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Posted 03/11/2007 1:17 pm
Coincidentally, I had sent the following proposed letter to the editors of Coin World and (with minor editing) Numismatic News recently. I did not receive a reply from either.
Dear Bill,
Below, please find a letter which I would like to submit for publication in Coin World. Please feel free to email me or phone me at (858) 459-3884 if you have any questions, comments or editing requirements. I believe that this is a very important topic and spend quite a bit of time trying to warn unknowledgeable buyers about various pitfalls in numismatics. I truly love the hobby and the business, but see many disturbing aspects to it.
By way of introduction, I have been a full time numismatist since 1979 as follows:
1979-1982: Retail sales and auction consignment coordinator for Steve Ivy Rare Coins
1982-1983: Owner of Mark Feld Rare Coins
1983-1985: Auction consignment coordinator, cataloguer and auctioneer for Heritage Rare Coin Galleries
1985-1987: Buyer for David Hall's Numismatic Investment Group
1987-1989: Employed by Mark Salzberg (now an owner of NGC) as part of a two man wholesale rare coin business
1989-1991: Owner of Mark Feld Rare Coins
1991-1998: Full time grader at NGC
1998-2004: Employed by Pinnacle Rarities, where I was involved in purchasing, sales and coin descriptions
July, 2004 - present : Owner of Mark Feld Rare Coins
Thank you for your time and consideration,
Sincerely,
Mark Feld
PROPOSED LETTER OR EDITORIAL FOR PUBLICATION IN Coin World:
There's far more than just a name and a website to a grading company, or is there?
Recently, while perusing ebay listings of coins for sale, I happened upon a "grading company" I had never heard of - World Coin Grading Company (website: https://www.worldcoingrading.com). So, I reviewed their website, where I read the following claims: "WCG is an independent third-party coin grading service. At WCG we grade our coins with the utmost integrity and highest quality. All coins are carefully graded and preserved in our special holders. Each coin comes with it's own serial number and and an official WCG logo."
However, among other things, there was no mention of the company's owners, graders, length of time in business, or contact phone number. I sent an email, requesting a contact phone number, so that I could ask some questions regarding a possible submission. Three days later I received a reply which did not include a contact phone number, but instead, read as follows:
"Dear Mark,
You can email us with any questions you have including submission questions. We will be happy to assist you in any way we can.
Thank you,
Customer Service
World Coin Grading"
I then sent another email, in which I asked questions such as whom the owner was, whom the graders were, how many coins World Coin Grading company graded per month, how long they had been in business, etc. I did not receive a reply.
Interestingly, thus far, I have only seen "World Coin Grading Company" coins offered by a single seller - ebay member: ravalexcoins. And, at least during the weeks I have followed that seller's ebay listings, he or she doesn't appear to sell coins graded by any other "grading company". Additionally, while I can appreciate that the grading of coins involves subjectivity, in many cases, the grading of the coins I have seen in "World Coin Grading Company" holders is considerably more liberal than any grading I have seen in my 27 years in numismatics. I invite readers to take a look for themselves and to see what they think.
I must wonder what connection, if any, exists between "World Coin Grading Company" and ebay member ravalexcoins. And, even if there is none, I'd sure like to see some evidence beyond a name and a website, that "World Coin Grading Company" truly is "an independent third-party coin grading service" as claimed on its website.
There are many self-slabbers, some of whom grade and slab their own coins, yet offer them as "independently certified". Sadly and disturbingly, many buyers of rare coins take false and misleading statements and claims on the part of sellers at face value. While those buyers deserve part of the blame for not doing their homework, that doesn't excuse dishonest sellers who take advantage of them.
Dear Bill,
Below, please find a letter which I would like to submit for publication in Coin World. Please feel free to email me or phone me at (858) 459-3884 if you have any questions, comments or editing requirements. I believe that this is a very important topic and spend quite a bit of time trying to warn unknowledgeable buyers about various pitfalls in numismatics. I truly love the hobby and the business, but see many disturbing aspects to it.
By way of introduction, I have been a full time numismatist since 1979 as follows:
1979-1982: Retail sales and auction consignment coordinator for Steve Ivy Rare Coins
1982-1983: Owner of Mark Feld Rare Coins
1983-1985: Auction consignment coordinator, cataloguer and auctioneer for Heritage Rare Coin Galleries
1985-1987: Buyer for David Hall's Numismatic Investment Group
1987-1989: Employed by Mark Salzberg (now an owner of NGC) as part of a two man wholesale rare coin business
1989-1991: Owner of Mark Feld Rare Coins
1991-1998: Full time grader at NGC
1998-2004: Employed by Pinnacle Rarities, where I was involved in purchasing, sales and coin descriptions
July, 2004 - present : Owner of Mark Feld Rare Coins
Thank you for your time and consideration,
Sincerely,
Mark Feld
PROPOSED LETTER OR EDITORIAL FOR PUBLICATION IN Coin World:
There's far more than just a name and a website to a grading company, or is there?
Recently, while perusing ebay listings of coins for sale, I happened upon a "grading company" I had never heard of - World Coin Grading Company (website: https://www.worldcoingrading.com). So, I reviewed their website, where I read the following claims: "WCG is an independent third-party coin grading service. At WCG we grade our coins with the utmost integrity and highest quality. All coins are carefully graded and preserved in our special holders. Each coin comes with it's own serial number and and an official WCG logo."
However, among other things, there was no mention of the company's owners, graders, length of time in business, or contact phone number. I sent an email, requesting a contact phone number, so that I could ask some questions regarding a possible submission. Three days later I received a reply which did not include a contact phone number, but instead, read as follows:
"Dear Mark,
You can email us with any questions you have including submission questions. We will be happy to assist you in any way we can.
Thank you,
Customer Service
World Coin Grading"
I then sent another email, in which I asked questions such as whom the owner was, whom the graders were, how many coins World Coin Grading company graded per month, how long they had been in business, etc. I did not receive a reply.
Interestingly, thus far, I have only seen "World Coin Grading Company" coins offered by a single seller - ebay member: ravalexcoins. And, at least during the weeks I have followed that seller's ebay listings, he or she doesn't appear to sell coins graded by any other "grading company". Additionally, while I can appreciate that the grading of coins involves subjectivity, in many cases, the grading of the coins I have seen in "World Coin Grading Company" holders is considerably more liberal than any grading I have seen in my 27 years in numismatics. I invite readers to take a look for themselves and to see what they think.
I must wonder what connection, if any, exists between "World Coin Grading Company" and ebay member ravalexcoins. And, even if there is none, I'd sure like to see some evidence beyond a name and a website, that "World Coin Grading Company" truly is "an independent third-party coin grading service" as claimed on its website.
There are many self-slabbers, some of whom grade and slab their own coins, yet offer them as "independently certified". Sadly and disturbingly, many buyers of rare coins take false and misleading statements and claims on the part of sellers at face value. While those buyers deserve part of the blame for not doing their homework, that doesn't excuse dishonest sellers who take advantage of them.
