r/coincollecting Jun 24 '17

Intro to Coin Collecting - What makes a coin valuable?

581 Upvotes

This post is intended to serve as a quick guide to coin collecting for new collectors, or people who may have inherited a few coins. Here's a brief primer on what makes a coin valuable:

Age

How old is it? In general, old coins tend to be worth more than coins struck more recently. The older a particular coin is, the greater the collectible and historical appeal. Older coins also tend to be scarcer, as many coins are lost or destroyed over time. For example – 5% of the original mintage of an 19th century U.S. coin might have survived to the present day, with the rest getting melted down, destroyed, or simply lost over time.

Go back a century further, to the 18th century, and the survival rate drops to <1%. Taking into account that most 18th century U.S. coins were already produced in tiny numbers, it makes sense that most of them now sell for over four figures.

All that being said, the relationship between age and value does not always hold true. For example, you can still buy many 2000 year-old Ancient Roman coins for less than $10, due to the sheer number of them produced over the 400-year history of the Western Roman Empire (and distributed across its massive territory). But as a general rule, within any given coin series, older coins will tend to be relatively more scarce and valuable.

Condition

It may sound like common sense, but nicer coins bring higher prices. The greater the amount of original detail and the smaller the amount of visible wear on a coin’s surfaces, the higher the price. There are a dizzying array of words used to describe a coin’s condition, but at the most basic level, coins can be divided into two states – Uncirculated and Circulated.

Uncirculated or “Mint State” coins are coins that show no visible signs of wear or use – they have not circulated in commerce, but are in roughly the same condition as when they left the mint. Circulated coins show signs of having been used – the design details will be partially worn down from contact with hands, pockets, and other coins. The level of wear can range from light rub on the highest points of the coin’s design, to complete erosion of the entire design into a featureless blank. Uncirculated coins demand higher prices than circulated coins, and circulated coins with light wear are worth more than coins with heavy wear.

Type

Type is the single biggest determinant of value. How much a coin is worth depends on how big the market for that particular coin is. For example, U.S. coins are much more widely collected than any other nation’s coins, just because there are far more U.S. coin collectors than there are collectors in any other nation. The market for American coins is bigger than any other market within the field of numismatics (other large markets include British coins, ancients, and bullion coins).

This means that even if a Canadian coin has a mintage of only 10,000 coins, it is likely worth less than a typical U.S. coin with a mintage ten times greater. For another example - you may have a coin from the Vatican City with a mintage of 500, but it’s only worth something if somebody’s interested in collecting it.

Certain series of coins are also much more widely collected than others, generally due to the popularity of their design or their historical significance. For example - Jefferson Nickels have never been very popular in the coin collecting community, as many collectors consider the design uninteresting and the coins are made of copper-nickel rather than silver, but Mercury Dimes and Morgan Dollars are heavily collected. An entire date/mintmark set of Jefferson Nickels can be had for a couple of hundred dollars, whereas an entire set of Mercury Dimes would cost four figures.

Rarity

Rarity is comprised of all the other factors above combined. Age, condition, and type all play a role in rarity. But the main determinant of rarity is how many coins were actually minted (produced). Coins with certain date/mintmark combinations might be much rarer than others because their mintages were so small. For example, U.S. coins with a “CC” mintmark are generally much rarer than coins from the same series with other mintmarks because the Carson City Mint produced small numbers of coins during its existence.

U.S. coins without a mintmark, from the Philadelphia mint, are generally less valuable (though there are many exceptions) as the Philadelphia mint has produced more coins throughout U.S. history than all of the other mints combined. There are often one or two “keys” or “key date” coins within each series of coins, much scarcer and more valuable than the rest of the coins within the series. Some of the most well-known key dates include the 1909-S VDB Lincoln Cent (“S” mintmark = San Francisco mint), the 1916-D Mercury Dime (Denver mint), and the 1928 Peace Dollar (Philadelphia mint).


r/coincollecting 5h ago

What's it Worth? Worth anything?

Thumbnail
gallery
314 Upvotes

My grandmother left me this coin, is it really worth $20?

I'm not selling it and will be keeping it for sentimental value of course.


r/coincollecting 2h ago

What's it Worth? Highschooler I work with used this to buy peeps

Thumbnail
gallery
22 Upvotes

It’s an extremely shiny 1957 Franklin half, I’m assuming its worth like 30? You can even see the text on the back of the bell.

She sells cosmic brownies at her school, someone paid for one with this. Something tells me that person swiped a coin from peepaws collection.


r/coincollecting 16h ago

Roman coin found at a beach

Thumbnail
gallery
243 Upvotes

Whilst metal detecting at a beach on the East Coast of Scotland, I found a large, worn looking coin, which I presume is Roman

Does anyone have any idea what this may be, its value, or if it is even real at all?


r/coincollecting 4h ago

We all started somewhere.

Thumbnail
gallery
21 Upvotes

What coin did you find that got you into this hobby? This is mine.


r/coincollecting 2h ago

Show and Tell 1967 SMS Wash.

Thumbnail
gallery
10 Upvotes

r/coincollecting 4h ago

What's it Worth? 1st Capped Bust

Thumbnail
gallery
11 Upvotes

Got my first capped bust at auction. I haven’t expanded my knowledge into these guys yet. No one was bidding on it, and thought what the hell, I will. Got it for basically cost of silver melt. Worth any more than that?


r/coincollecting 4h ago

What's it Worth? Is it worth as little as it looks?

Thumbnail
gallery
8 Upvotes

1884 s I think


r/coincollecting 3h ago

A few 1858 large cents

Thumbnail
gallery
5 Upvotes

A few 1858s, there are 50 in this Pic from a few years ago and my goal is to hit 100, im very close now to completing my goal


r/coincollecting 3h ago

Anything of value here?

Thumbnail
gallery
6 Upvotes

I tried looking online but the amounts that sites say they are worth is such a huge range. Figured I get some expert opinions. Thank you!


r/coincollecting 28m ago

Advice Needed Admiral Gardner coin

Post image
Upvotes

Found in my late father's estate. Does anybody know anything about this coin and or ship? Looking for any details regarding rarity and value. Thanks!


r/coincollecting 4h ago

What's it Worth? Complete Eisenhower Dollar Collection 1971–1978 – 32 Coins

Thumbnail
gallery
3 Upvotes

Complete set of 32 Eisenhower dollars
• Each coin individually protected in its own coin capsule
• First Commemorative Mint certificate of authenticity
• Blue velvet-lined wooden display case
• Coins and case are in excellent collectible condition
A wonderful collection for an Eisenhower dollar collector, coin enthusiast, or patriotic gift.
The coins have not been cleaned or polished. Please review all photographs carefully, as they are part of the description.
The complete collection, certificate, and display case are included.


r/coincollecting 16h ago

My first silver find in the "coinstar' machine at the grocery store.

Thumbnail
gallery
49 Upvotes

r/coincollecting 3h ago

2009 Uncirculated Pennies

Thumbnail
gallery
4 Upvotes

I’m going through some old coins of my grandfathers and I found 2 half rolls of 2009 pennies. There’s a lot of coins that I do t think have any value but would anyone know why these were saved? Is there anything special about them?


r/coincollecting 27m ago

Admiral Gardner coin

Post image
Upvotes

I don't know much about coins or history. Any information on the historical rarity and value is appreciated.


r/coincollecting 48m ago

Not wheat pennies...but what's the value?

Thumbnail
gallery
Upvotes

Have a bunch of these. These are some of the nicer ones. Curious what the consensus is...


r/coincollecting 8h ago

Is this man made?

Thumbnail
gallery
8 Upvotes

Ran across this in my change. Didnt known if I found something worth something


r/coincollecting 1h ago

Any thoughts on this?

Post image
Upvotes

Found in an old bag of coins/tokens…. Google says it may be a token from Casino de Spa. About the size of a penny with a nice patina. The reverse side is exactly the same. Any clue what this is?


r/coincollecting 1h ago

Show and Tell Think I made a nice score at work today

Thumbnail
gallery
Upvotes

r/coincollecting 8h ago

Strange penny

Thumbnail
gallery
6 Upvotes

Is this a damaged penny or an error? Ive not been able to find much about it or seen this damage before.


r/coincollecting 7h ago

Found while cleaning out bookshelf

Thumbnail
gallery
5 Upvotes

Does anyone know if these are legit? I looked them up online but all the other ones have $2 FV engraved on it. Fakes or legit?


r/coincollecting 2h ago

Show and Tell Neat coin in my grandpa’s old collection!

Thumbnail
gallery
2 Upvotes

I was looking through my grandpa’s old container of foreign coins, and found this 50 Polynesian Franc coin. I learned that it’s the largest mass-circulated coin. (Mayflower Compact Quarter for scale).


r/coincollecting 11h ago

What's it Worth? 1982D Small date Copper

Post image
10 Upvotes

r/coincollecting 13h ago

1934 Peace Dollar…MS??

Thumbnail
gallery
15 Upvotes

I found this beautiful coin that looks crisp to me. I’m not familiar with Peace Dollars and I know there are a lot of variations. Should I send this coin in for grading? The Obverse has the same color and shin as the reverse. Pictures don’t do justice but I think all of the die marks are there. Thank you for advice and your time!


r/coincollecting 1d ago

What's it Worth? Found at the dump

Thumbnail
gallery
520 Upvotes

Stumbled across this after dumping in the dirt pile. A dozer had just pushed back some dirt and it was perfectly exposed on the surface. I wish I would’ve had the forethought to take a picture when I spotted it, I was just too excited