Merry Christmas, Collectors!

Virtually all children are born with the gift- inquisitiveness. Their "gift" can be a "curse" to nearby adults who are harangued with the constant "why, why, why".

Some lose the gift, with time; some set it aside. And, some of these reacquire it later. In numismatics, I call these people "Collectors".

We, collectors are blessed with the gift of looking at a coin and being able to see the beauty, rarity, oddity, history, uniqueness, and perhaps most importantly: the questions about all of the above- why?

Searching for the answers to these "whys" may be the source of my greatest pleasures in collecting.

What do we do with the "Gift"?

-Some ignore the "why" and focus on acquisition.

-Some ask others, and accept their answers.

-Some ask others, and use this information as a launch point for their own search.

-Some have a level of inquisitiveness and thirst for information/ knowledge that drives them to become the recognized "source" of information in a given area of numismatics.

The name of such an individual probably popped into your head the moment you read this. I thought of 3 or 4.

Regardless of intensity level, inquisitiveness is a collector's gift that continues to give pleasure over time. It is fed, NOT satiated.

Merry Christmas, collectors!!!.... Enjoy the gift!