other ways amassed the biggest empire the world had ever seen. It took money to run that empire, and that meant gold and silver coin. So, today you can find British sovereigns that were minted in such distant lands as South Africa, India, and Australia. Two hundred dollars will get you a handsome-looking sovereign. It’s up to you how much of a collection you wish to build. But it doesn’t take a big outlay to assemble a date run. As for the British sovereigns going up in value? They function as bullion coins for many traders today, so they won’t jump up quickly. But the bullion factor also means that they will go up as the precious metal swings up. Sovereigns may just turn into a good buy. 5. Gold American Eagle tenth-ounce coins. If even British sovereigns are more money than you want to spend on gold, then about the only alternative for a less expensive gold coin is the tenth-ounce American Eagle. The little sister of the American Eagles family also has a wide range of mintages over the past couple of decades, but that doesn’t yet translate into too much by way of price difference. For example, the 1999 tenth-ounce Eagle has a mintage of more than 2.7 million pieces, not counting the proofs, and one of them will cost $106 in MS-65. The 1991 is at the other end of things, with a 165,200 total, and a price tag of $130. That’s quite a trade off when you think about it. Now, the tenth-ounce Eagles are only going to rise in value as the price of gold rises. They’re bullion coins. But there’s always hope for the scarcer ones within the series.
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S I said right at the beginning, all of these gold coins may be out of your reach. That’s not a problem. Some people stick to low-value coins. Others just don’t have the disposable cash to put into gold coins. Still others are just thrifty. Let’s see what silver pieces are available to the collector of more modest means—but also to the collector who wants to see some increase in value in his or her collection over time. 1. One-ounce silver American Eagles. We may be eagled out by the end of this, but it wouldn’t be fair to not mention this Eagle as well. Silver American Eagles have been produced since 1986, and have always had a full ounce of silver in them. There is now a rarity within the series—the 1995-W proof— but other than that, all the silver Eagles are collectible. It will probably only cost $25 to get any date in the series, in MS-65. So let’s mention briefly a relatively new phenomenon that has affected these Eagles—slabbing. It’s no big surprise that silver Eagles have been encapsulated by third-party grading 18
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Some dates in the Morgan and Peace dollar serics can be obtained in uncirculated at low prices.
services, but what is a surprise is the prices some of them bring. Since these coins were never made to circulate, it’s not hard to find them slabbed as MS-69. What is hard to find is the perfect coin, meaning one slabbed at MS-70. That’s then where there are some possibilities for your silver to gain in value. If you do go this route, be patient. It’s not every day you come across the perfect coin. 2. Uncirculated Morgan or Peace dollars. These perennial collector favorites show up here simply because they are bound to rise in price as precious metals do. Each has less than an ounce of silver in them, but the sheer numbers of these coins means they will never for all practical purposes disappear from the collector scene. When it comes to specific Morgan or Peace dollars that will rise in value, the advice is perhaps obvious: stay away from the common coins and look for the sleepers. Morgan dollars were minted to such quantities that mintage totals are not particularly useful in this regard, especially when you factor in the various silver melts that have occurred over the past decades. What is perhaps wiser is to get the population reports from the third-party grading services, see which dates and mintmarks have been slabbed in the lowest numbers, then see if you can buy some of those dates in slightly lower grades. That’s a recipe for a good return should the price of gold and silver rise in the near future. 3. The Austrian Maria Theresa thaler. This is the silver bullion coin that precedes all silver bullion, and even though it may not seem to deserve a place here, there’s a reason for its presence. The restrikes of this coin have some serious potential. For those unfamiliar with the Maria Theresa thaler, it was first minted in 1780, was heavily exported, and became a trade
coin in parts of Africa and Asia. Its success was so great that more were made, still dated 1780, and eventually it was produced by other governments than that of the AustroHungarian Empire. It’s the restrikes that actually have the growth potential today. Some of these have been made to essentially proof standards, yet still cost as little as $15. When metals prices rise, it’s quite possible that these thalers with the premium strike and eye appeal will go up a bit faster than everything else around them. You won’t make millions off a single coin. But you will see some appreciation in value. 4. Proof Franklin half dollars. Franklin halves seem destined to live in the shadow of the Walking Liberty halves, and thus always to be under appreciated, if not under valued. But when it comes to proof coins, Franklins can lay claim to a first. This is the first half dollar that saw proofs minted in the millions. It was 1957 that saw a proof mintage of 1.2 million halves, and every year after saw a healthy total as well. Only 1958 dipped below the 1 million mark, and 1961-1963 saw more than 3 million proofs per year. With proof Franklins being that common, one might think this is a bad choice for a silver coin that will rise in value. On the contrary, for a smart buyer who sticks to grades such as Proof-67 and -68, there is some potential. The 1958 is a $125 coin in Proof-68 right now. It definitely has the potential to go up in value. So do several of the other proofs in high enough grades. 5. World silver bullion coins. This final choice for worthwhile silver might seem like another odd pick, in that there are plenty of world bullion coins to be had. That’s true, and that’s also where it becomes one’s buying savvy that makes all the difference. The numbers for some coins are significantly lower than for others. A great series that works as an example is the Chinese Panda. The Chinese government has been careful not to flood the market with Pandas, and as a result their prices are always a bit higher than those of other bullion coins. But they also have more potential for growth. But don’t stop with the Pandas. Look at the Canadian Maple Leafs, the silver of Australia or Austria, or even the issues from tiny places, such as the Isle of Man. Most of these series have a couple of dates with lower mintages. That translates into better potential, especially if you are buying the best examples of each coin. There we have it, two fistfuls of preciousmetal coins, all of which have some growth potential. There are undoubtedly more than what I have listed. It’s a matter of doing some research and making careful purchases. But the potential is there. The best of luck to you in assembling your own fistful of gold or silver. ❐ COINS JANUARY 2009
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