EAC this month, Holmes sale next...

Hello folks... I would say I've been saving myself for the upcoming sale of the Dan Holmes middle date large cents, but for some reason I couldn't resist getting a PCGS MS70 First Strike 2009 $50 Buffalo a few weeks ago. Other than that, I am saving myself for the late-May Holmes sale. I still need two dates for the Registry set, and would like to upgrade one or two others. I anticipate having the money for only one coin.

The Goldbergs already have a virtual catalog available on their website. One thing that strikes me is that most of the coins are not in particularly lofty grades. The Holmes collection may be the most complete by variety ever assembled, but the Husak early dates and Naftzger middle and late dates were close, and were in those lofty grades for the most part. Even a majority of my middle dates are better than the Holmes examples for the same variety. (But I have only one or two nice coins and zero, one or two "collector grade" coins for each date, compared to the 561 Holmes middle date varieties & die states thereof, including some very rare ones.)

One of the dates I'm looking for is 1828, preferably slabbed as MS65 and mint state by EAC standards, preferably in the CC, and I have to like it. Alas, there is no such coin in the Holmes collection! The closest one is a 64RB from the Naftzger collection - a coin I rejected last year due to uneven color and a bunch of tiny ticks clustered near star #4. There are a few 63BNs in the sale, but I'm not sure I want to settle for that.

There is also a candidate 1821 in AU58, and some nice potential upgrades for my 1822 and 1829. With money for only one coin, I'm going to have to decide what I want most, what I'm willing to pay for each of the candidates, and plan my strategy. This will be harder than last year at the Naftzger sale when I had a nice chunk of change to spend.

Fortunately, the annual Early American Coppers (EAC) convention is coming up later this month nearby in Annapolis, and the Holmes coins will be there for viewing! So at least I'll get to see the coins in hand for a better evaluation than I could make from photos. (But again I note that the Goldbergs have top notch catalog photos to go along with superior descriptions by Bob Grellman.)

So I am getting excited about the EAC convention, including several educational seminars, the annual EAC sale, and the Holmes collection. Q. David Bowers will be a featured speaker. (And I hear he has a book on early copper coming out soon.) But the big question in my mind is - Will all my build-up and preparation for the Holmes sale be for naught because I find some special coin at EAC?! I'll keep you posted...