A Custodian Of Beautiful Things

A Custodian of Beautiful Things

This article originally appeared in the Journal of the Barber Coin Collectors' Society.
Volume 22 Number 2 2011
As the author of this article, I would like to offer it wider audience. Should you wish to repost this article please include the above mention.
I did change the first sentence to read:
"early in 2011" from the original
"earlier this year"

I hope that I do not get into trouble with my editor!

And if you have the time check out our web site:
http://www.barbercoins.org/

The info and the links are free to all.

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"A Custodian of Beautiful Things"

After the death of Elizabeth Taylor early in 2011 many tributes to her were aired on television and written in magazines. When I heard the following quote, however, I stopped in my tracks:

"The important thing to know about jewelry is that you never really own it; you're simply a custodian of beautiful things." - Elizabeth Taylor

It took me only an instant to rephrase the quote:
"The important thing to know about a coin is that you never really own it; you're simply a custodian of a beautiful thing." - Matthew Student

Having spent more than five years struggling with the realization that I am the last of three generations of coin collectors I have learned to change my collecting goals. And now I realize that I need to exercise my custodianship of coins with both responsibility to my sister and my responsibility to future generations of collectors.

Those of us with children or grand children, with the best of intentions, say that we are putting together sets of coins for our progeny. May I ask you, with utmost respect, "Have you ever spent a rainy day with your family to show them these coins and to share your enthusiasm?" I ask because it is NOT the coins which are important.
It is the sharing of your coins with your family that is important. Time spent with family does not need to be graded by a third party nor does it need a CAC sticker. In my experience, the memories which I treasure most are of the nights spent with my father. Sitting on the
bed. Opening the chest in the closet. Watching him carefully taking the coin albums out of the chest and little by little revealing the little gems.

*****

I remember the early sixties as a time when just about every person had a Lincoln Cent folder. Every stationery store, every pharmacy had the Whitman Folders carefully lined up on a shelf. At $.35 each! My father had one very generous habit: he would give to each new collector a 1909-VDB cent. I still have a few of them. He did possess a desire to encourage interest in coins.

The cents led to nickels, both the Buffalo and the Jefferson. The nickels led to dimes, both the "Mercury" and the Roosevelt. All of these coins were still in circulation. A kid like me could not afford to collect quarters or half dollars. So here were my areas of interest.

But on these shelves were folders with strange titles: Liberty Dimes, Liberty Quarters.
Some said "Barber" but the "Barber" was always in quotes. I had seen these folders in my father's wooden chest. I was immediately fascinated by these coins which no longer circulated.
It took much pleading to convince my father to give his duplicates to me. I do not know if he was pleased with my interest or simply wanted me to stop whining. I promptly
walked to the nearest store to buy the appropriate folders.

And I started to study the strange looking coins. Truth be told, I was intrigued that a given year, say 1906, had four different dimes. I knew about Denver and San Francisco.
But New Orleans? None of my other coins were made in New Orleans.
I just HAD to learn more ...

*****

Grammar school led to High School and High School led to college. Coins were temporarily forgotten. Other demands of life took precedence.
Then in later years my Great Aunt Tootsie, Julia
was her given name, grew older and needed help. She came to live with Mom and my sister and I. And she brought a bundle of coins with her ...

Now I already knew about these coins. As a young girl, circa 1920, Tootsie/Julia went to work for the Telephone Company ... in New York City ... in the, wait for it, COIN COUNTING ROOM! For some unknown reason she started to collect coins. And by "collect" I mean by date
and mint mark.
How I wish that I could have shared with my Great Aunt her experience of gathering these coins. But I never saw them until after her death. I was deprived of her joy.

*****

So after her passing I had access to coins gathered by my Great Aunt. As the only member of the family who had knowledge of coins I was allowed, for lack of a better word, to manage this little bundle of treasures. The Barber family was very well represented: nickels, dimes, quarters and half dollars. The dimes caught my eye. Could I possibly take Tootsie's dimes and upgrade and complete the set?
I set off to do just do. And I was immediately frustrated. My Aunt's dimes were in better shape than those which I found for sale. This was in 1990 and 1991. And I
remember that the last coin that I bought in 1991 was not a dime but rather a Barber quarter. A 1913-S.
There were two in the dealer's case. Both were graded very good. I spent about twenty minutes studying these two quarters and I bought, on a hunch and nothing else, the quarter which looked "pretty." That was the best
$450 that I have ever spent. My local coin dealer said that for every ten examples of this quarter in VG mine was a ten plus in quality.

*****

Years later, I continue to struggle with my role as "custodian of beautiful things." I engage my sister in the process. She has grown in knowledge. She still cannot tell one date from another but she has become my second set of eyes. As I am color blind I rely upon her for her opinions concerning possible purchases. Especially toning.
And I am still working on a complete set of higher grade Barber dimes.
The most recent purchase was a 1900-O Dime, XF45, in a PCGS Holder. My sister commented:

"This is a really nice dime and seems to be in demand. I understand why you wanted it!"

Rosemary also tells me when she is not impressed by a coin. "It doesn't excite me." Her ability to judge eye appeal is very important to me. Her opinion it that of a non-collector of coins. She looks at a coin as if it were a piece of jewelry. As if it were a "beautiful thing."

*****

So dear friends...engage your families in your hobby. Share your love of coins and share your knowledge about them. They may have a thing or two to teach you in return. And you will happy that you spent time
with loved ones.