A few months ago I visited a coin shop which exhibits its coin in 2x2 holders. I chose a 50 cents silver coin which looked very attractive, and I bought it at a very affordable price. "I am a genius," I said to myself "this is probably the best coin deal in the history of coin deals".
Once at home, I open the holder, and to my surprise the coin's edge were terrible!
That's particularly common for Argentine coins, because gauchos (our cowboys) used to hit things like tables or doors to call a waiter or anybody in general.
Anyway, a few days ago I visited a different coin shop, and they again showed me some coins in 2x2 holders. I chose two possible coins I could buy, one which looked quite appealing, and another one which was just "good 'nuff". This time, I asked the seller to take the coin out of the 2x2 thingy before buying it, which he did after some reticence. And... the one that seemed the nicest, had a terrible edge! That particular coin should have a milled edge. In this case, it was literally smooth in certain sections. Meanwhile, the other coin's edge was just perfect. Needless to say which one I bought.
I learned two lessons in my coin buying quest. Firstly, a general one: always examine in detail the coin you're about to buy, particularly if it's a relatively valuable one. It doesn't matter if it's in a holder or slab, if you're in a hurry, if the seller is in a hurry, if there are many people around. Always be sure about what you're buying. And secondly, a particular lesson: coins have three faces, observe, reverse and edge. The edge, being the thinner one, and the one which we don't usually see in photographs or when the coin is slabbed or whatever, gets less attention, but it's equally important to the other two.
Do you have any further advice about grading, or examining a coin prior to purchase? Perhaps something else that people don't generally pay attention to, but it's important nevertheless?
Thank you for reading!
A little bonus! Below, the lettered edge of an Argentina 1 peso "patacón" 1882 coin, same size and silver content as the US dollar. The edge reads: igualdad ante la ley = equality before the law. Cheers!
Posted 03/04/2023 11:41 pm
