Nothing quite compares to holding a coin in your hand and observing the light as it dances across the surface, revealing all of the intricate details that could be easily overlooked at a passing glance. But a picture is worth a thousand words, and sometimes that is the best, or only way to share your collectible with other people.

I got to thinking about the role of technology and social elements of virtually sharing collectibles as I set up one of my IKE Mint sets in a new PCGS online coin folder*. Look no further than David Lawrence's site redesign** and it is obvious that visual appeal is becoming increasingly important for the Numismatic community on the web.

Its not enough to go on the grade alone, that is simply a reassurance, and increasingly commoditized, or reduced to a battle of fancy labels and first day issues. This point was made by Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker in the Market Whimsy column of this month's Numismatist in reference to Silver Eagles.

But my point, and one that has certainly been raised by others, is that a coin can be CAC'd, MAC'd, PQ'd, and QA'd and you still may personally find it visually displeasing. Depending on your own motivations for collecting, that could be a pretty big deal. But too often, I have seen that buyers and sellers alike depend on the grade, holder, an impartial third party, or price sheet, and an actual photograph is an after thought, or absent entirely from the purchasing decision.

There are certainly some instances where poor image quality is used purposefully and deceitfully, but in general, many people just don't give it the time of day. Look on eBay at some of the pictures next to $10,000 coins. Would you buy a car with a picture like that sight unseen?!

Set registries are a natural fit for sharing the visual beauty of coin collections, but again they are only as splendid as the photographs used to compose them combined with the site design's ability to leverage it. I'm personally fond of the PCGS TrueView service, not so much in the quality of the photographs themselves, but because it adds value to the coin itself-- a modernization of a customized label. It is also technologically advanced in that I can download a transparent background version of it, and use to make my own coin album in say PhotoShop. Compare that to the NGC photos that I receive as email attachments in lower resolution than what I can take with my own phone, and it is clear there is nothing there but opportunity there.

This is what a new generation of numismatists will demand, and although technology may seem cumbersome to those that did not grow up with it, adapting is how we will keep a vibrant and relevant industry for many generations to come.

* - http://www.pcgs.com/News/pcgs-digital-coin-album-display-sets-anytime-anywhere

** - http://www.davidlawrence.com/blog/new-web-site-launch-an-update/

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