Even when you can't attend, it's always interesting to read about what's going on at rare coins auctions. There's a Heritage auction going on in Cincinnati, Ohio right now with a special night devoted to platinum and you never know what rarities will turn up.
When you are purchase rare coins you wind up reading up on US Mint history and learning about all the missing links and Holy Grails of rare coins, the fabled pieces that we know were most definitely minted but which may or may not exist any longer, the ones that were stolen or lost years ago and the ones sold off in lots to unnamed collectors and we're all just waiting for them to show up again.
Grails
One such coin, the missing Gold Rush Double Eagle, may just turn up one of these days, but we'll wait and see. The Gold Rush Double Eagle was part of a pair minted in 1849. One of them sits in the Smithsonian and the other hasn't been seen since it was sold as part of collector William M. Meredith's estate.
If you do get a chance to visit an auction or a rare coin investing trade show any time soon you'll want to do yourself a favor and look in the miscellaneous coin boxes. If you want to know how to purchase rare coins one of the most important things is developing a strong knowledge of the coins you're collecting. You can of course simply stick to the lower end if all you want is to purchase rare coins that are solid and reliable, but if you want the ability to really capitalize on an opportunity you'll want to be able to spot rare coins where the dealer only sees a fairly common antique coin. This means not only knowing which types of coins are rare but being on the lookout for rare mintage dates and minting errors.
Of course, even if you choose to simply purchase rare coins online that's just as well. You're not entirely likely to stumble upon one of those half a million dollar pieces that way but it's still a great way to invest in your future. When you purchase rarities you can take comfort in knowing that the prices of these coins do not tend to go down. There's no way for a rare coin to become somehow less rare as the number of coins in existence is always going to be limited to the number of coins minted and furthermore to the number of pieces that have not been melted or otherwise destroyed.
Certainly there are many coins considered rarities because despite large quantities being produced at the US Mint the majority of those circulated wound up being melted down by Americans who knew the metal content to be greater than the face value. If only they'd handed those pieces down to their children they would've become much more valuable than their mere metal content. So be it, if you're a rare coin investor at least their loss is your gain.
How to Purchase Rare Coins
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