Letters to the Editor: February 2026

One of the reasons I enjoy Numismatic News is that your articles often ring true with my own personal collecting experience. This happened once again with the article “Marketing the ‘Rare’ 1916-D Mercury Dime” in the January 13, 2026, edition.

I began collecting over fifty years ago, at the age of eleven or twelve. It didn’t take long for me to learn that there were some dates of coins that I would most likely never own, such as the 1916-D Mercury dime. As I reached adulthood and my collection grew from searching pocket change to actually purchasing coins, it still never occurred to me that I would someday be the proud owner of a 1916-D Mercury dime. I have written to you about this coin before, but here’s a recap of how I acquired it.

In 1992, I moved from Minnesota to New Mexico, and not long after was working at a local VFW club. One of their members found out I had an interest in coins and told me he had a collection for sale. We met a few days later, and I was blown away by what he showed me. He explained to me that his father had put together this collection and had recently passed away, leaving it to him. It contained a near-complete set of Lincoln cents, a complete set of Buffalo nickels (although I found out later the 1913-S type 2 was actually a 1916-S), a complete set of 1932-1964 Washington quarters, and a complete set of Mercury dimes; all neatly placed in Whitman folders.

When I saw that the slot for the 1916-D was filled, my first thought was that it was probably a Philadelphia issue. The seller allowed me to remove it, and when I turned it over, there was the D mintmark! I explained to the gentleman the ‘rarity’ of this coin and its current value, along with some of the other key dates in his father’s collection, but he appeared to have no interest in the coins at all. He needed money to get the transmission repaired on his vehicle, so he quoted me a price for the collection, and I bought it.

I had that 1916-D for about twenty-five years and always wondered if it was truly a genuine coin. A few years ago, responding to an article in your magazine regarding counterfeit coins, I sent images of my coin, and your staff very kindly looked at them and responded that it “appeared genuine.” This prompted me to send the coin in to be graded. ANACS was running a special for submissions of ten or more coins, so I gathered up about a dozen and sent them in. I had determined that my 1916-D would grade G4 or possibly G6. Imagine my delight when it came back with a VG8!
To this day, whenever someone tells me they have some coins for sale, or just want an evaluation of some coins they inherited, I always dream of finding another key date coin. So far, I have had no luck making this possibly a ‘once in a lifetime’ event. I hope not.

Daryl Conley, New Mexico

Well, saw increased pricing at the mint. I understand Silver, Gold, Platinum, Palladium coins increase. But why the big increase in quarters, halves, dollar rolls, and bag sets? Mint and Proof sets also. Change of plan this year and maybe forever. I buy dollar and quarter rolls sets. Dollar rolls at $36.25 for 25 coins was a little high, but now $61.00 a roll. Was going get mint and proof sets for this year. But not for $124.50 and $107.00.

Name and Address withheld

Richard Giedroyc’s report on the “1776–2026” cent suggests the penny isn’t dead; it is simply awaiting a rebrand. Despite the 2025 “Omega” auctions, the lack of formal retirement legislation leaves a vacuum that I suspect will be filled by a “Golden Cent.”

To satisfy presidential vanity, the Mint may possibly pivot to aluminized steel or aluminum-bronze. These materials are significantly cheaper than zinc yet offer a brilliant “gold” luster—delivering maximum sheen for the lowest price. With the current president’s image on the obverse, the coin would serve as a permanent monument, or at least a semi-permanent one, until it slips into a couch cushion. As long as rounding remains unlegislated, this gilded ghost could haunt our currency and our nation.

Mike M, Massachusetts

Recently, on the first weekend of our New Year, David F. Fidiam of Vallejo, Calif., and retired Mail Distributor for the Berkeley, California public schools, passed away. David was an avid and enthusiastic model railroader and not a numismatist, coin collector, or coin hobbyist. Model railroading was his passion and his pleasure in life.
Why would I mention him in Mintmaster’s Quill? Why trouble Numismatic News? Why this?

Over a decade ago, one Friday evening, when many of the Vallejo Model Railroad Club members would gather at our HO scale ‘Vallejo and Solano Western’, a mixture of retired, still employed, and whoever else, a discussion commenced on and about ‘why come to the ‘Vallejo and Solano Western’ sometimes every Friday evening and even during daylight?

Most everyone, as we sat or stood there, shared several reasons, from the sublime, like ‘nothing else to do on a Friday evening’ or ‘stepping out from my wife or significant other’. Some reasons were simple, and some were complex. Thoughts about the model railroading hobby were expounded.

In model railroading, the two pursuits can be summarized as ‘builders’ and ‘operators’, those who enjoy constructing rolling stock or wiring their locomotives into a computer operation. We even had one member who liked building bridges and trestles. Operators love to sit at the controls and watch the model train roll around the layout.
We continued this exchange for some time. Then, when it seemed all the scenarios had been expounded, David just paused and said, “Shouldn’t we be here for fun?” Fun.

The lesson for us in ‘this world of money’ is that David was correct, absolutely correct. Numismatics, in all its fields and pursuits, is more than the latest auction record at Stacks and Bowers or another ‘green bean label’ or precious metal rise. Maybe in these past recent decades, ‘the world of money’ has become more about ‘money’, hard cold cash.
We may have lost or risk losing the camaraderie, socializing, and laughter with like-minded hobbyists, because another CC Dollar, as the 1889, has an increase in the latest GREYSHEET.

For me, the best moments and ‘the best of times’----to paraphrase Dickens----have been at dinners, picnics, bingo games, carpooling to another local coin show, or whatever or whenever. At these, the real grandeur of ‘the world of money’ shines, and that is Fun.

Ending, I pray that my message resonates with NUMISMATIC NEWS readers and others.

David summed it up best: FUN.

Michael S. Turrini, Vallejo, Calif.