Phoenix ANA - show report

[Doogy]

John's report reminded me that I forgot to post these here too. Here are my impressions:

 

Friday:

 

I arrived just before lunch, and the volunteers from my own host co-clubs (phoenix and Mesa coin clubs) were out in full force, and ready to answer any questions. Upon arriving inside the bourse, I was struck with the feeling that Nathan's Hot Dog eating champ Kobayashi was on a stage giving speed eating instructions to the assembled dealers. I have never seen so many people stuff their faces with all manner of things, while still trying to talk on the phone, assist customers, and surf the 'net.

 

After dropping some coins off to NGC (actually, having some NGC graded coins made into a cool multi-slab!), I made my way around the bourse. The first thing that caught my eye was the number of dealers that had their partners/assistants on the phone or Internet making sales and trades from afar. ahhh.......the wonders of technology in interstate (and international!) collecting commerce. I immediately saw Andrew Lustig, but he was busy with another collector friend and I said I would go back and introduce myself later. I noticed Laura wasn't at her assigned place of business, but I later saw her milling about the other tables, sizing everything up like a General on the field of battle. The traffic seemed to be steady, and a couple of dealers confided in me that there were some 'hard-core' collectors doing some buying and browsing today. I met up with a fellow darkside collector that is considered to be of very high repute in world gold coins, and had assembled a great collection at one time. It was nice to meet him and his friend, and get their input on the show and market in general.

 

As far as notable coins are concerned, Rare Coin Wholesalers had their awesome NGC matched Pan-Pac set that had the original case and documentation signed by the US Mint super at the time. Very cool piece of history! Of course there were tons of Morgans to be had, and I saw many PCGS and NGC 'condition rarity' pieces in MS67 DPL/DMPL and even got to see one of the MS69 NGC Morgans for sale. It was stunning, and nearly flawless as the grade would suggest.

 

Most dealers seemed to be laid back but friendly, although one guy decided he would curse loudly while talking to someone near him; something that shouldn't happen when children were only a few feet away at a family friendly show. I was taking a look in one particular dealers case, when i happened to notice an oddball slab. Among some really nice looking PCGS and NGC classics, was a lonely ACG slab with a......surprise! '93-S Morgan in XF. things that make you go.......hmmmm........

 

The venue for the show was nice, with plenty of parking in the area, hotels and nice dining. The weather couldn't be better, which explains why I cut out early to make my tee time.

 

Saturday:

 

Saturday was a beautiful day, weather wise, perfect for a winter coin show. 75 degrees and sunny with a slight breeze, which i'm sure makes more than a few of you envious.

 

I arrived a couple hours before the bourse opened, as I had to get my ANA ID and get ready to man the exhibit booth as a volunteer. I must say that all of the submitted exhibits were impressive, and were each different than the next. Because of this, the foot traffic to this area was quite brisk, and most seemed to think that they were pretty neat!

 

Upon the bourse officially opening at 10a.m., there was a steady stream of folks coming in, although the real crowd didn't start to show up until around 11:30 or so. Here are a few pictures of the bourse upon opening, taken from an ANA staff & volunteer lounge located directly above the main floor.

 

 

After my duties ended, it was time to scour the floor for any goodies that our own forum member ArizonaJack may have missed. I had the pleasure of meeting Jack earlier, as he hunted me down near the exhibit area. He was on an all out search to locate and buy each and every semi-key and key date Lincoln cent in the place, slabbed or not. I understand he was quite successful, but i'll let him fill us in later on his NEWPS

 

In my immediate travels, I got the chance to meet Andrew Lustig and enjoyed our chat. I admire his sage wisedom on the forum, as well as his input on the 'Ethics' articles in the Numismatist magazine. I didn't get a chance to meet Brandon Kelley from Anaconda, but realized it was him that was standing next to me at one dealer; he seemed to be infatuated with a $12 piece of semi-precious stone that the dealer had for sale. Looking to corner the Jade and Turquoise market now Anaconda?

 

It seems like the huge amount of Morgan dollars that were for sale the day before, had procreated over the course of the night. I don't pretend to be an expert in the gestational cycle of numismatic material, but it certainly seemed like those suckers mutiply like rabbits! I've seen enough cartwheel luster to last a lifetime! I also looked a little more closely at many scarce, rare and heavily collected US classic coins. One thing that I came away with was the fact that a decent percentage seemed to have been lightly wiped and or cleaned, and net graded as a result. I got the impression that the hard core collector of many of these issues has to look long and hard to ensure he or she doesn't get stuck with a semi-problem coin that has a net grade; I guess original, unmessed with coins are certainly highly prized, and a little more elusive than one might think.

 

I had been dying to stop by and talk with Ira Goldberg at his table regarding the upcoming 'Millenia' auction they are hosting. I was disappointed that I couldn't attend his one hour talk on Coins that Made History (if i recall the title correctly), that coincided with the upcoming auction. I was pleased to find Ira at his table, and quickly introduced myself. He personally showed me several of the 'Millenia' coins that I was interested in; to say I was speechless is certainly an understatement! Ira spent 5 years finding only the best world coins money could buy for a wealthy client of their firm, and I feel confident in saying that their client must have been thrilled at the result. Many/most of these coins must have been off the market for years or decades. Their state of preservation was astounding, and the eye appeal and strike on all of the ones I viewed were the cream of the crop. I have my eye on two in particular that I'll bid on, and with any luck, they will be mine! (cue evil laugh.....) Ira was a real pleasure to meet and quite the gentleman; it is folks like him that make numismatics fun!

 

As far as buying is concerned, I did very little today. The highlight of my NEWPS was another (I own two others) Queen Victoria Jubilee Medal. Minted by the British Royal Mint in 1897 to commemerate the Queen's anniversary on the throne, these medals were minted and then set into nice red leather boxes with a blue velvet interior. Over the decades, the blue velvet often imparted a nice blue hue to the perimeter of these medals, as well as the silver picking up natural toning. The medal itself is quite large and thick, at 56mm and weighing in at a whopping 85 grams of sterling silver. I'm a little biased, but I really like it!

 

 

 

Overall, I'd say the show had a reasonably good turn-out for a Saturday. I do however question the decision to have several major shows back-to-back across the country, I have to wonder how this may have hurt attendance slightly. For those of you I had the opportunity to meet, it was a pleasure putting a name to a face, and I look forward to doing the same with some other fellow forum members in the future.

 

Happy Collecting!

 

Doug

 

 

[TJ'S Coins]

Great report...it felt like I was there as I was reading it!

[thebeav]

Great report !! Thanks.....

I agree with you on the Victoria medal too !!

 

Paul

[EZ_E]

I also looked a little more closely at many scarce, rare and heavily collected US classic coins. One thing that I came away with was the fact that a decent percentage seemed to have been lightly wiped and or cleaned, and net graded as a result. I got the impression that the hard core collector of many of these issues has to look long and hard to ensure he or she doesn't get stuck with a semi-problem coin that has a net grade; I guess original, unmessed with coins are certainly highly prized, and a little more elusive than one might think.

 

[font:Fixedsys]Ain't that the truth, brother.[/font]

 

Doug, great post and the pics were a nice bonus.

 

You Victoria Jubilee Medal is incredible! The eye-appeal is off the charts, the obv and rev designs are exceptional and there's a lot of your mama's silver in it, too.

 

I wish that our mint would have researched packing materials a little better and gave us toning like your medal.

 

There were some flukes that produced sweet coins like the blue tissue toning on some 19th century proofs.

 

The packaging on some early commems either enhanced or harmed the toning. Since the Lexington came in a Pine wood box, they often toned dark.

 

The packaging for the 1936-42 proof sets was not a good storage environment for these coins.

 

Some like the mint set toning from the '50's. It is too mottled for me but some people love this toning.

 

Some of the Jefferson proof nickels of the early '60's toned a beautiful blue.

 

I believe that the modern packaging from 1968 to present has been trial and error. How many proof sets from the '80's do you know of with unsightly hazing? Lots, I bet.

 

Sorry, I've been...

 

 

...but you'll get over it.

[poorguy.-migration]

I didn't get a chance to meet Brandon Kelley from Anaconda, but realized it was him that was standing next to me at one dealer; he seemed to be infatuated with a $12 piece of semi-precious stone that the dealer had for sale. Looking to corner the Jade and Turquoise market now Anaconda?

 

I was buying them for my kids. My youngest son Parker is into Sonic the Hedgehog video games and they looked like "chaos" emeralds from the game so I wanted to surprise him with some.

 

Sorry I missed you there.