Gold Cools, Rare Coins Don’t
Even as gold cools, the rare coin market stays hot, fueled by demand for high-grade and trophy-level pieces.
“Flesh of the Gods” is the way a recent Wall Street Journal article described the ancient Egyptian’s view of gold. Times haven’t changed.
The performance of gold, and of course gold coins, has been spectacular in recent times. Gold is now settling back into a slightly more modest post-crisis trading range; however, the demand for collectible and rare gold coins continues to hold its own. Heritage Auctions recently pointed out that 10 coins in their late March auction combined to realize $1.3 million (The auction realized about $11.5 million total!). Eight of those 10 coins were U.S. gold coins. The combined value of the 10 coins was helped by a coveted 1895 Morgan silver dollar that, in PCGS Proof 63, realized $91,500, this being significantly higher than had been its suggested trade value.
What all this shows is that there is continuing strength in the rare coin market. Bullion and intrinsic value-impacted coins took a recent hit based on good news regarding the potential end of the U.S. war with Iran, but gold as well as silver have once more stabilized. This has created a modestly lower trading range for coins not being appreciated due to their potential scarcity. Relatively available coins that have been certified in unusually high grades remain prized, their prices remaining strong.
Judging from what has been observed among coin-collecting sites on Facebook, some of these so-called grade rarities could be termed as Trophy Coins. The market remains thirsty for coins, regardless of scarcity. Consider that market to be healthy.
