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Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Something for Everybody With Circ Morgans

By Paul M. Green


Anyone can collect Morgan dollars. The fact that some Morgans sell for very high prices in grades of MS-65 and above does not mean Morgan dollars are only for the rich. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a lower grade and lower priced Morgan dollar collection and in fact such collections may be even more fun.

I am not saying that merely because it sounds good. I have had enormous fun over the years with Morgan dollars and have probably never owned a single MS-65. It all started with my grandfather. Every Saturday he would come to the house and bring my brother and me a silver dollar. It was back in the 1950s and while not used in large numbers silver dollars were still circulating.

For a long time collecting dollars was way out of my league in terms of price as with an allowance of a quarter a week plus extra funds from mowing lawns and other odd jobs, you still cannot start a dollar collection. Over time, however, as I filled other albums to the point I could, I finally realized that silver dollars were not for spending on other coins as I had been doing but rather they too could be a collection.

It was definitely slow going. My basic quota of Morgan dollars was one a week but sometimes with a little luck I could get two or three. The Morgans in circulation back in the 1950s at least in New York were somewhat limited. Over time I was able to get about 20 different dates, but realistically as you did not see that many, it was not like cents or nickels where you could fill a lot of holes in a collection in a hurry. Of course, even if the dollars had been there, my funds were not, so it was very slow going.

There was one Morgan I wanted to find but had a simply terrible time finding it. I had at least one from all the other facilities that produced Morgans, including a 1921-D, but finding one from Carson City was a real problem. Of course at the time I did not know and neither did anyone else that a few million Carson City Morgan dollars were sitting in a vault a few hours away in Washington, D.C. I just simply assumed Carson City Morgans were extremely tough and in part with perhaps one-third of the dollars I did see being Peace dollars, having trouble finding dollars from a certain mint was not all that surprising.

Realistically I was not that upset as what must be remembered is that back in the 1950s with the exception of Morgan dollars, about the oldest coin you could expect to find in circulation were 1909 Lincoln cents. You might get lucky and find an Indian Head cent or a Barber coin, but the odds of finding any coin from before 1900 were very long.

Finally, after looking for a couple of years, the cash register at my grandfather's restaurant provided the one coin I really wanted in the form of an 1878-CC. It was well worn and the 1878-CC historically has been the most available Carson City Morgan dollar thanks to a mintage of 2,212,000, but that did not matter to me as finally I had my Carson City silver dollar and that was special.

Ironically, the period was one where the government was providing more Morgans than the rare coin market could ever hope to absorb as bag after bag were being sold by the Treasury at their face value of $1,000. As it would turn out, what the government giveth it also taketh away. When the Treasury stopped selling the bags in 1964 and silver was removed from the dime and quarter and reduced to 40 percent in the half dollar in 1965, any chance of taking my Morgan dollar collection any further from circulation finds was ended. At that point, discouraged, I saved one from each mint and spent the rest as they were not worth any premium at time.

The collection had been a great deal of fun for a couple years of and every time I added a new date I was excited especially if it was from the 1800s. For me and perhaps for others, the Morgan dollar had been the one opportunity at the time to collect a coin from the previous century. To me that was fascinating. I could check the date and go back in my history books to see who had been President and what had happened at the time that specific Morgan dollar was new.

As it turned out, my problem in finding any Carson City Morgan dollar went to the other extreme in the 1970s when the General Services Administration began to sell the Carson City dollars that had been found in the Treasury vaults. This too was extraordinary fun. I bought most of the dates offered at $30, but for me the real fun were the mixed lots of coins that were seen by the GSA as not uncirculated. I bid and won many times and while I never received an 1879-CC or 1889-CC or any major error, the fact is for the reduced prices of the dates they were in my estimation a great deal and a great deal of fun. Eventually I had over a roll of assorted grades and dates of Carson City dollars that almost made me feel like I was back in Carson City in the days of the Old West.

Part of the fun of Morgan dollars at least to me was that from the time I started you could never really predict what Morgans might be tougher based on their mintages. True, the 1893-S is a key date in virtually every grade, but part of the Morgan dollar story involves chance in terms of whether a certain date survived and if so in what grade.

Certainly government policy played a large role in the chances of a Morgan dollar surviving. The Bland-Allison Act that was followed by the Sherman Silver Purchase Act required the production of far more Morgan dollars than could ever have been used at the time they were struck.

When the last Morgans were produced under the original legislation in 1904, it was estimated that perhaps 50 million were in circulation but over 500 million were in vaults. That meant only about 10 percent of the original mintages were being circulated, but it could be any date in any number as it was not simply 10 percent of each mintage. Helping them stay in vaults was the fact that they were also used as backing for Silver Certificates. People didn't have to use a clunky, large silver coin when paper did the job for them.

The Pittman Act in 1918, which authorized the melting of up to 350 million dollars and which ended up seeing the destruction of 270,232,722, still meant that basically somewhere close to 50 percent of the coins sitting in vaults were destroyed. Once again there was no pattern as the coins melted were simply whatever bags were pulled from the vaults.

It appears that as Carson City dollars were shipped to the vault in Washington first in the early 1900s, that they might well have been in the back of the vault and consequently were less likely to be melted than others. It cannot be proven but that appears to have been the case especially when you consider that in the 1950s and 1960s as the vaults were emptied the last coins there turned out to be primarily Carson City dates and they made up the bulk of the three million coins that were later sold by the GSA.

There are other factors influencing supplies today in certain grades. Basically from the time the last silver dollar was produced in 1935 until the run on dollars in the late 1950s and early 1960s, bag after bag was paid out. Over the span of a couple decades, most of those bags ended up in regular commerce, meaning the coins they contained were circulated.

In the case of some bags that did find their way to coin dealers, they too were usually not saved in large numbers simply because there was very little demand for Morgan dollars in the 1930s and 1940s. A dealer might save a few examples from a bag, but many times the vast majority of the 1,000 coins in the bag did not find their way to collections. The face value alone was an enormous sum to tie up, so the idea was to search them rather than keep them.

When silver rose to $50 an ounce in 1980, the value of any Morgan dollar was around $35. At that point millions if not hundreds of millions were melted. By that time, better dates would have been identified and not included in the melting but the losses of average dates in circulated grades were probably very large and that could play a role in making some dates tougher than might be expected today.

The history of the Morgan dollar makes it one of the relatively few coins of the United States that is nearly impossible to gauge simply by mintages. For example, thanks to the GSA sales, we known many Carson City dollars came out in Mint State. That does not, however, mean that all Carson City dollars were suddenly available in Mint State as the 1889-CC, which has become the key in Mint State of the Carson City dollars and a major rarity, was not in the sale and neither were the 1892-CC and 1893-CC. The 1892-CC and 1893-CC are not as tough as the 1889-CC thanks to larger mintages and the fact that over the years as bags were paid out by the Treasury at least some numbers ended up in numismatic hands.

In fact, in the case of at least the 1893-CC, there were also a few bags in the Redfield Hoard, although typically of the twists and turns of fate that seem to be common with Morgan dollars, many of those coins were damaged by a counting machine used to inventory the hoard.
If you consider a circulated Morgan dollar collection today, it is a fascinating challenge and one many collectors can attempt. As it turns out, the dates that may be tough in circulated grades are not by definition the same dates that would be tough in MS-65 or better.

The best example is probably the 1885-CC. The 1885-CC is a tough date and there can be no doubt about that as it had a mintage of just 228,000. The 1885-CC it seems was never paid out in any numbers at the time they were produced. They must have ended up in the back of the vault at the Treasury when the Carson City dollars were shipped to Washington as the 1885-CC also appears to have never been paid out in any numbers until the 1950s. As a result, they did not circulate in Nevada casinos or other places and when the bags did hit the market in some numbers in the 1950s, many were saved. Later in the GSA sales, 148,285 were available and that is 65.03 percent of the entire mintage.

The result of the unusual distribution pattern is that the 1885-CC despite not being priced as the most expensive circulated Morgan dollar is in fact a good deal. Q. David Bowers in his book The Official Red Book of Morgan Silver Dollars puts it well, suggesting, "Ironically the 1885-CC is the rarest of all Morgan dollars in circulated grades, eclipsing the 1889-CC, 1893-S, and all other contenders."

If you think Q. David Bowers might be wrong guess again. At the Professional Coin Grading Service they have graded 14,324 1885-CC Morgan dollars and a grand total of 18 were circulated. It was even more dramatic at NGC where they have graded 4,753 and just three were circulated. No other dates came close other than the 1883-CC and 1884-CC. As for the keys, as Bowers suggests, the 1885-CC is much tougher and if you doubt Bowers, the grading services and me try to find a nice VG-8 at any price.

In fact the 1889-CC is more expensive in circulated grades as it too is tough. While a large number of Morgan dollar dates in circulated grades and even lower Mint State grades are available for extremely reasonable prices, frequently $25 in AU-50 and only a few dollars more in MS-60, finding Carson City dollars at such prices is not possible.

There are two reasons why the Carson City dates even in circulated grades will start at $100 or more in most cases. The first reason is the demand that is always extremely high. The second is the supply as there are not many circulated Carson City dollars around simply because the majority are Mint State. That makes them the most difficult single group in a circulated collection.

The most expensive dates might well be called the usual suspects. The 1893-S is a key date in any grade in a Morgan dollar collection. The 1893-S currently lists for $3,800 in VG-8 and they are tough to find at least in that grade. The reason is simply that the 100,000 mintage of the 1893-S appears to have circulated briefly before being pulled from circulation for one reason or another. That makes the majority of the thousands of known examples in large part VF-20 to perhaps XF-40. Lower or higher than such middle grades is unusual and that will make an 1893-S a significant challenge for a circulated set.

Another key date is the Philadelphia 1894 that had a mintage of just 110,000. At $1,450 in VG-8, the 1894 seems to be a case where the mintage tells the story. The 1894 seems to have no special stories as it is available in roughly the numbers that would be expected for a Morgan dollar with such a low mintage.

The drop off to the next group of Morgans is sharp. The 1889-CC is $625 in VG-8, but from there the next most expensive dates are the 1885-CC at $550 while the 1895-O is $335. As perhaps the least available circulated date, the 1885-CC is a good deal at that price and the 1895-O is a problem in most grades although of the number available from its small mintage of 450,000, a goodly number are found in upper circulated grades. The 1881-CC is also above $300 at $375 in VG-8 in another classic case of Carson City dollars being more available in Mint State than in circulated grades.

There are only a couple other dates even reaching $300 in VG-8. The 1903-O is at $325 and that is one of those glorious flukes of Morgan dollars as in MS-60 it is only $425. The reason for the odd pricing is simple in that the 1903-O basically never circulated. Until late 1962 it was the prime Morgan dollar rarity, a coin that was $1,500 in Mint State, but which could not be found in any grade. Then bag after bag was released by the Treasury. The numbers were large, with Bowers estimating that perhaps 200,000 to 350,000 were released. Large numbers were saved, making the 1903-O an available date in Mint State today, but a very elusive date in circulated grades. At the current prices, it is really hard to justify the $325 price for a VG-8 when you can pay just a small amount more and get a much higher grade.

The 1893-CC is $265 in VG-8. The 1895-S is interesting in that it is $450 in VG-8, which is more than double the $200 price of three years ago that ranked it below the 1893-CC. The 1895-S is another case of a lower mintage that seemingly resulted in a poor survival rate perhaps suggesting some percentage of the mintage was melted in the Pittman Act melting. We cannot really be sure, but we know the 1895-S is elusive in circulated grades and difficult as well in Mint State because most examples are heavily bag marked.

There are any number of dates currently in the $100-$200 range in VG-8, with most of the remaining Carson City dates falling into that price range along with a couple others. The rest of the Morgan dollars in circulated grades tend to be around $20 in VG-8. There are a few that bring small premiums, but the number of dates that are available for very modest prices is large enough to make for quite a collection, affordable to the kids of this generation who still cut lawns for their incomes.

There is one other date that you probably will not be able to add to a circulated Morgan dollar collection. The 1895, with a listed mintage of 12,880, was actually a proof-only issue that had a mintage believed to be 880. It was a simple clerical error or at least that is what we believe happened. There have been some who historically have suggested that perhaps the 12,000 business strikes of the 1895 were melted in the Pittman Act melting, but that seems increasingly unlikely as the 1895 should have at least had an example saved for the Assay Commission but that coin was also a proof. Realistically the 1895 was heavily saved as they only went to collectors with more than 50 percent of the entire mintage probably available today. There is a price listing of $21,500 in VG-8, but the problem is that there are probably no coins in that grade. There may be some impaired proofs, especially when there are hundreds known, but finding one in such a low grade is unlikely and that means an 1895 would cost much more as the grade would be much higher and when the coin is a significant rarity, there are always buyers looking for a lower priced example to fill that hole.

Otherwise, the Morgan dollar set is one everyone can attempt and in many cases come near completion. There are only 17 dates over $100 in VG-8, not counting VAM varieties. In fact, when you realize that the most expensive coin in the set other than the 1895 would cost $3,800 in VG-8 and that there are only a few coins even topping $500, it is suddenly not a set that is that costly.

You might not turn a lot of heads at a major show with a circulated Morgan dollar collection, but the fact is you will have a lot of fun assembling such a set and enjoying it and that is the main purpose of any collection.

Friday, September 26, 2008

U.S. Mint Suspends Buffalo Gold Coin Sales

By CoinNews.net

The United States Mint has temporarily suspended sales of American Buffalo one-ounce bullion coins to their network of Authorized Purchasers, it was announced Thursday.
"Demand has exceeded supply for American Buffalo 24-karat gold one-ounce bullion coins, and our inventories have been depleted. We are, therefore, temporarily suspending sales of these coins," the Mint said in a memorandum.

The Mint has experienced past depletions in bullion coin inventories, and had to suspend American Eagle one-ounce gold coins back on August 17. Less than a week later, those sales resumed on an allocated basis, which continues to this day.

At the time of this writing, fractional proof and uncirculated collector American Buffalo gold coins, to include one-once versions, are still listed as available through the Mint’s website.
Physical demand for gold and bullion coins has risen sharply, according to many reports, as investors seek the yellow metal’s traditional safe haven status during times of financial uncertainly.

Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Heads, It's Lincoln; Tails, It's Lincoln's Life

by washingtonpost.com


U.S. Mint Director Ed Moy announces a new penny design to mark Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday.If you've been collecting the quarters from each state and have been bummed that this is the last year for that hobby, have we got news for you.

Starting next year, there will be four new pennies to collect, celebrating the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln.

The obverse (or heads) part of the coin will stay the same, showing the 16th president facing to the right.

But the reverse (tails) part of the coin will show different times in the life of Lincoln, who is widely considered to be one of the country's greatest leaders for freeing the slaves and saving the Union during the Civil War.

The designs for the new pennies were shown for the first time yesterday near the Lincoln Memorial.

The first new penny will be available Feb. 12, Lincoln's 200th birthday. It will show a log cabin to honor his birth and childhood in Kentucky.

The others will show his life as a young man in Indiana, his professional life in Illinois and his presidential years in Washington (when the U.S. Capitol was being built).

The other side of the penny will continue to show the likeness of Lincoln designed by Victor David Brennan. It was introduced on the Lincoln penny 100 years ago.

A Lincoln commemorative silver dollar also will be issued next year.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Legend Market Report - Sept. 08 Long Beach Show

By Laura Sperber


“Lackluster” is how we would best describe activity at the show. Dealers definitely had some cash flow issues and we heard several major generic/bullion dealers had margin calls on gold while others battled just to pay their ANA auction bills. Take away the roll coaster ride of the financial markets and gold, and even with poorer cash flows, it was hard to distinguish this Long Beach Show from any other held during the same time period.

Typically, the fall show has always been the weakest. Attendance was surprisingly strong Thursday, but on Friday you roll a bowling ball down the isles. We really don’t think this show is a good representation to fully gauge the market, but we’ll try to comment on all significant happenings we saw.

CLEAR YOUR HEAD AND TAKE A DEEP BREATH
Too many people do not see what is happening. It is amazing to us how many people are in total denial that the roaring bull market is over for now. In our last Market Report we spooked many people (and had many dealers angry at us) for telling it like it is-that a correction was underway. What everyone failed to read was that the correction was occurring primarily in the following 3 areas: *”inferior”, *”product”, and *”widget” coins. These are clearly off by a full 10-20%. See the end of this report for our definitions of those areas.

The three groups listed rode the bull market harder and longer than they ever should have. They actually did hurt the pricing on “better’ and “rarer” coins for a long time as pieces lingered on the market and sapped cash flows. Now that a huge separation between quality and lesser coins is occurring (like with MS66 Saints, CAC stickered pieces are WHOLESALING for $2,750.00 while NON CAC coins are selling for $2,250.00) the better coins are finally free to move up in value with out being dragged down by an inferior piece.

There is no question, the truly rare and NICE coins are still bringing all the money and then some. So long as you have true quality and can sit through a potential short term correction, you will be fine and your coins will produce the sensational returns you expect.

THE CURRENT LEVELS
From what we experienced in our own little orbit in the coin galaxy, price levels overall (save for generics and the three areas we posted above) were either slightly lower or mostly unchanged. There wasn’t a huge amount of activity that took place wholesale to pass full positive judgement. However, we do know that when nice, fresh, and eye appealing rarities hit the floor, they were immediately sold for what ever the asking prices were so long as they weren’t totally stupid.
Price guides are still BELOW reality (example: we just bought and sold a PCGS MS65 1875CC 20C. WE PAID $17,250.00 for it. CDN WHOLESALE BID is only $8,900.00. We will buy them all for that!). Also, as usual, auction prices were hit or miss-with real coins bringing real money.
We were amazed that prices seemed to remain firm even with all the craziness in the world around us. Again, understand that when we say the market is correcting, we are talking about the shift to pure quality. Quality coins ALWAYS sell for more period. Junky coins are off by 10-20%. To a small degree they have slowed the entire market as well. A correction like this was percolating for a very long time.

PROOF THE MARKET STILL IS THERE FOR GREAT COINS
There is no question great coins still trade like there is no tomorrow. The key is the quality. Even if you have a tremendous rarity, if the quality is off, so will be the price. Coins like that are clearly off by as much as 20% since the ANA Show.

The Goldberg sale probably was the best of all the auctions to discuss. They started with the ultimate fresh deal: GEM Large Cents from the Nafzger Collection. Bidding was so intense and furious, we sat there like children just given detention and told to keep our hands on the chair seat at all times! Prices did what they should have-went insane. Here are 3 examples;
1C 1793 WREATH PCGS MS64BN $224,000.001C 1796 PCGS MS66RB $690,000.001C 1803 PCGS MS66BN $241,500.00 (and we were thinking a $150G hammer bid would make us hero’s)

We knew they would go for at least 5X the low ball estimates. How can you put a price on a coin that’s so fresh and unlike any other anyone has seen in decades? If the market were truly hurting, the room would not have been packed and these coins would not have brought anywhere near what they did. All of them were acquired by deep pocked collectors. It also proves out our favorite tag line” “there is no substitution for quality”.

The Ohringer Collection was a mishmash of great and not so great rarities. Here is where the market definitely gets proved out. Even though all the coins had low reserves, several ‘inferior” pieces failed to sell. Of course the great coins brought strong money (NOTE: none of the coins here were really fresh).

Here are a few examples:
G $2.5 1821 PCGS MS64 $149,500.00G $3 1873 OPEN 3 PCGS PR65 DCAM $212,750.00 (purchased by Legend)G $20 1870CC PCGS XF45 $345,000.00G $20 1887 PCGS PR65 DCAMEO $161,000.00
If you also notice, cost was NOT any barrier to buying a coin. There was tremendous strength exhibited in the Goldberg Sale for expensive rarities.
The Superior Sale saw a 20C 1876CC PCGS MS62 sell for $270,000.00 to a dealer! A monster 1824 1C PCGS MS64RB sold for a dizzying $57,500.00. We could go on and on.
The B+M and Heritage sales did well too (B+M Sold a fresh Octagonal Territorial for $460,000.00).
So unless a coin was so/so, the auction scene remained very solid.

THE BIGGEST SURPRISE
We hate surprises. We still can’t believe this-one of the softest areas at the show was generic gold. Save for a small mad rush on Thursday (we saw people buying AU58-MS62 gold), there was NO influx of orders. We expected to hear that dealers needed hundreds of coins. Every buyer for a top telemarketer told us they still had more than enough supply to handle the current demand. They said orders had not picked up except for straight bullion.

We still think there is time to buy gold while the premium over “melt” is still small. Or, in cases of higher grade generics, since most major market makers got hit with margin calls, they were not stocking up at all. So even there you’ll be able to find decent values in higher graded Saints, Libs, and Indians.

As time goes on and people realize their heads are still on their shoulders, we think orders will dramatically increase for generics. People will never again 100% trust the banks. It could be very interesting for generic demand and prices in the next 3 months.

COLLECTORS SELLING
Even though we have been swamped with collectors selling, there is no mad rush to the exit. We see mostly smart selling. People are heeding our advice and selling off their excess to get in cash positions. We still are getting fresh deals every day either on consignment or for outright purchase (just wait until you see the monster deal we are doing the first week of October). No one has said to us they had to sell due to the financial markets mess. We did have one customer who sold us a mid six figure collection (he took some lumps too) so he could buy gold. He makes our Hall of Fame as he bought gold last week near its recent low. WOW!

NOTE: You are far better off SELLING your excess or “lesser” coins now even if there is nothing around you want to buy. Having cash will always reduce your risk and set up to be in a better bargaining position when that”right” coin comes along. When you are rushed to sell, you rarely will get the prices you need. Your best deal is always for cash.

When selling these days, note that if you expect auction prices-sell in auction! Dealers need to make 10% and also have expenses and the costs of money to deal with. However, you should always get the most money if you go back to the dealer who sold you the coins. If they don’t support what they sell-time for a new dealer! An honest dealer will always pay the most they can. But if you expect unrealistic prices, don’t blame the dealer for not bucking up!

TO SUM UP
What do we think?
The sky isn’t falling. Hard assets will be sought out once everyone quits being so afraid.
On Wed. we thought for sure gold was going to hit 1,000 by Friday. Oops! We also thought the stock market was crash to 8500 (still a possibility). After neither happened we realized we still had all our extremities, were still breathing, and people still DID very much want to buy and sell coins. So our focus went back to sorting out the best values available.

It is our strong opinion the average buyer is taking a “wait and see” approach. So the faster the financial markets calm down, the faster we’ll be back to a healthier business as usual. We think coins will become extremely bullish by the end of the year.

Dealers will suffer for a little while with bad cash flows, but you won’t see any implosion or mass dumping. There are so few great coins on the market these days, it would be impossible for prices to fall. if it were to happen, that would mean the entire economy is kaput.
Sure, this will sound like hype, but now is probably the BEST buying opportunity all year!

WHAT IS HOT?
Early type-even Early Copper in true quality is on fire. MS Seated coins in 64 and finer. Blast white GEM “better” ($5,000.00 an up) Morgans with clean cheeks have high demand. And yes, even lowly Commems in GEM are in demand again.

WHAT IS NOT?
Still can’t believe no one cares for generics. GEM MS Liberty and Buffalo Nickels have been thrown aside due to massive coin doctoring. Low end widgets still linger-dealers want to much still.

DEFINITIONS
INFERIOR; A coin that is over-graded in a holder, low end, or unattractive in a holder.
PRODUCT: Decent B/C level coin that has no outstanding eye appeal or anything else.
WIDGET: A COMMON COIN YOU CAN FIND IN ANY GRADE ANYTIME. generally when we discuss these, we are talking about product pieces. Exceptional coins do sell strong. Example: a high relief in any grade is an expensive widget. An 82CC in MS66 is also a widget.

Monday, September 15, 2008

Five-Star General Coins in Clad, Silver and Gold Proposed

By CoinNews.net

Senator Pat Roberts of Kansas introduced coin legislation to honor five-star Generals and the United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC) for its service in educating the nation’s military leaders since its founding in 1881.

The newly published bill, "Five-Star Generals Commemorative Coin Act, S. 3456," authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to mint 100,000 five dollar gold coins, 500,000 one dollar silver coins, and 750,000 half-dollar copper-nickel clad coins for issuance in 2013.

The 50 cent clad, $1 silver and $5 gold coins would portray Five-Star Generals George Marshall, Douglas MacArthur, Dwight Eisenhower, Henry "Hap" Arnold, and Omar Bradley — each alumni of the CGSC, which was founded in 1881 at Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas.

"Kansas is proud to be the home of the oldest, largest and arguably the most prestigious military staff college in the United States. The school is a first class center of excellence for leadership development and joint operational education," said Senator Roberts.

The coin design honors the CGSC’s most famous graduates, who led U.S. forces to victory in World War II. Their minting would coincide with the celebration of the 132nd anniversary of the founding of the college.

S. 3456 includes surcharges of $35 for each $5 gold coin, $10 for every silver dollar coin, and $5 for each half-dollar clad coin. Surcharges would be paid to the Command and General Staff College Foundation, a not for profit organization that is chartered to support the CGSC.

For any legislation to become law, it must pass both the House and the Senate, and get signed by the President.

Friday, September 12, 2008

Rare glitch in some Wyoming quarters

By LISA BISBEE

Scattered Wyoming quarters may contain future collectors' items if they contain a rare flaw found when the die wobbles.

Like thousands of Americans, Gillette resident Gordon Evans has collected state quarters -- adding each state as it is released. Now, with news that the Wyoming bucking-horse-and-rider quarters might be worth more than 25 cents, Evans is rechecking the Cowboy State quarter in his possession to see if he has one with a unique characteristic.

Some of the Wyoming quarters have a rare flaw, called a double die. The mistake is caused when the die that stamps the quarter design is tilted and wobbles during the stamping process. The incident causes a second impression to be made at the center of the coin. The Wyoming quarter's flaw can be found around the bucking horse's saddlehorn -- where there's a tip of a 'ghost' saddlehorn.

Though the value of a double die coin depends on the type, position and rarity of the error, Dan Norris, owner of D&J Coins and Leathercraft in Sheridan, said the flaw is difficult to see without a magnifying glass.

"It may be far too minor to create too much interest," he said.
However, when a similar error was found in the Minnesota state quarter, many collectors bought the coins for more than $150. And the flawed Wisconsin state quarter, which appears to have an extra leaf on the left side of an ear of corn, has sold for more than $1,000.
"The Wisconsin quarter created much interest," Norris said. "But I haven't had anyone asking for this Wyoming quarter."

Janis Geer, co-owner of Pronghorn Trader in Gillette, said a lot of people collecting each state's quarters are not 'hardcore' collectors. Most are not looking for rare or old coins. Instead they are looking at each state's coin and putting them into a collection that will eventually represent all 50 states. Some are collecting for their grandkids or children. Others are intrigued by what each state chooses as its representation on the coin.

"A lot of people have collected with their kids to spark their interest in geography or the states," she said. "It's something that has spurred people into a different type of collecting. It's something they do because it's fun."

Wyoming's quarter was released last year as the 44th in the U.S. Mint's popular 50 State Quarters Program. In addition to the bucking horse and rider, the quarter features the inscriptions 'The Equality State,' 'Wyoming,' and '1890.' But the flaw only recently came to light.
Across the state line in Billings, Mont., Mark Allen of Ardie's Coins said he expects some collectors to look for the coin, but he also doesn't expect to see a whirlwind of activity created because of the flaw. That was not the case with the Wisconsin quarter, Allen said, which not only created a collector frenzy, but also has caused the quarter to hold an escalated price tag.
"This one is hard to see with the naked eye," Allen said. "My understanding is most of these (flawed quarters) run their course. They gain value and then they fall again."

In the meantime, many Wyomingites and Americans may scour the quarters jingling in their pockets or sitting in a collection to see if they can lay claim to a flawed Wyoming quarter.

"It's hard to say for sure what collectors are going to be interested in," Norris said. "It could catch fire."

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Civil Rights Quarter Series Proposed in House

By CoinNews.net


A bill recently introduced by Rep. Melvin Watt [D-NC] proposes a 40-coin, eight-year series of circulating quarters to commemorate and be emblematic of "prominent civil rights leaders and important events that have advanced civil rights in America."

H.R. 6701, "Civil Rights Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008," was introduced July 31, and has an already large cosponsor list of 99 representatives.

Most collectors are now familiar with the H.R. 6184, "America’s Beautiful National Parks Quarter Dollar Coin Act of 2008," which the House passed July 9 and would continue circulating quarters commemorating national parks and sites for at least 11 years. Like it, H.R. 6701 would authorize a large silver version of the coin measuring 3 inches in diameter and weighing a 5 ounces.

These "super-sized" coins seem to be a new trend in congress, as the latest Senate version of the park quarters bill (S. 3290) includes language for a 3 inch diameter, 8 ounce silver coin.

The Civil Rights designs, as is typical in coin legislation, are not fully defined. But the bill does include recommendations for the following individuals and events portrayed on the reverse of quarters:
Martin Luther King, Jr.; Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad; The Little Rock Nine; Rosa Parks; Cesar Chavez; Antonia Pantoja; Dionisio (Dennis) Chavez; Patsy Mink; Philip Vera Cruz; and Thurgood Marshall The Treasury Secretary would determine each final design after consulting with the Congressional Black Caucus, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Commission of Fine Arts.

Also unclear is when the quarter-dollar coin series would begin circulating. The legislation simply states "upon the completion of prior program," and that five quarters a year would be issued and the series is to end after 40 quarters.

Should this legislation pass and the national parks quarter bill get thrown aside, the series would likely begin in 2010 and after the D.C. and U.S. Territories quarters retire.

Congress returns from its several weeks of vacation on Monday, September 8. For a bill to become law, it must pass both houses and be signed by the President.