D, 1860-D and, most of all, the coveted 1861-D.

4. Is New Orleans gold more popular than Charlotte gold?

RYK: Ten years ago, I would have said that Charlotte gold is more popular, but today, I would say the opposite. One thing that favors New Orleans gold over Charlotte including is that more denominations are available, including the immensely popular $20 Liberty gold and the increasingly popular $10 Liberty gold. I think that the desirability of the New Orleans quarter and half eagles has increased and the scarcity of some of these issues is now more widely appreciated. In Charlotte, there is just not much new, and there appears to be a relatively steady march of coins on the market.

DW: RYK, you ignorant slut...Oh wait....

I'm afraid Robert is correct. As someone who has really helped to "create" the New Orleans market, I'm wowed at how popular these coins have become and much they have appreciated price-wise since, say, the late 1990's. And how Charlotte hasn't.

Charlotte gold is somewhat in the dregs although collector-quality coins are strong. I put an 1841-C half eagle in nice PCGS EF45 on my website the other day and got seven orders for it in less than a five or six hours. But, that's the exception and not the rule. There are alot of good Charlotte coins available right now and if a few heavy hitters decided to get serious, they could put together great sets over the course of a few years.

5. What gold coin or coins is/are currently in greatest demand from rare date gold collectors?

RYK: I think that the single coin that is in greatest demand among rare date gold coin collectors is the 1861-D $5. I recently told Doug that if he had a dozen XF-45s, he could quickly sell them all and for strong money. Honorable mention would go to the 1861-D $1, better date $5's and $10's from the 1860's, 1870-CC $10, and the 1861-O and 1879-O $20's.

DW: Ah, Grasshopper, you have learned well. Oh and where are those dozen 1861-D half eagles?

The market is very rarity-oriented right now and people are looking to buy sexy, low mintage coins with alot of "oomph." Other coins I would add to RYK's list include the 1855-D dollar, 1854-S quarter eagle, 1864 quarter eagle, nearly any pre-1800 half eagle, 1864-S half eagle, 1875 half eagle and eagle, 1841-O eagle, 1883-O eagle, etc.

6. Is collecting San Francisco gold on the rise/falling/stable?

RYK: San Francisco gold is, in my opinion, gaining in popularity. The market demand for the better date coins was evident in th e recent Littlejohn sale, and there was a very interesting San Francisco gold collection in the Heritage FUN sale that did very well, too. It would be great if a rare date gold specialist (ahem) or Western gold specialist would publish a book on SF gold (1854-1880) as I think that this could give these coins some much-needed publicity among potential collectors.

DW: Hey, thanks RYK. Make me do another book, huh?

Actually I have thought about doing a book on SF gold for many years and if I could get a partner to assist me I would (ahem, potential partner, you know who you are...). I think this would help the market for these coins. For years and years, this was a dead area. The popularity of SF double eagles, brought on by the shipwreck discoveries of the last two decades, has spurred demand for smaller denomination coins as well.

I think you have to look at SF coins as two distinct markets: the 1854-1879 coins and the post-1880 cons. The first group is suddenly doing pretty well and I personally am selling alot more interesting SF coinage today than I was two or three years ago. The second group seems dead but I can see the potential for coins like an 1888-S eagle in MS63 (to pick a random date in a random grade) with premiums so low over generic issues.

7. Should coin collectors bother with coin shows?

RYK: Absolutely! Aside from seeing lots of coins, the ability to view auction lots in person, view exhibits at the bigger shows, meet other collectors, and network with dealers makes any coin show worthwhile. I have often said that even if I were broke and had no coins to sell, I could have a great time at a coin show.

DW: To me, coins shows are somewhat of a necessary evil. With the exception of FUN and Summer ANA, most coin shows are too long and aren't always productive. But I'm jaded and have been going to 15-20 shows a year for nearly three decades.

For the collector, shows are great. You can't beat the ability to look at coins, to view auction lots, to look at exhibits, etc. I'd say you have to fine-tune your BS detector as you are going to hear alot of Newspeak.

8. Are auctions good venues to buy in?

RYK: Yes, with an asterisk. It depends a lot on factors including specifically which auction venues, have you viewed the coins, are you using an agent, are you bidding live or by proxy, etc. If you are playing sight-unseen with proxy bids over the internet, you are going to get burned a lot. If you are bidding in person or with a specialty dealer, there may be some opportunities.

I would add is that some coins that are purchased at auctions could be bought outside the auction venue for less money, less risk, and less hassle. If you are considering a 1901-S $10 in 64 in an auction, it makes no sense to bid sight-unseen and compete with others for the coin. If it is lovely and undergraded, someone smarter who has seen the coin will know that and outbid you. If the coin is a pig, you will win it. It's a classic "heads-I-win-tails-you-lose" situation.

DWN: The whole auction market has changed so much in the last five years. The simple way to put this is that they have transitioned from wholesale environments to retail environments.

Many new collectors feel safe buying at auction as they figure that "if there was an underbidder, I'm safe having paid just 5 or 10% more." This is wrong on many levels. And it is even more wrong when you consider that most collectors are bidding at auction on a sight-unseen basis and relying on images.

It's just a matter of time before buyer's premiums at sales rise to 17.5% or even 20% and at that point, I'd say that auctions might not be the best venue to buy in. You have to take this with a grain of salt coming from a dealer who is essentially competing against the auction firms both for product and for buyers but I know that I am now much less reliant on auctions both as a buyer and and a seller than I was a few years ago.

9. What makes a coin desirable?

RYK: This is a very personal thing, and if you ask ten collectors, you will get eleven different answers (because at least one collector will change his mind). The factors that go into desirability include, but are not limited to, design, condition, value, metallic composition, age, scarcity, history, provenance, originality, and market demand. I tend to rank scarcity, numismatic history potential for price appreciation and originality in the more important category, and design, condition, and value in the less important group.

DWN: As a dealer, my answer is bound to be different from RYK's. I am looking for coins that I think will sell well and that I will be excited about handling again and again down the road.

To me, the factors that make a coin desirable include: its level of value (is it a good deal or a bad deal?), its degree of absolute rarity (is its price predicated solely on its grade?), its degree of originality (has it been cleaned, processed or dipped in recent years?), its eye appeal (is it pretty?) and its level of liquidlity (if the market pulled another 2008 contraction, could I sell this coin in 30 days or less?).

Robert and I will be taking our show on the road and expect to see us at a Holiday Inn near your town sometime soon.

Do you more questions that you would like to see answered by the RYK/DWN mashup team? If I can persuade RYK to take some time away from his busy Fantasy Baseball schedule, perhaps we can have a Round Three of the Great Debate sometime soon. Email your questions to me at dwn@ont.com

The Not-So-Secret Secret 1883-O Eagle

About a month ago, I received an auction catalog from Olivier Chaponniere and Hess-Divo, two well-known Swiss firms located in Geneva and Switzerland, respectively. I often toss these catalogs directly into the recycling bin but thought I'd check this one out; if only because Hess-Divo has the reputation of selling some exceptional ancient and European coins. I went right to the United States gold section and started browsing. A few minutes in, I was startled to see an 1883-O eagle that had been graded AU58 by PCGS. From the photo, the coin looked very fresh and very nice and I was, needless to say, very interested.

For those of you that are not familiar with the 1883-O eagle, a little background information is in order. This is the single rarest eagle from New Orleans with an original mintage of only 800. There are around 35-45 known in all grades including a unique Uncirculated piece that I sold around three years ago. There are a total of five graded AU58 at PCGS with none higher. I did a little bit of research on this specific coin and learned that it was new to the PCGS population report and, in all probability, totally fresh to the market.

At this point, I was feeling pretty cocky. After all, it was a European auction and not many American dealers were even going to know about the coin, right?

I started feeling a lot less cocky when I saw these two firms at the Central States show with the American gold coins from the auction on exhibit. My hat goes off to Chaponniere and Hess-Divo. I can't think of many times that European firms have brought American coins to an American show to market them to an American audience. And especially at a non-ANA show; can you imagine the excitement that these Swiss guys must have had regarding four days in Milwaukee? (But that's another story...)

I viewed the coins in person at CSNS and loved the 1883-O. It was fairly baggy but it had nice color, attractive semi-prooflike surfaces and a virtual absence of wear. It was the best 1883-O eagle I had seen in a few years and I felt it was at least the third or fourth finest known; and certainly the only one that was going to be available.

Now I had to determine what to pay for this coin. In regards to the 1883-O eagle, this date is a sort of Numismatic Rare Date Gold Franken-coin. No one cared about this date as recently as a few years ago but I've told collectors for years how rare and desirable it was. Around three years ago, low quality examples started to sell for three or four times more than they had only a few years before this. The last two AU58 examples that I handled were an nice AU58 (ex Pinnacle collection) and a beautiful NGC coin that I sold to a Washington, D.C. collector. I had sold them for less than $40,000 each but figured that in this market that they were going to bring around $60,000. So I bid $55,000 (which translated to $60,000 with the 10% buyers premium).

So how did I do? Not well. The coin sold for an amazing 90,000 Swiss Francs which, according to my on-line currency calculator, is around $78,225. I'm assuming the consignor was even more amazed as the catalogers had estimated the coin to bring 10,000 CHF.

I learned a few valuable lessons from this experience.

The first is, that in this day and age, you could hold a coin auction on the third moon of Saturn and it would still be publicized. The Internet means that the secret auction(s) of yore are now well-attended and the information that is available to collectors regarding pricing makes formerly secret dates not so secret anymore as well.

The second is that good coins will always be found by good collectors. I know the buyer of this coin very well and he was likely to have have bought it no matter where the auction was. The fact that the coins were brought to the CSNS show was amazingly helpful to him and I'm guessing it added at least $20,000 to the bottom line; if not more.

The third is that there are still really cool coins lurking in Europe. You'd think that with American dealers having scoured Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, etc. since the 1950's that there wouldn't be much left anymore. Not true. While coins like this AU58 1883-O eagle don't show up everyday, there are clearly still some eyebrow-raising coins left overseas.

If I Collected Coins What Would I Collect?

I often (OK, not “often” but at least “occasionally...”) get asked the question “what kind of coins do you collect?” I don’t currently collect coins because I think that, as a dealer, being a collector is an inherent conflict; I don’t ever want to have an internal debate with myself about whether or not I should sell a coin that I buy. But I do have a pretty good idea about what I would collect if I were actually collecting. When I was younger and not yet a full-time dealer, my first love was Colonial coinage. I specialized in Connecticut coinage and specifically collected 1787 Draped Bust Left coppers. In retrospect, this was pretty ambitious for a ten year old kid. There are something like 350 varieties of 1787 DBL coppers and not only was I collecting them by variety, I was typically doing it without a reference guide as I had memorized many of the important varieties.

Connecticut coppers appealed to me for a number of reasons. First off, they were cheap. My budget was pretty small back in the day and for $25 to $75 per coin, I could buy very presentable examples (the kind of coins that are worth $500 or so each today). Secondly, the age and history of these coins appealed to me. I was always a history buff and the Colonial era was of particular interest to me. Thirdly, I grew up in New York City and there were some friendly, knowledgeable dealers in the area such as Richard Picker, David Sonderman, Bob Vlack and Jim King. The fact that the coins were readily available for trustworthy local sources appealed to me. Finally, I liked the crudeness of the designs and the complexity of the series.

After my Connecticut obsession, I moved onto Liberty Seated quarters. I chose this series for one really glaring reason: the coins seemed hugely undervalued to me. Obviously, I couldn’t afford Gem coins, so I tended to focus on choice, original pieces in the Fine to Extremely Fine range. I never did finish the set (I could never afford the rare Carson City issues from 1870 to 1873) but I was able to buy some pretty awesome coins at what seemed like pretty reasonable prices.

So, using my experiences from the collecting days of yore, how would they apply to the market of today? To answer the “what would I collect” question let me start by deducing what I wouldn’t collect. I know that I would avoid coins made during the 20th century. For whatever reason, 20th century coins have just never really appealed to me (with the exception of Saints but that is a set that I could never afford to collect in the way that I want to). I am pretty sure that I would also avoid collecting Proof coins. I like very low mintage Proofs struck prior to 1880 but, for the most part, I like coins that were made to circulate. In the same vein, I think I would focus on coins that were in lightly circulated grades as opposed to high end Uncirculated coins. I like a Gem coin as much as the next guy but there is something about an evenly worn, dirty EF45 to AU55 coin that really appeals to me. I know I would also focus on an era of history that was appealing to me. I also know that after all these years of focusing on gold coins, I’m going to have a pretty hard time not specializing in some sort of gold coinage.

So, at this point we are looking at business strike gold coins from the 19th century in circulated grades as the parameter of WWDC (What Would Doug Collect). For a variety of reasons, I have always been partial to coins struck prior to the Civil War, especially those produced from 1834 through the mid-to-late 1840’s. I don’t really have any preferences as to coin size, so I wouldn’t naturally be attracted to quarter eagles as opposed to half eagles or eagles. I know you are assuming that I’d select branch mint coins over Philadelphia and this is probably true although I do find the Philadelphia coins from this era to be very interesting and a really good value.

As someone who has long been an advocate of specializing and having a fairly narrow focus for a collection I’m going to actually listen to myself. I would also want to choose a series that doesn’t have any very expensive coins that I know I could never buy. I’d want coins that were scarce to rare but not impossible to find. And I’d want to be in a series where the coins were actually decent looking.

Given all of these parameters, I think that I would be a collector of No Motto New Orleans half eagles and eagles. I would want to collect both denominations and I’d try to have choice, original EF and AU coins that were evenly matched.

But I think I would also have a secondary, “cheap coin” collection as well. There would be points in time when I might not have the money for a good New Orleans gold coin or couldn’t find anything but I still had an itchy trigger finger and wanted to buy something. During these times, I’d focus on Liberty Seated half dollars (both Philadelphia and New Orleans) from the 1839-1852 era in EF and AU grades (with the occasional MS62 or MS63 thrown in for good measure).

To those of you who actually do collect New Orleans half eagles and eagles: don’t worry, I’m not going to suddenly become your competitor. But if these are your series of choice, give yourself a pat on the back and smugly tell yourself that you’ve made a choice that meets with my total approval!

The 1845-O Quarter Eagle

If I had to list my favorite United States gold coins, the 1845-O quarter eagle would be at the top of the list. This is an issue that I like for a variety of reasons. It’s rare, it’s enigmatic and it has an interesting numismatic background. After striking a comparatively large number of quarter eagles in 1843, the New Orleans mint did not produce any in 1844. None were actually struck in the calendar year of 1845 either; all 4,000 dated 1845-O quarter eagles are known to have been delivered on January 22, 1846. This meant that there was no official record of the 1845-O quarter eagle in the Mint Director’s Annual Report. As a result, this issue was all but unknown to numismatists until the beginning of the 20th century.

The first public record of the 1845-O was in the December 1894 issue of The Numismatist and in 1909, the famous uber-collector Virgil Brand purchased an 1845-O quarter from J.C. Mitchelson for the then-astounding price of $150 (this very coin is traceable today and it is the finest known; see the Condition Census listing below for more information).

Of the 4,000 struck, it is believed that just 65-75 are known. Most are very well worn and the typical 1845-O grades in the VF to EF range. Properly graded About Uncirculated pieces are very rare with fewer than a dozen known to me. I am aware of just three known in Uncirculated. These are as follows:

1. Private collection, ex: Doug Winter, Heritage 1999 ANA: 7836, Bowers and Merena 1987 ANA: 538, Bowers and Merena 10/83: 110, Virgil Brand collection, J.C. Mitchelson. Graded MS63 by PCGS and NGC. 2. Louisiana collection, ex: Doug Winter, Nevada collection, Bowers and Merena 11/90: 477, Paramount Auction ’87: 386, Bowers and Merena 6/86: 149. Graded MS61 by PCGS. 3. Kansas collection. Graded MS60 by NGC.

Most 1845-O quarter eagles show considerable wear and I know of a number that have rim damage or have been cleaned to the point that they would not grade at PCGS or NGC. This issue tends to come with a decent strike. The obverse is typically sharper than the reverse and even lower grade specimens have nicely defined radial lines at the centers of the stars. Nearly every example has a mint-made depression that runs from the area between the curls on the back of Liberty’s head towards the final star. It is the result of a foreign deposit adhering to the die when it was struck. This does not affect the grade of an 1845-O quarter eagle.

There are two other die characteristics seen on 1845-O quarter eagles that are of interest. A series of raised die scratches can be seen inside of the first star. There is also a diagonal bar on the face of Liberty; this can be seen only on higher grade examples. A few 1845-O’s also have a reverse depression from the O in OF down to the back of the eagle’s neck.

As one might expect, it is exceptionally hard to find an 1845-O that has original color and surfaces. The natural color is a deep coppery-orange hue and this can be very attractive. I know of an example in a North Carolina collection (ex: Eliasberg) that has superb original color and this is among the more pleasing examples that I have seen. The finest known is clearly the Brand coin. It is very choice for the grade and has claims to the MS64 level. It would set a record price if it became available in the near future.

This is an issue that has become very popular in recent years. I think it is exceedingly undervalued in VF and EF grades. The current Trends value for an EF45 is just $3,500 and in my opinion, an accurately graded EF45 example is worth more than this. Prices for nice AU coins have risen considerably in recent years but I still think a nice AU55 or AU58 is a good value at the new, higher levels. It is hard to ascribe a value to this date in Uncirculated given its extreme rarity and high level of demand.

S.S. New York Coin Sale

S.S. New York Coin Auction - I recently learned that the coins from the shipwreck S.S. New York will be sold by Stack’s in July at this firm’s pre-ANA auction. Unlike some of the other shipwrecks that have been uncovered in recent years, the coins found on the S.S. New York will have an impact on the branch mint gold market. According to information gleaned from the NGC website, the S.S. New York was a light cargo and passenger ship vessel that operated between New Orleans and Galveston. It was destroyed during a hurricane on September 7, 1846. Seventeen crew members were killed and “thirty to forty thousand dollars in gold, silver and bank notes” were lost according to contemporary reports.

What is especially interesting about these coins is that they represent one of the most eclectic, diverse cross-sections of coins in circulation during the first part of the 19th century that has ever been found. Unlike the S.S. Republic and S.S. Central America, the coins in this group tend to be smaller denomination and much of the gold was produced in Dahlonega and the local New Orleans mint.(Even more interesting is the fact that only two Charlotte issues were included. This should tell us something about the geographic distribution of Charlotte coins).

The coins have been curated by NCS and, according to the reports that I’ve read, numismatists such as John Albanese, David Bowers and Mark Salzburg have commented on how exceptional they are from the standpoint of quality. In fact, Albanese was quoted as saying “...many of them look like they were just minted yesterday.”

NGC just published the first census of these S.S. New York coins and, from the look of it, there are some extremely interesting pieces that will be available. In my opinion, some of the gold coin highlights are as follows:

1845-D Quarter Eagle, NGC MS64

1840-D Half Eagle, NGC MS62

1842-D Large Date Half Eagle, NGC MS61

Two 1843-O Small Letters Half Eagles in NGC MS62

1844-D Half Eagle, NGC MS63*PL

Seventeen Uncirculated 1844-O Half Eagles including two in MS64

Six Uncirculated 1845-O Half Eagles including an MS63

Six Uncirculated 1844-O Eagles including two in MS63

Four Uncirculated 1845-O Eagles

How will the presence of these coins affect the market for branch mint gold? I believe that this group will be a real shot in the arm. First and foremost, it will focus positive attention on branch mint gold. Secondly, it is likely to attract new buyers who will be interested in the coins because of the shipwreck provenance. These buyers probably have never bought a branch mint gold coin (other than a San Francisco double eagle) before and their new purchase could possibly spur them on to collect other branch mint gold coins. Thirdly, it will add some much needed new product into the market. If you collect branch mint gold, you know how few really nice coins have been available in recent years and coins of this quality are sure to be readily appreciated by collectors, dealers and investors alike.

The two things that interest me most about these coins is how nice are they and whether the NCS curation make them look more like modern mint products than 150+ year old southern gold coins. One of my major past complaints about shipwreck gold coins is that I just haven’t liked the unoriginal look they possess. For every lovely 1856-S or 1857-S S.S. Central America double eagle I’ve seen in MS64 or MS65, I’ve seen high grade double eagles (and eagles) from other shipwrecks that have been enthusiastically graded and just not appealing to my eyes. If the coins are as nice as John Albanese and other experts say they are, then the bidding for the coins will be an interesting head-to-head competition between purists like myself and shipwreck coin specialists.

A few collectors have asked me if the quantity of coins from this shipwreck worries me. The answer to this is most definitely “no.” If you look at a full census of the coins that NGC has graded (it can be read at www.ngccoin.com) you will note that very few coins have quantities of more than ten pieces. The most plentiful issues from the shipwreck tend to be those that are already common (like the 1843-O Small Date quarter eagle, the 1843 half eagle and the 1844-O half eagle) so another dozen or so coins will hardly affect the rarity of these issues.

I am curious to see what the impact of six Uncirculated 1845-O half eagles and six 1844-O eagles will have on the market. Given the fact that I think I could sell all twelve of these coins by myself, I’m willing to bet that they will be easily absorbed into the market and will actually serve to raise prices for these two issues rather than lower them.

I’ve mostly sat out the Shipwreck Coin Stampede that has had a major impact on the gold coin market in the last decade. I am excited to finally have a wreck o’ my own and I am really looking forward to viewing the coins in Baltimore next month.

The Availability of Original Southern Branch Mint Gold Coins - Part One

Need to get the rest of the article from Mary. In a recent blog (July 30, 2007) I discussed my criteria for what constitutes "originality." Using this criteria, how available are Charlotte, Dahlonega and New Orleans gold coins? In the first of what may be a multi-part series of articles, I’m going to look at C, D and O mint gold dollars and discuss their availability with original surfaces and color.

New Orleans Gold Coinage

Since I reopened Douglas Winter Numismatics (DWN) in February 2006, a primary focus of mine has been New Orleans gold coinage. I have focused on this area for a number of reasons. The most obvious is, of course, the fact that my new book on New Orleans gold coinage is expected to be released this summer and it seemed like a natural to drum up interest for the book by selling the appropriate coins. But there are other reasons I have focused on these coins. After twenty years of intense focus on Charlotte and Dahlonega gold, I am a bit bored with these coins. Now don’t get me wrong. I love C&D gold and these will always be a “bread and butter” item in my inventory. But there are many issues that I have seen over and over and, unless a specific coin is very nice, very rare or very interesting, it doesn’t get me all that excited.

But New Orleans coinage is fresher to me at this point in time. I have always handled nice O mint gold but it seems that in the past, I might have handled three Dahlonega half eagles to every New Orleans half eagle.

New Orleans gold also seems like the best value in the 19th century gold coin market. In most cases, New Orleans pieces are quite a bit scarcer than their Charlotte and Dahlonega counterparts and are often priced at twenty or thirty or even fifty percent less.

Another thing I like about New Orleans gold is the great variety. You’ve got coins from the 1840’s and you’ve got coins from the 1900’s. You’ve got tiny gold dollars and you’ve got massive double eagles. You’ve got No Motto and you’ve got With Motto coinage. This level of variation simply doesn’t exist with the other Southern branch mints.

So what’s happened with the New Orleans market in the past three or four months? There are clearly some aggressive new collectors who have entered the market, including a small number who are buying all of the really rare and very high grade pieces they can find. I have had the good fortune of handling at least a dozen Finest Known or Condition Census New Orleans gold coins in the past ninety days and every one of them has sold quickly to long-term collectors.

Prices have started to show some long-overdue appreciation. In the recent Heritage Central States auction, a dealer paid $86,250 for a PCGS MS61 1854-O Three Dollar gold piece which is, by a huge margin, a record price for this date. In the Heritage April Atlanta auction, an NGC MS64 1839-O quarter eagle sold for $34,500 which is also a record price for this date. I have also noted some very strong prices being paid at auction for coins such as high grade (MS63 and better) New Orleans eagles from the 1888-O to 1906-O era.

My overall take on the New Orleans market is that higher grade, affordable pieces are currently in great demand and will show good price appreciation in the coming months. The very high end material is also in strong demand as I wouldn’t be surprised to see Trends and CDN Quarterly being adjusted upwards to reflect these new prices. The areas that I see the greatest potential growth are the “in between” coins: pieces in the $2,500-7,500 range that are not necessarily very rare or super high grade but which are well above average for the date and which are cosmetically appealing. It also appears to me that the medium sized coins (half eagles and eagles) are attracting the most interest with the new generation of New Orleans collectors.

It will be interesting to see if my New Orleans book has the same affect on this market as my Three Dollar gold pieces book had on that market (prices for Threes have doubled in the past two years). If this is the case, I would suggest that people who are buying New Orleans gold coins now are clearly ahead of the curve and might have some nice returns down the road.