"It was the BEST of coins; it was the WORST of coins."

Recently, I consigned two coins from my collection to auction.

In reflecting on the experience, I realized how emotional this hobby can be. For the act of selling these two coins elicited very different feelings on my part.

The first coin is an 1872 Two Cent, AU-55 PCGS. This is a beautiful coin, one of my first 2 Cent purchases (Feb. 1997).

I loved this coin and pulled it out for viewing, frequently. However, it was the only coin in the completed set not in MS condition. I held on to it after acquiring an uncirculated example, earlier this year.

Finally, I decided it was time to let someone else enjoy this "little beauty"; and so, it was with pride, and some sadness that I said "Farewell" to a beloved friend.

Coin #2 is a 1920-S Mercury Dime AU-58 PCGS. This is a gorgeous coin with glowing luster, a slight gold tint, great strike (nearly FB)- really pretty! The problem, for me, is that I purchased this coin from a then prominent numismatic firm as a raw MS-63 (Sept. 1996). I thoroughly enjoyed the coin until it returned from certification with the AU-58 grade.

I looked at this coin from every angle, and under every possible lighting condition- and 90% of the time I couldn't see any signs of wear. Then I would see something that made me believe it was circulated. After a while it bothered me whenever I pulled out the coin for viewing. And eventually, after several years, I just didn't enjoy it anymore.

Maybe it was that I overpaid for the coin; maybe it was that this was an indictment of my grading skills; maybe it engendered resentment toward a formerly "trusted" dealer; maybe..... Who knows?

What was clear is the fact that I no longer enjoyed a gorgeous coin.

So there it is, 2 beautiful numismatic objects sold:

- One is "Goodbye to an old friend".

-The other is "It's time for you to go"!

A Tale of Two Coins.