A Nice Little Bargain posted by Jackson

[CSJournals-migration]

small deals can be big thrills...

 

One of the thrills I also get with the hobby is when I find the occasional bargain. Recently I was scanning through the lesser viewed pages of an on-line auction site that has been dying out.

 

Listed at auction and ending in less than 1 hour was a 3-coin, graded PCGS Congress 1989 Commem set. Opening bid was at $280 for the half, silver dollar and $5 gold coin ( 1/4 ounce). I did some quick math in my head...15% fee would be 28 +14.... = $42..$322 total for a $280 bid. 4x 322 is $1288 which was almost the exact amount of gold at the time..so I did a little more factoring.

 

If I could sell the half and silver dollar for around $40--that meant I could bid $320 max bid, resell the half and dollar to cover the buyers fees and get the gold coin for roughly melt cost.

So I bid the $320 and let it ride. A few hours later I checked the auction to see the results--good news!! The 3 coins hammered at the opening bid of $280. So I'll still sell the other 2 coins since I don't collect them and the 1/4 oz gold coin will be bought at the $280 or $1120 per oz rate..not a bad little deal.

 

I'm not making a large score when I find these small deals, but it is always nice to find a purchase that you know can be liquidated in the future for a small profit if I'm ever in need of some funds ( instead of small losses which most of us take when we resell and are paying fees and shipping costs on both ends.)

 

Anyhow, just thought I'd share the story in a journal so that I can re-read it in the future and remind myself that some of the time I spend perusing websites and auctions can actually pay off into real vbalue...happy hunting e1 and may you all find a few bargains on occasion.....

 

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[coinsbygary]

Very nice Jackson! It's nice to get a good deal every once in a while. I got a nice deal on a Heritage auction on Thursday night that I will be writing about soon. Congratulations on the pick-up.

Gary

 

[jackson64]

thanks Gary..and a question for you. The lady/image on the front of the Congress silver dollar- it's very interesting and I've never really looked at one before. Since you are our resident expert on these inspirational ladies--what is the significance of the headress? The clothes also look native american. She stands in front of a cloud with beams of light shining out to the sides--a pine cone in her L hand and in the right I believe is the mace which has a fasces for the staff part and an eagle on the top...

 

It resembles more of the South American liberty images I've seen than the US depiction of liberty---also, how does this image tie to congress?

 

I'll research it myself if you don't know some of the info readily--thanks..

[coinsbygary]

Jackson, there are volumes of information on the "Statue of Freedom" which blends European and Native American Culture into the allegorical imagery of this statue. I am posting a few of the links I find most interesting.

 

http://www.ladyfreedom.net/articles/Lady%20Freedom%20article%20(complete).pdf

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statue_of_Freedom

 

http://www.danielteafoe.com/The%20Statue%20of%20Freedom%20Story.htm

 

Interesting that up to this date I had not done any research on this allegory. Just by perusing a few web-sites I am discovering the history associated with this statue to be fascinating. Now I'm going to have to get the dollar and the half-dollar for my Inspirational Ladies set. Soon I will be adding the 1838 anti-slavery hard times "Am I not a Woman and a Sister" token to my Inspirational Ladies set. I just love the history associated with all these images!

Gary

[jackson64]

thanks for the links...I continued forward with some cool reading about "Columbia" --America's female personification akin to Englands Britannia, France's Marianne..etc.. good stuff..