A Different Collecting Strategy:


Forget Mint Marks & Dates Only, Build a Collection of Varieties

PCGS describes a variety as, “A coin of the same date and basic design as another but with slight differences.”

Building a collection of varieties requires being something of a specialist within a selected coin series. Take the Mercury Dime for instance:

The three major varieties include the 1942/1, the 1942/1-D, and the 1945 Micro S. Sure, you could go all gaga and attempt to collect every variety listed in the “Cherrypickers’ Guide”, but that is really specializing. A simple collection like this one would require only 6 coins; all 3 varieties, a “normal” 1942, a “normal” 1942-D, and a “normal” 1945-S.

How about the Lincoln Cent? There’s the 1922 Weak D and the 1922 No D. The double die obverses; 1955, 1969-S, 1972, and 1995. And there are the 1998, 1999, and 2000 Wide AMs along with the 1992 Close AM.

Collecting a series doesn’t have to be every date and mint mark. There is no end to the different ways to collect. What different slant can you put on a collection?


Friday, May 19th, 2023 Uncategorized