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 Replies: 18 / Views: 1,818 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
604 Posts |
Hello everyone I had a wierd though as I was over my coins studing them and learning from them. Why do we collect. As a whole we collectors just collect but why. I never understood it when I got my first Kennedy half I just thought to myself "I'm going to collect coins" But my question to you is why do you collect and what or who brought it to you. Buffalo boy |
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Rest in Peace
United States
2684 Posts |
A friend of mine is a social psychologist and states that classification and, hence collection of things starts in very early childhood, maybe around the age of six months. This need to collect or accumulate may go back hundreds of thousands of years to Cro-Magnon Man (or earlier Homo species) in which EVERYTHING he could scrounge had a purpose, all oriented toward survival and propagation of the emerging species. In other words, it's in our genes.
As we age, we begin to refine our interests and limit our collections to those things we enjoy most. I gave up butterflies, marbles, pretty rocks, bottlecaps, and S&H Green Stamps in favor of coins, antique firearms, and electronic gizmos (primarily ham radio) as a matter of practicality (I could always sell if it came to a crunch), storage available, value gained, leisure time available, and grey matter available to develop specialized knowledge. Coins, firearms, and radios have been around me all my life since before I developed memory, so I stayed with them. It's in my genes.
Fred
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1262 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
577 Posts |
I really don't know why I love collecting, but I take great interest in learning the history behind each coin. I also loooove the older designs. I think that our coinage needs to stop using presidents' busts, and needs to have some great liberty designs like the old coinage. Anyways, coins just fascinate me. Can't tell ya why
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Forum Kid
Kuwait
1523 Posts |
When your old and Wrinkling in Bed, or on the wheelchair we can look back at it and say "Wow who collected all those rare coins!!"
Its for the enjoyment, the interest, the passion.
Thats why we collect!
TKC!
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Rest in Peace
United States
3730 Posts |
I think Morgan Fred is right. It's in our genes. I collect dozens of things, even though coins are probably my favorite.
I have 75,000 National Geographics, and nearly that number of post cards.
Just tonight, a friend asked me, "why?" It's in the genes.
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
3831 Posts |
Some people do collect it for investment purposes, some collect them for memorial purposes, i.e. their parents or relatives collected them and left it for them, but I collect coins that I travel to, as well as being historically interesting.
My partial coin collection http://www.omnicoin.com/collection/gxseriesMy numismatics articles and collection: http://www.gxseries.com/numis/numis_index.htmRegularly updated at least once a month. |
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Valued Member
Australia
125 Posts |
Put it this way; gave up smokes, beer, gambling, chocolate, ice-cream, biscuits, cake, pastries .... Now can nearly afford only real passion worth having. And why? Real answer probably lies in why people still climb everest, and that's easy ... we're all crazy just like them.  |
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Valued Member
United States
94 Posts |
My collection is somewhat limited in that I only collect silver dollars. I have picked these up over the years in hopes of passing them off to my son down the road. One can only imagine what silver might be worth then.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2365 Posts |
Postcards and coins must somehow go together! My Mom collected both and so do I! Coins are addictive, beautiful, historically significant and always a challenge to find that rare, high valued one! I collect because I love to! And yes, it's probably genetic!
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Moderator
 United States
23522 Posts |
I'm a classic collector, just as Fred describes. It's not a matter of choice for me. I have almost a whole wall full of shotglasses (although that's mostly the wife, who's another collector), a fairly substantial collection of older computers, a large group pf NASCAR memorabilia dedicated to the driver we root for, lots and lots of glass, and the list goes on. I've gone from zero to a few hundred coins and back to zero half a dozen times in my life. This time, it appears to be sticking, because I'm acquiring them faster than I can write auctions to sell them.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2177 Posts |
According to some "pop" psychologists we collect because we need to feel fullfilled. Ha!! Whatever.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1247 Posts |
Even more importantly, why is it mostly males that collect coins? Because it's a conquest--capturing cities, states, countries and political leaders only it's not violent. Except maybe for the hand to hand combat carried out once by Ed Frossard and Layman Low at an auction.
It also solves the dilemma of the individual vs. the collective. This is what you have in a coin collection, perhaps even in any kind of a collection. A coin collection is just that---a collective, but each coin is different. And they can be different in different degrees. Small differences such as die varieties or big differences such a type collection.
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
604 Posts |
So we mostly collect because we have a need for big or small round things which have value to us that we made up because if we didn't make them valuble to us they would litteraly be worth nothing? Wow that was a mouth full
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1247 Posts |
That's brings up another interesting question. Why do some collectors prefer large coins and other small coins?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
604 Posts |
Wow thats a good question longnine!!! I might make that into a thread or not state your opinion here
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Replies: 18 / Views: 1,818 |
Posted 06/18/2006 11:06 pm
