WEST PALM BEACH - Denis Loring and Donna Levin, of Singer Island, reaped a windfall from a copper 1792 penny the couple bought last year at a Beverly Hills auction for $437,000.

Two months ago, the penny sold for a whopping $660,000 to “an East Coast energy company executive” who wished to remain anonymous, said Greg Rohan, president of Dallas-based Heritage Auction Galleries, which arranged the transaction. The couple took home $600,000. Heritage made a $60,000 commission.

The coin had originally been owned by descendants of Oliver Wolcott, a signer of the Declaration of Independence and Connecticut’s governor in the 1790s, Rohan said. It had been kept for decades in an old tobacco tin.

The chocolate-colored rare coin, one of only nine known to exist, bears the date 1792, the inscription “Parent of Science & Indust: Liberty,” and the likeness of a woman’s head representing Miss Liberty.

Loring’s wife, Donna, said her husband had been trying for years to get her interested in coin collecting.

“Never in a million years did I think we’d actually find something. But when it came up for auction, Denis said we had to get it,” Levin added.

(via Florida Today)

Although the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing previously stated they would not be issuing a new anti-counterfeiting $5 bill, they have changed their mind. Counterfeiters have been bleaching the ink off of old $5 notes and printing $100 notes on them since the security features lined up so the government is taking preventative measures to keep that from being a long term issue.

There aren’t any images of the new note yet, but you can look at the media center for images of the $10, $20 and $50 as well as interactive notes. I imagine the $5 will be similar.

WASHINGTON – June 29, 2006 - The U.S. government announced today that it plans to redesign the $5 note as part of ongoing security enhancements to U.S. currency. Officials said redesigning the $5 note will help update and protect U.S. currency.

“The $5 note is widely used in a variety of vending, transit farecard and self-service machines,” said Bureau of Engraving and Printing Director Larry Felix. “We have already begun working with the manufacturers of those cash-handling machines and their customers, so they have ample time to adjust their equipment to accept the redesigned $5 note when it enters circulation.”

The latest series of U.S. currency began with the introduction of the $20 note in 2003, and continued with the $50 note in 2004 and the $10 note in 2006. The redesigned $5 note is expected to be issued in early 2008 with the $100 note to follow.

Overall, counterfeiting of U.S. currency remains at low levels – due primarily to a combination of improvements in the notes’ security features, aggressive law enforcement and education efforts to inform the public about how to verify their currency. Statistics continue to indicate that the amount of counterfeit U.S. currency worldwide is less than one percent of genuine U.S. currency in circulation.

“The U.S. government keeps a close eye on evolving counterfeiting trends and redesigns the currency to protect the public’s hard earned money and to stay ahead of counterfeiters,” said Michael Lambert, Assistant Director of Federal Reserve Bank Operations and Payment Systems. “The newly designed $5 note will be safer and provides the public with easy-to-use security features to help them identify counterfeit notes.” He noted the government’s policy is to introduce new currency designs about every seven to 10 years to leverage advances in security technology and stay ahead of evolving counterfeiting methods.

The government’s ongoing scrutiny of counterfeiting techniques has detected a pattern in which counterfeiters bleach the ink off of $5 notes, then print counterfeit $100 notes on the paper, deceiving the public because of similarities between the placement of the security features on the $5 and $100 notes. While these counterfeit attempts pose no significant economic problems today, officials say a redesign of the $5 will help ensure such problems do not develop in the future.

“Through our investigations and law enforcement partnerships worldwide, we are constantly evaluating and combating trends that could potentially impact the security of our currency,” said Deputy Assistant Director Michael P. Merritt, U.S. Secret Service. “Aggressive law enforcement, an effective design, and public education are all essential components of our concerted anti-counterfeiting efforts.”

The most effective way the public can protect themselves from counterfeit currency is to know the security features to look for in authentic U.S. currency. To that end, part of the government’s ongoing currency redesign effort is a worldwide public education program to raise awareness of the changes to U.S. currency.

An array of free educational materials for previously released redesigned currency including posters, “take one” cards, training videos and CD-ROMs are available to businesses, financial institutions, trade and professional associations, citizen groups and individuals to prepare cash handlers and consumers to recognize the new design and protect against counterfeits. Materials are available in 24 languages to order or download on-line at www.moneyfactory.gov/newmoney. Soon, similar materials will be available for the redesigned $5 note and all future denominations of redesigned U.S. currency.

The Cherrypickers’ Guide to Rare Die Varieties by Bill Fivaz and J.T. Stanton is a best-selling numismatic book. “Cherrypicking” refers to finding coins priced below their true market value, most commonly valuable die varieties which have not been attributed as such by the seller.

As the size of each edition has expanded with the inclusion of more entries, the authors decided to split the 4th edition into 2 volumes. Volume 1 was published in early 2000 with plans to release Volume 2 by the end of that year. For various reasons, Volume 2 is still not available. Finally, arrangements were made several months ago for Whitman Publishing, which has released dozens of numismatic titles, to publish Volume 2. It will be shipped in August.

You can preorder the book at Whitman Books for $39.95 plus shipping.

Have you ever wondered why the color is listed when looking up the values of your copper coins? Do you know how to determined all of the color varieties? If not, or if you just need a refresher, Paul Gilkes of Coin World has a useful article on the subject.

Just how much original color still remains on a United States copper coin – specifically, half cents, large cents, small cents and 2-cent coins – plays an important part in a coin’s grade and its ultimate value.

U.S. copper coins, regardless of whether they are graded and encapsulated by a third-party grading service or are “raw,” often have a superlative after the grade that addresses the coin’s color: “red,” “red and brown” and “brown.” Any one of these adjectival attributions reflects the general amount of the original Mint red color remaining on a coin and whether any brown toning is visible.

A coin classified as “red” has all or virtually all of the original red, meaning it features no toning; some red remains on a “red-brown” coin, meaning the coin has partially toned to brown; a coin classified as “brown” is one that has completely toned to a natural brown.

Collectors will often see the terms abbreviated in advertisements, price guides and other places where space is limited (“R” for red, “RB” for red-brown and “B” for brown). A copper coin with no color designation as part of the grade, especially in the lower Mint State range and all circulated grades, is probably fully brown.

Collectors will often see the designations primarily assigned to the half cent series (Liberty Cap, Draped Bust, Classic Head, and Coronet); large cents (Flowing Hair, Liberty Cap, Draped Bust, Classic Head and Coronet); Indian Head and Lincoln cents; and 2-cent coins.

The designations may also be seen used less frequently for copper patterns and tokens.

The designations are reserved for Mint State and Proof issues, and appear as, for example, MS-65 red or Proof 65 red.

Color affects value. A coin graded MS-65 red (or MS-65R) will be valued more than an MS-65RB piece of the same date and Mint.

A coin grading MS-63RB is worth more than a coin grading MS-63B. In many cases, a fully red coin in a lower grade is worth more than a coin that is one grade higher, but red-brown in color (for example, an MS-64R Lincoln cent is likely more expensive than an MS-65RB Lincoln cent of the same date and Mint).

The exact designation of color will differ from series to series, as the color of the copper used for coin blanks will be different depending on the source of the metal.

According to The Official American Numismatic Association Grading Standards for United States Coins, edited by Kenneth Bressett, “Copper is the among the most chemically reactive of all coinage metals. Half cents and large cents of 1793 to 1857 were made of nearly pure copper. Later ‘copper’ coins are actually bronze (copper combined with other elements, usually zinc and tin).

“When a copper coin is first struck, it emerges from the dies with a brilliant red-orange surface, similar to a newly minted modern Lincoln cent (copper-plated zinc).

“There are some exceptions in the early years among half cents and large cents. Copper was obtained from many different sources, traces of impurities varied from shipment to shipment, and some newly minted coins had a subdued brilliance (sometimes with a brownish or grayish cast).

“Once a freshly minted copper coin enters the atmosphere, it immediately begins to oxidize. Over a period of years, especially if exposed to actively circulating air or placed in contact with sulfur-content materials (such as most paper or cardboard), the coin will acquire a glossy brown surface. In between the brilliant and glossy brown stages it will be part red and part brown.”

Read the entire article.

Jim Besley arrived at the Baltimore Convention Center yesterday to unload some rare coins and 40 years’ worth of memories – his children lacking the zeal for his hobby, his wife unsure how to sell what’s left of his $40,000 collection should he die.

The retired IBM computer engineer from Keedysville in Washington County unlocked his brown briefcase and handed over copper coins protected in tiny plastic bags and paper frames to his old friend, Robert W. Mangels Sr.

Mangels, a well-known coin dealer in Laurel, glided his hand over his black velvet mat, laying the coins down like a card shark. He took just a few seconds with each piece, flipping each one over under a black desk lamp, and then asked for more.

“Show me something besides copper,” said Mangels, 70. “Although I know that’s your forte.”

After only a few glances and just one touch each, Mangels offered Besley $360 for three clear plastic sheets filled with U.S. quarters and half-dollars and a handful of copper coins at the 53rd Baltimore Coin and Currency Convention, which continues from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. today. Mangels offered Besley some time to think over his offer, but Besley just nodded, accepting a check and thanking him for making him “weigh less.”

When asked how Mangels could have known the coins’ value so quickly, Besley replied, “He knows.” And when asked why he didn’t negotiate: “I want to get it over with. I hate to haggle, and I trust him.”

Yesterday, millions of dollars exchanged hands at the convention, which grows in size and popularity by the year and is free to the public, said Ed Kuszmar, 64, a former Baltimorean who runs the show and now owns a coin shop in Boca Raton, Fla.

The show started 34 years ago in Lanham, moved to Baltimore in the 1980s, and has since grown from two to three shows per year. About 10,000 visitors are expected this weekend.

The dealers come from as far away as California and Canada, and they love to boast about deals, rare purchases or quirks. On his second date with his wife, Patty, Mangels brought along a bag filled with 1,000 pennies, and the two sifted through them looking for “good years,” she said, adding, “I’m serious.”

When silver “went through the roof” in 1979, Besley said, he turned to Mangels. He traded in coins with a face value of $5,000 for $13,000 in cash, and then bought a car with it.

“You can sustain the hobby because of its investment appeal, even though we don’t like to say that,” said Kuszmar, referring to collectors’ assertions that they love money not for the money, but for the lore behind a piece and the beauty of its engraving.

In addition to the rising price of gold and silver, the start of the state quarter program in 1999 has created a generation of budding coin collectors. As part of a national “young numismatists” program, 5-year-old Brandon Silvestri of Baltimore plunged his hand into a bucket of coins – a few worth as much as $70 each – donated by exhibitors and pulled out a handful.

Once he had emptied his hand into his own bag, he tried to reach in again – only to be told by his grandfather that he only got one turn.

“Look, I got a ‘2,’” he said, almost squealing with glee as he rooted through his loot. The “2” was the numeral on a silver-colored coin from the Czech Republic.

James Windsor, an online coin dealer from Fairmont, W.Va., brought his two nephews and niece from Virginia with him to the convention. Windsor keeps framed money on the walls of his home, something his relatives’ grade-school classmates didn’t believe. So they visited one weekend and took photographs of the currency as evidence.

“Showing off is really the whole thing,” said Windsor, who started collecting when he was 6 years old and was storing his valuables in a footlocker. “The basic drive is fame. You want to be known as having the finest collection.”

On Friday, Windsor purchased a 1999 proof set – that’s one U.S. cent, nickel, dime, quarter and half-dollar minted that year, of the finest quality – for $68. According to Windsor, the penny is worth $600 due to an unusual positioning of the letters “A” and “M” in the word “America” on the coin. He said he recently sold one just like it on eBay for $591.

“The person who knows the most gets the best deal,” Windsor said. “And you have to play the purchase like a poker player. If you jump up and down for joy, you lose.”

Read the original article.