Coincidences make news a fascinating business. In the March Bank Note Reporter and elsewhere we reported that PCGS Currrency had certified two dozen $20 Federal Reserve Notes that had been part of the $200,000 ransom money given to D.B. Cooper in 1971.

Cooper was a plane hijacker who parachuted out of 727 in the Pacific Northwest and was never heard from again.

Did he get away? Did he die from trying to parachute from such a high altitude? These questions have been festering for nearly 40 years.

Now look at the news this morning. The Cooper parachute may have been found in Washington State. It is a coincidence, but  what an extraordinary one it is.

Slab ransom money. Discover parachute a few short weeks later. The two events make a fascinating coincidence. The coincidence undoubtedly enhances the value of the notes. By how much, I will be curious to discover.

I also expect we will learn more as time goes on about the hijacking itself and whether the parachute really was Cooper's, but PCGS Currency certainly was very lucky in its timing. Congratulations on a PR coup.

Final mintages of Dolley Madison First spouse gold coins are not available, but pending the usual accounting finalization procedures that can take months, the sales totals stand at 10,400 uncirculateds and 16,268 proofs.

The uncirculated coin went off sale within four days of the uncirculated Elizabeth Monroe pieces going on sale for $90 more and the proofs hung on for nearly two weeks more with the same cost differential.

During the parallel sales period fewer than 400 more uncirculated Madison coins were sold and about 1,000 proofs were purchased.

What does this tell us? Well, perhaps it is just a matter of repricing. Or it could give us an idea that the Mint is not striking coins significantly ahead of demand. Theoretically, before 2007 ended the Mint could have struck right up to the 40,000 total limit and kept them on sale until they were sold or until they got tired of holding them in inventory. It is clear the Mint does not want large inventories. That is certainly a good business practice. In the event perhaps final mintages will total right around 26,668.

This would explain why more and more Mint coin offers start with a sales period and a message that the coins are available for delivery days or weeks later.

The 2008-W uncirculated silver Eagle went on sale March 17 with a message that they will not be available until April 9.

Waiting a few extra days is a good thing for collectors, too, because it means there is less chance that the secondary market will be perpetually distorted by unwanted Mint inventories.

In contrast to current sales of 2001 Kennedy half dollars, there won’t be 2007 Madison First Spouse coins being offered by the Mint in 2014.

I owe thanks to the individuals who posted comments with my blog on Friday. It is great to receive helpful information and commentary from readers. Gold at $1,000 an ounce is an important milestone and it is important that people generally be aware of it.

One thing where gold at $1,000 an ounce will not be helpful is in the realm of a new Mint project to recreate the ultra-high-relief Saint-Gaudens gold $20 produced in 1907 at the U.S. Mint from dies bearing the famous design of Augustus Saint-Gaudens.

The coin proved so difficult to strike at the time that it was quickly abandoned for the high relief versions and mere commerce caused that design to be abandoned because bankers said they would not stack properly.

Assuming the Mint succeeds in the production challenges and the fact that the coins will never see commerce, that leaves the problem of projected price.

What will it cost the Mint to create the numismatic masterpiece? The base gold value if struck today would be $1,000 plus whatever the markup would be to cover the Mint’s cost and add a little profit.

Basic American Eagle proofs are $1,200 from the Mint using a round number. How much more would this special coin be? $1,300, $1,400, or $1,500?

In that rarefied pricing area, there are not too many collector buyers, unless of course, they can turn them around and sell them on eBay before the credit card is debited and the coin is shipped. If it can be sold on eBay, great, it is a profit. If it can’t be, it gets shipped back to the Mint within the 30-day return privilege.

Back to the basic question: what is the rock bottom collector demand for such a piece? I know that it is more than the 19 ulta-high-reliefs that the Mint press release notes exist from 1907. It is probably in the thousands of pieces, because a first-time issue frequently inspires more buyers than a second. But, using the $1,500 price for easy figuring, a mintage of 10,000 would generate the Mint $15 million in sales.

Could it go higher than that? What do you think?

My morning routine was disrupted today. I dashed out the door as usual. I got in the car. I put the key in the ignition – nothing. The mechanism would not unlock. I fooled around with it, jiggling the key and putting it in and taking in out in rapid succession. Still, there was nothing.

After trying this several times over the course of a half hour, I called the office. Debbie Bradley came to my rescue and picked me up. That is the advantage of living in a community of 1,300 people. I was not miles away.

So here I am, happily at my desk, slightly behind but up and at ’em as the phrase goes.

What’s going on in the numismatic world? Well, I haven’t caught up yet. If there is an urgent topic, I will be back again with another posting. If not, I will try again tomorrow to achieve a normal day.

Oh. Wish me luck getting my car going.

Sleep took priority over my blog this morning. I got home about 1:30 this morning, returning from the National Money Show in Phoenix.

I was not particularly late. However, at that hour of the morning every extra minute seems to be worth at least two or three.

To cover the Krause table until 2 p.m. and then to fly east means a late arrival home no matter what. Had everything gone exactly right, I could not have made it any earlier than 12:30 a.m.

So I slept two hours later than usual this morning.

What do I think of the goings on in Phoenix?

Well, ANA has a new executive direct in Larry Shepherd. Reaction seems very favorable, but it is possible to find one or two dissenters from the majority opinion.

The public showed up in force. Many dealers commented on it. Business in general was considered a bit slow. Some blamed the heavy schedule of Las Vegas, Long Beach, Baltimore and then Phoenix on consecutive weekends. Some dealers just didn’t make it to Phoenix as a result. The Tennessee state show kept others away and snowstorms did the rest.

Platinum took a header and gold didn’t make it through $1,000, so that prompted a little bit of caution.

I did 12 radio interviews for our new CoinChat Radio, which is set to air for the first time on Friday. Perhaps “air” is an archaic term. It is going out online. I hope you get a chance to listen to it.

I am sure you will see more about it elsewhere on the Web site.

That’s it for now.