Hello I am going through my moms old sets and have many that were never opened. I am trying to determine what is in them without opening them as I may sell them for her. I have proof sets from that year but they are nearly twice as heavy as whst is in these boxes. One box came Registered Mail with 3 items in it and the other came first class with 2 items. I have taken photos snd weights of each. Thanks for your help
Thanks for your reply. I have proof sets and weighed them as well. They are nearly twice as heavy so I've ruled this out. I am thinking commemoratives also. I guess I will need to open them to be certain....
Absolutely. I a, taking a guess at souvenir sets in one and commemoratives in the other. I have two boxes of each so will open one of each and keep the other sealed. Probably tomorrow. Will post.
You could have the contents of the box scanned by a X-Ray Inspection Machine (like those in use at airports). A good one should be able to tell you the contents AND composition of any coins present.
Or this cute handheld scanner:
PxbZJ8-keyo
*** Edited by Staff to add YouTube tags. [youtube][/youtube] Please use them in the future. We prefer embedded video. ***
I appreciate the x-ray comment. I'm actually an interventional pain management physician and we use fluoroscopy all the time. It has crossed my mind. However I think it is best that I at least open one sample of each just to confirm for any potential buyer what is in them. I'll repost with photos once I do. I will do it tonight or tomorrow. Thank you everyone for your comments. My mom was a 60+ year collector and taught me when I was a child. She had hundreds of various types of sets many of which have not been opened but had just been stored away. Some of which I know the contents and some are unknown. The Mint has codes that they put on some of the exterior boxes but this typically did not occur until the 1990s.
I'm still going through everything but the oldest sets I've seen so far are about 10 sets of 1956 proofs. She was a sharp cookie - found her auction records of buy and sell dates and prices. She knew all the local auctioneers and would attend weekly auctions in the 1960s- 2000's -buy and flip some and keep some. In her 70's she began liquidating some of her collection on ebay. Not one slab, was of the prior generation that "bought the coin." Wish I could be sorting with her now...
I don't know, it all depends on your plans. Unopened mint packages can bring some surprising auction values. However, if you're not selling them, I would have said open. My grandfather left me a lot of those sealed mint mailing boxes. But, being a collector, I opened them all.
Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited. Contact Us | Advertise Here | Privacy Policy / Terms of Use
Posted 11/05/2020 3:17 pm
! 
