Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes. The numismatic season continues to be busy, actually, I have never seen it otherwise. I will be stopping by at the Colonial Coin Collectors Club meeting at the Radisson Hotel in Boston, this Friday, November 14th, to meet, greet, and say hello. I am the keynote speaker there on Friday evening, the topic being "Collecting and Enjoying Colonial Coins Since the 1950s." This field, once rather sleepy, has become dynamic in recent years. Still, the "bar" to entry, if one calls it that, is knowledge. Some reading and contemplation is required in addition to simply writing checks. Rather than being an obstacle, this actually contributes to the excitement of the field.

Then it's off to Baltimore where we'll be conducting a marvelous auction, the sale of the Keusch, Snow, & Del Zorro Collections. What a varied offering this is-ranging from a collection of Proof large copper cents gathered generations ago, to extremely rare Assay Commission medals, to Proof coins of Hawaii, to incredible patterns, to, of course, a wide selection of United States coins from half cents to double eagles. In a way this is a "discovery sale," as there are so many varied things in it. No matter what your interest, you're bound to find something you already collect and, perhaps more important, discover a new series to explore.

After the sale comes the Whitman Baltimore Coin and Currency Convention at the Convention Center. Stack's will be set up in the bourse, and you are certainly invited to come by and say hello to me and the staff. This is one of the most active shows on the circuit. Baltimore is one of my favorite cities to visit.

Enjoy the numismatic week to come. There are many great things to do. And, don't forget to review our books for sale section and order titles of interest. This may be the last time we are offering our 30% discount schedule. If not next week, then the week after we're changing the format. Take advantage now, and order the titles you'd like.

The holiday season is upon us. There is no better gift than an interesting book about coins, tokens, medals, and paper money. And, if you pick one of my books I'll be happy to personalize it to your gift recipient. It would be difficult to imagine a more appreciated present that costs, say, $15 to $30. I especially recommend The 100 Greatest American Currency Notes and The 100 Greatest American Medals and Tokens. Everybody loves these!

If your gift recipient likes to read and has the potential to become a numismatist, my recommendation is The Expert's Guide to Collecting and Investing in Rare Coins. Everyone who has read it and reported back to me has said it was either the best coin book they have ever read, or it was on a very short list.

See you next week!

Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes. Now that the election is over, mainstream America can concentrate on other things. Wall Street has some more adjustments, it seems. Perhaps investing will go back to emphasis on value, rather than speculation. Do we really need derivatives, strips, tranches, and other such things I never heard of when I studied finance? Stocks and bonds were valued on the dividends they earned, either at present or in terms of what was supposed to be a carefully calculated outlook of the future.

And so it is with coins, tokens, medals, and paper money. As they do not pay dividends, any investment evaluation of them has to be based on supply, popularity, present market value, and anticipated future demand.

A spectacular article by David Ganz in Numismatic News traced prices of coins over a long period of time, in comparison with the stock market indexes and other data. Coins scored very high, indeed spectacularly - and along the way offered little in the way of downward "surprises." Although David is busy as an attorney and a coin writer, he did find time to go to Machu Picchu in Peru a while ago, and sent us some pictures.

As I see it, in today's worldwide economy, numismatics should continue to occupy a comfortable niche. Coins are easily described by universally understood terms, are small and can be easily shipped or stored, and they are basically interesting to own. Although there are no guarantees, history shows that a carefully formed collection usually increases in value over the years, sometimes spectacularly.

$100,000 spent on a spiffy sports car or sleek power boat 10 years ago is probably worth, say, $20,000 or so today. $100,000 spent on a basic type set of colonial coins, say in VF and EF grades, is probably worth $200,000 today. A coin is not a substitute for a Porsche and the pleasure it yields in driving and status. Nor is a Porsche a substitute for a coin in terms of long-time store of value. The answer is not one or the other, but for those who can afford it, some of each.

Or, at a lower level of expenditure, $5,000 spent on a computer system 10 years ago may be worth $1,000 today, while that $5,000 spent on colonials might take $10,000 to replace today. It does make sense to balance your expenditures for items beyond the necessities of life. Not wanting to miss out on the latest thing, I invested in two hedge funds some time ago. Today they are worth half that. If I had spent the money in one of our auctions, I would probably have a nice profit awaiting me.

Anyway....

There are many things to contemplate. I hope that in the coming year Americans unite to form a new era in the quality of life and that worldwide the United States will lead by illustrious example, not by threats. We do live in a wonderful country.

It had to happen! Today as I write this at the New Hampshire office of Stack's I've just seen the first snowflake of the season. This must really mean that summer's over. Actually, we've been in autumn for several weeks now, and how pretty the foliage has been.

On the Internet and elsewhere, dealers and auction houses handling coins, tokens, medals, and paper money, as well as editors and other observers of the passing scene, are emphasizing that despite Wall Street's woes, no one seems to be selling coins at a discount! Activity at sales continues to be excellent. Perhaps some of this is by default. If stocks, mutual funds, hedge funds, and money markets do not look attractive, and investment in real estate has its problems (not to mention tax bills), somehow a coin cabinet seems especially warm and friendly!

As the holiday season approaches, be sure to check our section of books for sale. If the one's I have written appeal to you, just ask for an autograph when you send your order, and I will personally inscribe it to your gift recipient. Of course, giving yourself a gift is a great thing too!

As we enter November we should all remember that Thanksgiving is in many ways the ideal holiday. It is a time not to receive things, but to be thankful for all the blessings we enjoy as citizens of the United States of America.

See you next time!

Welcome to the latest edition of my Notes. The coming few weeks promise to be busy ones in numismatics. Here at Stack's we have several fine auctions, bound to create a lot of interest. As always, coins, tokens, medals, and paper money are "comforting" to own in times of economic uncertainty. History has shown that in many instances when Wall Street has moved in one direction, the value of numismatic items has moved in another.

The Colonial Coin Collectors Club is worth investigating, and is the subject of a separate commentary this week. I will be speaker at the Educational Forum at its annual convention in Boston on Friday night, November 14th. If it is in your schedule, please attend. Hopefully you will enjoy the experience!

Books remain the single best way to enjoy numismatics while at the same time learning a lot. Be sure to check our section of books for sale, which gives you a 30% discount if you order three or more titles-very close to wholesale, and likely competitive with any other book offerings you can find anywhere in the world. At Stack's these are not a "profit center," but are simply a way to have our customers and others be more informed.

With the holidays coming up, what better gift could you give anyone than an autographed book? Why don't you review the titles of books I have written, and when you order, let us know the name of your recipient. I will then address it to him or her on the flyleaf with a note and autograph. Who knows, perhaps in addition to being a well received, unusual, and distinctively different gift, such books might become special collectors' items on their own some time in the future.

Here in New Hampshire we had our first frost on Monday, the 20th, which must mean that winter is on its way. The fall foliage is still very bright, perhaps the best in a number of years, with every shade of orange, red, yellow, and brown imaginable. Soon these will fade, and we'll see our first snowflakes. Late autumn and early winter are always a nice time to become reacquainted with your favorite comfortable chair, curl up, and read one of the books I am encouraging you to get.

All good wishes from me and everyone else at Stack's. See you next week.