Coins and Paper Money -> Paper Money: US -> United States Notes
Paper money has a long and varied history that dates back centuries. Although we are used to dealing with paper money on a constant basis it was not too long ago that it wasn’t even used. Let’s take a look at the history of paper money so that you can gain a better appreciation of the money you use today. It’s one of the easiest ways of spending, but it wasn’t always that way.
Originally, paper money was developed by the Chinese, who called it “flying money.” This was due to the fact that the paper used was incredibly frail and light weight. If you didn’t have a good grip on it, it could easily be blown out of your hand by a strong gust of wind, hence the nickname. It can be dated back to around the ninth century, but there are some instances and some evidence that point to paper money being around as early as the eighth century.
Instead of having an actual standard, like today’s money, the first paper money was backed just by your signature and how much you had in the bank. In that way, it was very much like a check that we would use today. This is also where the term bank drafts came into play, even back hundreds of years ago. It wasn’t until many centuries later that a standard was developed in Asia for paper money and at that time, it’s worth was solidified by silk.
Eventually, the use of paper money dwindled, especially during the Ming period in China, when the notes became worth a set amount of money, making them harder to spend, especially on the daily necessities of life. It wasn’t until the middle ages that it would again be put into use, and even then, it took until the late 1800’s for paper money to become standard.
Today, we don’t think twice about whipping out a bill here or there, but in ancient times, paper money was quite rare. There are records of paper money being used in the colonies of the United States, but coins were generally used more and of course, gold and silver were quite common. That is now flipped, with the vast majority of people all over the world using paper instead of coins.
However, the introduction of credit and debit cards has hit the paper money market hard. Fewer people are using it and as a result, we may be going backwards in time a bit. While coin money may never become quite popular again, it is clear that our reliance on paper money is definitely dwindling. This has created quite a market for collectors interested in finding unique notes.
While you may not be able to get your hands on a paper note made in China from the 900’s, you can certainly find European, American and Russian notes that are quite valuable. The best place to find collectible paper money is at a coin shop or at an online auction.
Photo Credits: AMagill
Originally posted 2008-10-05 00:27:08. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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Coins & Paper Money -> Gold -> American Eagle
Gold Eagle coins are American currency, first released in 1986, that contains the stated amount of actual gold weight claimed in troy ounces, with a silver and copper alloy added to make the coins less soft and more wear resistant. The coins are an official US gold bullion coin, authorized by the Gold Bullion Coin Act of 1986.
The first Gold Eagle coins minted from 1986 to 1991 are dated with Roman numerals. Gold Eagle coins from 1992 onward switched to Arabic numbering. These coins are worth far more than their face value, because of their gold content. In the beginning of 2008, a $5 American Golden Eagle was actually worth about $110, with this amount varying daily, of course, based on the price of gold. The US Mint makes a proof suitable for collectors, most which carry the mint mark of “W” (which stands for the West Point mint in New York) beneath the date.
The design on Gold Eagle coins is often referred to as one of the most beautiful to grace an American coin. It features Lady Liberty holding a torch and an olive branch, her hair flowing, with the Capitol building in the background. The reverse of the coin boats an eagle above his nest of hatchlings, with the mother eagle watching over her brood. The male eagle carries an olive branch, long known as the symbol for peace. The coins come in four sizes: one-ounce, half-ounce, quarter-ounce and one-tenth ounce. The American Golden Eagle has become the most widely traded gold bullion coin in the world.
Gold Eagle coins are certainly valuable to coin collectors, and investors, thanks to their gold content. For collectors interested solely in the design, Golden Eagle proofs are a great addition to your collection. They’re designed specifically for coin collectors, and don’t carry the high price of the real gold bullion coins. These are widely available in places like flea markets, online stores and online auctions and their value is based on their condition. They should be graded like ordinary coins, from poor to uncirculated, and judged on that basis.
True Gold Eagle coins, though, are an actual investment whose gold content and purity are actually guaranteed by the US Government. American Eagles are actually even valid deposits for Individual Retirement Accounts, otherwise known as IRAs. Every major government holds gold in reserve because it’s a tangible asset. What you hold in your hand is what’s valuable, unlike paper money and coins, whose value is representative of assets like gold that are held in the treasury.
Gold Eagle coins are an easy and affordable way to invest in gold. Where big investors might trade for gold in thousands of dollars or more at a time, the average investor or beginning investor can choose to purchase American Eagle coins instead. The value may vary daily with the price of gold, but the rarity of real gold virtually ensures that the value won’t drop dramatically as other investments can.
Photo Credits: kevindooley
Originally posted 2008-10-16 05:00:50. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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If you are a serious coin collector you will probably start to look into foreign currency for your coin collecting ventures. There are plenty of coins to be had, both new and old, when looking into foreign currency. Paper currency also plays a large an important role in foreign monies, making for plenty of opportunities and possibilities with your collection.
There are a couple of different things that you are going to want to look for when looking at foreign currency for your own collection. Taking the time to think about coin collecting and this currency will help you to better understand how to collect it and how to obtain it.
Counterfeits
It is important for you to stay well versed in foreign currency counterfeits as you work to add foreign coins and foreign paper money into your collection. It is easy for collectors to fall to counterfeits because they are not familiar with the money. This is not the currency you are used to, making it hard for you to easily identify any potential counterfeits. There are plenty of research sites that will make it easy for you to correctly identify true and authentic foreign currency pieces of interest.
Personal Interest and Intrigue
You need to feel something resembling a connection with the foreign currency that you are trying to collect. You don’t want to get into coin collecting just for the sake of having multiple coins – you want to feel a connection to all of the different pieces that you own. If you are not interested in or intrigued by a piece, do not add it to your collection.
Rarity
There are some pieces of foreign currency that will catch your attention that are currently produced, and others that are rare. Look for rarity as you collect but do not rely on it. Simply understand how rare the price is to have a better understanding of exactly how much the piece will cost.
Cost
Finally, you are going to want to look into the cost of the foreign currency that you are looking into. You want to know exactly how much it is worth and how much you are willing to pay for it. You want to make sure that you are making a smart decision and that you are not paying too much for the coins you are interested in.
It is important for you to look into each one of these different aspects of money collecting when looking into foreign currency. You may decide to stick with coin collecting or may branch out into paper money collecting. You may decide to stick with one particular foreign country, or to open up your collection to the world. There is truly no wrong way to start to approach collecting a foreign currency. You simply need to look for these various things and give serious thought to your collecting before you begin.
Photo Credits: CanadianAEh
Originally posted 2011-05-09 03:14:48. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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Coin collecting is an incredibly large form of collecting, with millions of individuals around the world collecting in both novice and professional ways. There are plenty of people who want to get into coin collecting, but few who know how to actually take this type of collection seriously. Anyone who wants to be a coin collector simply needs to think about their collection and how to go about their actual collecting. This crash course in coin collecting will make it easier for anyone to jump right into the world of serious coin collecting.
Know Your Money
The first thing that you need to think about is the money itself. You need to work to understand the history of money and the money that you are seeking out. You need to be able to spot different mints and need to be able to spot some of the counterfeits out on the market. If you purchase a counterfeit, the problem is generally yours – you may not know that it is counterfeit until you try to sell it. The more you know about the money you collect, the more successful your collection will be.
Keep it Safe
You need to make sure that you are actively working to keep your collection safe and cared for. Do not attempt to wash paper bills and do not use harsh substances on coins. You want to keep them in a cool and dry place, keeping them secure to avoid any potential damage.
Know How to Bargain
If you are going to jump into the game of coin collecting you are going to need to learn how to bargain. The less that you pay for the money that you want, the more that you will be able to add to your collection over time. Take the time to practice bargaining skills and know that there is a point where you should walk away from the bargaining table and either take or leave the money.
Pay Attention to Values
It is important for you to constantly track the values of the pieces that you want to add to your collection and the pieces that are already in your collection. You are going to want to know the value of coins you are looking for as you need to make sure that you do not overpay for the coins you are interested in.
Coin collecting is not something that is hard, even for those who are professionals in the field. Coin collecting is a fun and simple form of collecting that provides a world of diversity and intrigue. Anyone looking to be a coin collector simply needs to work to better understand what their options are and what they need to know to be a serious collector. This information will help anyone to get a jump start in the world of professional money collecting.
Photo Credits: seriykotik1970
Originally posted 2010-12-24 03:54:56. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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Coin collecting is considered by many to be one of the risk free hobbies. You purchase coins at a good rate, hold on to them for a while and then sell them for a huge return. The problem is that it does not always work out this way. As coin collectors start to make more money, they start to branch out. They start investing in things like foreign coin collecting and wind up losing a lot of money in the process. This does not have to be the way. There are ways which you can avoid losing your money.
The biggest problem most people have when investing in foreign coin collecting is that they have no idea what they are doing. Collecting coins which you know nothing about is a dangerous endeavor. This is why you need to learn some history about the coins. You also need to learn some history about the country where the coins originated from. It is also a good idea to be able to spot fakes. As long as you stick to these suggestions you will have a pretty good chance of being able to keep your shirt and even making some money.
Learning about the Coins
The first thing you should know when you are looking into investing in foreign coin collecting is about the coins themselves. This will allow you to find out which years are more valuable than others. In the history of many coins there is normally one years in which less of the coins were created or more were reclaimed by the government or something else happened to make the Mint year so extraordinary. If you know these things you will be able to make better decisions about the coins that you buy.
Learning about the Country of Origin
Often when investing in foreign coin collecting you will need to look at the country from which the coins originated. The coins worth the most come from countries which no longer exist. Take a look at the history of the country as well as the state of the Union. You may be able to discover countries which are about to fold. Finding unique coins from these countries before they fold will turn a nice profit down the road.
Learn to Spot counterfeits
One of the biggest pitfalls which people fall into with foreign coin collecting is purchasing counterfeits. These coins can often be just as old as the original coin. This is especially true of coins which were made valuable centuries ago. In some cases the counterfeits can become valuable, but in most cases you will end up buying something which looks genuine only to lose a lot of money. There are features you can look for which will point to a coin being a fake. Pay attention to these characteristics so that you can make sure that you are getting a genuine coin and not something which was created to fool you.
Photo Credits: killerturnip
Originally posted 2010-08-30 03:54:50. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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There are certain things that you will be able to enjoy about collecting money in a collection. You will be able to enjoy among other things, the ability to see all of the different changes that currency has gone through over the years. This is more apparent in paper money than it is in coins. This is because the nature of paper is very fragile. Whenever you have a paper money collection you will need to make sure that you will be able to properly preserve it so that it will be able to last as long as you want to last.
There are many different ways that you will be able to preserve your paper money collection depending on how much money you are willing to spend on it. If you are willing to pay a lot of money, you can have it graded. If you want to spend slightly less, you can get currency holders. For those looking to spend the least, you can get currency sleeves. This will help you to be able to get everything that you will need to protect your bills from the harmful effects of fingers, air and light. This way it will last as long as you want it to.
Get Your Money Graded
One of the best ways that you will be able to protect the paper money collection that you have is to get everything graded. Along with the grading process, they will mount the currency in a protective case which will suspend the currency in the middle of clear acrylic. This will not only make it where you will have the bill out of reach of hands and water. You will also be able to have undeniable proof of the grade that the bill holds.
Get Currency Holders
There are other clear acrylic containers that you can purchase which can also house your paper money collection. You can buy these currency holders from a few different locations. They come in different sizes to provide you with a safe and secure way that you will be able to maintain the quality of your collection as it is right now and for years to come. This will allow you to be able to get all of the protection of the grading case at a fraction of the cost. The only tradeoff is that you will have to haggle over grade if you sell.
Get Currency Sleeves
If you are not looking to hold onto an item for very long, you might consider getting some plastic sleeves that you can contain the paper money collection inside. This will help you to be able to make sure that you will be able to easily move the collection from one location to another without having to use your gloves or any other special equipment. You can find these at most any collectors shop so that you can get the protection you need for your collection.
Photo Credits: InfoMofo
Originally posted 2011-09-02 08:28:27. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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Silver coins are among the most valuable of the coins people collect year to year. There are a few different reasons for this. Knowing the reasons for the silver coin value to go up will help you to understand whether you are getting a good deal on a coin you are looking to purchase or if you are purchasing something which is overpriced. You will also be able to determine whether your collection is of extreme value to other collectors or just to yourself.
Rare Coins Are Worth More
Coins which are rare will go up in value by a considerable amount. You can find out how rare a coin is by checking to see how many there are known to exist. The lower the number of coins that exist, the more valuable the coins are likely to be worth in the long run. Reasons for limited numbers can be for reasons of limited production, recalls or simply being a coin which was heavily used so it was heavily lost as well. Coins like the 1804 silver dollar have less than 20 in existence and have extreme silver coin value as a result.
The Purer the Coin
Most silver coins are not made with pure silver. This is because silver has always had value. To make sure that the coins were not originally worth more than what they were struck as, they were melted and struck with other metals mixed in. These were usually sandwiched between silver layers. The more silver there is in a coin, the more it will be worth. This is both because the purer coins are rarer as well as the fact that the higher the purity of the coin, the more the silver coin value.
Grading is Very Important
One of the best ways to determine the silver coin value is to determine the grade of the coin. In general, all things being equal the grade of the coin from one level to the next will cause the value to jump two to three times. This is taking into account mars and markings which the coin might have picked up along the way. The closer the coin is to Mint State, the more it is worth. The most expensive coins are those which appear as if they have never been touched or damaged.
The Value of the Metal Itself
There are times when a coin has been forged or it has been used so heavily that it has no trade value at all. The only silver coin value you will be able to find is in the bullion market itself. This means that the coin will only be worth its weight. This is still a pretty good way to get some cash because the best forgeries still use pure silver as a way to make it appear as if the coin is worth a lot more than it actually is. While you might not have a $10 million piece, you might still have something worth a few hundred.
Photo Credits: kevindooley
Originally posted 2010-09-03 09:17:02. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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There are some coin collectors who collect coins from all over the world. There are others who focus on specific types of coins or currency, like US currency. Those who hone in on one single type of currency will find that there is excitement in finding new things and satisfaction in watching your collection get closer to completion.
There are plenty of reasons for anyone to start to collect US currency. You simply need to look into all of the different types of currency available to understand what to look for and where to begin.
Old Coins
The world of US currency collection tends to focus heavily on old coins. There have been plenty of old coins that have become more and more popular as time goes on. There are plenty of collectors ho stock up on wheat pennies or mercury-head dimes. These different coins hark back to important times in American history, helping to bring some nostalgia to those interested in the history of the nation.
New Coins
The US mint has made a strong effort to make the new American coins as collectable as ever. Current currency coin collecting was never as obvious as it was during the revamp of the American Quarter. This $.25 piece went through constant changes each and every year. While the front stayed the same, the back changed to represent one of the 50 states. These coins have gone through an incredible collection craze – some even collected these 50 quarters from each mint location.
Confederate Currency
One of the many aspects of the civil war that many tend to forget is the currency that ran through the south. The Confederate states tried to push their own currency as they worked to secede from the Union. Their currency, mostly found in paper bills, is still found today in various collections around the nation. This type of currency is generally hard to find, making it a gem for those collecting US currency.
Old Paper Money
Those who are looking to collect currency from the US will look further than coin collecting. Plenty of old paper bills are making their rounds through the world of collections. Whether it be in the form of old-style $1 bills or the now-defunct $2 bill, there are plenty of types of paper bills to collect. These pieces are more rare than coins simply because the paper is easier to destroy and manipulate.
There are plenty of different genres within US currency that can help to get you started in the world of currency collection. Whether you are looking to collect coins or to collect paper money, you will find plenty of options and varieties in US currency. Those who take the time to think about their future coin collecting and paper money collecting will be sure to get their collection started on the right foot.
Photo Credits: acetonic
Originally posted 2010-12-31 03:08:32. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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There are many coins which have been used for a long time, but few have been used longer than the English Gold Sovereign. This is a coin which has been used for over 500 years. It has gone through different obverses and has even gone through periods where it has not been coined. Other than that, it is still the most widely used coin in England and in other countries which are a sovereign nation of England or once were a part of the British Empire. The rich history of the coin makes it a highly collectible item for numismatics.
There are a few things which you should know about the English Gold Sovereign if you are considering collecting them. These points are more points of interest than they are to provide any statistics on what makes the coins valuable. Of course, the more you know about a coin, the easier it is to determine what value they have. It is interesting to know about the amount of gold present and the weight of the English sovereign. It is also interesting to know about the use of coining of the sovereign. Most importantly to numismatics, it is interesting to get to know all of the different variations which have evolved out of the sovereign.
Weight and Gold Content
It is easy to spot an original gold sovereign by judging how many carats the coin is made out of. The original coins used 23 carats of gold while the current coin only has 22 carats. This was a change which was put into effect by Henry VIII. This is what is known as the gold standard or the crown gold. The weight is something which has also been toned down from the original. The coin which used to weight 240 grains (15.552 grams) now weighs a total of 113 grains (7.322 grams).
Coining the Sovereign
The gold sovereign is a coin which is made out of nearly pure gold. It has a 91% purity level. This means it is possible for the Mint to melt down the gold coins and re-coin them as new coins. This means that while some people might have just received a coin from the mint, they might have metal which was mined over 500 years ago. This is because of the practice of regularly reclaiming coins once they become worn and melting them down to create new coins.
Variations of the Numismatics
The basic gold sovereign has a value of one pound even though they do not have any kind of denomination on it. These include the half sovereigns (10 Shillings), the quarter sovereigns (5 shillings), the double sovereigns (2 pounds) and the quintuple sovereigns (10 sovereigns). While the values of the different sovereigns has changed over the years, the fact that the Mint has a policy to reuse coins for Minting means that those which survive from year to year will increase in value very quickly for those who want to collect them.
Photo Credits: practicalowl
Originally posted 2010-08-16 03:51:09. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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If you are like most people with a coin collection, you got started because you wanted to have something fun to do. As you got more into the collecting aspect of the hobby, you soon discovered that there were so many super expensive pieces out there that you started seeing what you could do to get your hands on a few of them. While some will increase your coin collection values, others will do nothing but hold their value. Of course, most people are looking to have a big number when looking at coin collection values, but what does this number even really mean?
This is a good question for those just getting started out. You wonder if the huge values mean that you actually have a ton of money sitting in your collection. You also wonder if you were to sell off your collection if you would be able to get the full price of your coin collection values or not. Most importantly, if having a big value is a good thing, you wonder what you have to do to make it grow. Wondering about these things will help you not only to have a better collection. It will also help you to be a better collector.
Does the Value Indicate Actual Price?
Coin collection values do not represent the actual price of your collection. This is because the price that you can sell a piece at will always be different from what it is valued at in the market. You may be able to get more, you may wind up with less. This will depend on the market and how the specific coin is performing in relation to the rest of the market. An upward trend means the coin is more valuable when selling. A downward trend means you should hold off on selling until the market is back on the rise.
Can I Sell My Collection at Market Value?
If you are looking to sell an entire set, it is good to keep in mind that most collectors do not buy a whole set. The only way that they will buy the whole set is if the price of the collection is right. This will not bode well for you as they are looking for coin collection values to plummet because you are selling the whole thing at once. You are better off selling each piece individually.
How Can I Make My Collection Value Grow?
Other than the obvious statement of adding better coins, there are a lot of people who really want to know ways they can improve their coin collection value. You should make sure that all of your coins have been graded and put into a slab. This will reduce the cost on the buyer’s part. It will also increase the value of the collection because all of the guesswork has been taken out of it. They will know what to pay and you will know what to charge.
Photo Credits: Neil Crosby
Originally posted 2010-08-25 03:04:54. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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