FTC killed off popular coin survey

The Salomon Brothers Survey of Collectible Coins was used as a barometer for how the coin market was performing for years. Why was it discontinued?

The Federal Trade Commission said the index was improperly utilized by unscrupulous individuals in the rare coin industry. No alternative index has since been developed.

How accurate was the Salomon Brothers Survey?

The survey was accurate for the 20 coins that were included in the condition in which each of the coins was followed. As with any other survey of selected items, there were other related items that might have performed either better or worse. Just because the Dow Jones average goes up doesn’t mean all stocks increase in value at the same time or pace.

How did we end private paper money issues in the United States?

A tax was placed on all private bank notes not printed by the government. The new government National Currency issues from local banks was backed by federal bonds bought by the issuing bank.This was done from the Civil War until 1935.

Have uncut sheets of U.S. bank notes always been available to collectors?

Uncut sheets were available to collectors during the 1930s and earlier. The idea was resurrected in 1978 through the the American Numismatic Association.

Which companies supplied the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and its Civil War predecessor with the numbering wheels used to print the serial numbers on U.S. paper money, especially between 1863 and 1928 when serial numbers were suffixed or prefixed with symbols which delimited such numbers as a security measure to prevent their alteration?

Serial numbers are added to bank notes as part of the third step of the printing process. There have been a number of vendors who over the years could have supplied the equipment with which serial numbers have been printed. Among these are the American Bank Note Company; Columbian Bank Note Company; Continental Bank Note Company; Murray, Draper, Fairman and Company; National Bank Note Company; Rawdon, Wright and Hatch; and Van Buren.

Is it possible an even later date VDB reverse Lincoln cent could exist?

Anything is possible, although I’ve never heard of one. The scenario would require a working die to have survived without having the initials ground off it, then be inadvertently used later.

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More Collecting Resources

• The Standard Catalog of United States Paper Money is the only annual guide that provides complete coverage of U.S. currency with today’s market prices.

• Any coin collector can tell you that a close look is necessary for accurate grading. Check out this USB microscope today!