Group Rules
Note: SALES ARE NOT PERMITTED IN THIS GROUP (eBay, classified ads, links to sales pages, etc). Please do not solicit other members in posts or comments. These will be deleted. This group encourages people especially new collectors to get as much information they can, so they are making informed decisions when buying or trading coins. Sharing information is encouraged.
Any abusive behavior and inappropriate postings in this forum will be dealt with severely. If you are not civil and courteous, you will be removed immediately. No warnings, no second chances. The admins are here to preserve a safe environment for the other members.
WARNING: If you misrepresent coins you do not own as your own, promote counterfeit coins as authentic coins, or conduct any other dishonesty calculated for advantage, you will be reported to the authorities.
Frequently Asked Questions
CLICK to use these links as often as possible. Post when you have more advanced numismatic topics to discuss.
This will help all the volunteer admins and moderators to maintain this group without an unreasonable amount of effort.
The information resource for all coin/banknote and stamp collectors on Facebook. Ask questions, discuss and share items you have
or are thinking of acquiring, and get answers from expert collectors and numismatic professionals.
What You Need to Know: Inherited Coin Collections http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php/ubb/showflat/Number/1408886/site_id/1
How Can I Avoid Mistakes That Beginner Coin Collectors Commonly Make https://coins.thefuntimesguide.com/2010/10/avoiding_mistakes.php
Should You Clean Coins Or Not? (Hint: NO!) https://coins.thefuntimesguide.com/2009/05/cleaning_coins.php
What Is My Old Coin Worth? http://www.coinquest.com
What Do I Need To Know To Understand The Nuances Of Coin Values? http://coinquest.com/cgi-bin/cq/coins?main_action=terminology
I Don't Know Which Of My Coins Are Worth Keeping. Are There Any Guidelines On Which Ones Have Good Value?
Your coin is more likely to have better value if it meets these general guidelines:
1) Is it made of silver? or gold?
2) Is it older than 1940?
3) Is it in mint state, fresh condition?
4) Is it free of defects such as fingerprints, dings, scratches, stains?
5) Is it a lower mintage date than others in the series?
6) Is it a sought-after error or variety?
Of course, there may be exceptions but the exception would still meet some of the guidelines above.
Where Is My Coin From? http://www.gcoins.net/en/catalog/legend/letter/A
Coin Image Identifier http://www.coincat.com/imageidentifier.php
What Do These Coin Terms Mean? http://www.pcgs.com/lingo
Is My Coin Silver? (U.S. coins) http://cointrackers.com/is-my-coin-silver.php
Which Are The Most Valuable U.S. Coins? The Least Valuable? http://coinquest.com/cgi-bin/cq/coins?main_action=united-states
Should I Bid On This Coin? 12 Most Common Coin Problems http://news.coinupdate.com/twelve-most-common-coin-problems-4840/
How Can I Tell If A Coin Has Been Cleaned? Evidence of Cleaning http://news.coinupdate.com/evidence-of-cleaning-1229/
What Should I Know About Grading Morgan Dollars By Online Photos? http://news.coinupdate.com/grading-morgan-dollars-4878/
How To Grade AU58 To MS60 Morgan Silver Dollars? http://coinauctionshelp.com/gradingau58_ms60morgandollars.html
How To Tell If Toning Is Real Or Artificial? Order of Colors on Toned Coins http://www.coincommunity.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=186193
How Toning Affects Eye Appeal http://www.pcgs.com/eyeappeal/
Which Third Party Grading Services To Avoid? (Comprehensive database of third party coin grading services / TPGS) http://coinauctionshelp.com/page16.html
What Is A Star Note? How Rare Is My Star Note? https://mycurrencycollection.com/reference/star-notes
How Do I Identify A Roman Coin? http://www.romanorum.com.au/info/articles/feltemp/
How Can I Translate Latin On My Ancient Roman Coin? http://dirtyoldbooks.com/roman/legends/indexb.htm
How About Other Ancient and Medieval Coins (Besides Roman, including Greek, Byzantine, Celtic, English) www.wildwinds.com/freefind.html
Canadian Coin and Banknote Articles http://www.saskatooncoinclub.ca/articles.html
Error and Varieties Identification
Mint Error or Post-mint Damage? http://coinauctionshelp.com/page14.html
Coin Errors and Misstrikes (Explained featuring Australian coins) http://www.australian-coins.com/error-coins/coin-errors-misstrikes/
Machine Doubling v. Die Doubling? (Magnified Photos) http://errorvariety.com/OFD/MD.html
Doubled Dies vs. Machine Doubling (Multiple Photo Examples) https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/5688/Double-Dies-vs-Machine-Doubling/
Doubling: Worthless Or Valuable? http://koinpro.tripod.com/Articles/OtherFormsOfDoubling.htm
What Kind of Error / Variety Is This? http://www.error-ref.com
Wexler's Coins and Die Varieties http://doubleddie.com
CONECA Master Listing of Die Varieties http://varietyvista.com
Lincoln Cent Resource Top 50 Lincoln Cent Varieties http://www.lincolncentresource.com/Top50.html
Flying Eagle and Indian Head Cents Top Die Varieties (By Date) http://indianvarieties.com/top-die-varieties/top-die-varieties-by-date/
Flying Eagle and Indian Cent Varieties http://indiancent.wikispaces.com/
Is My Morgan Dollar / Peace Dollar A VAM? http://www.vamworld.com
Liberty Seated Dimes – Die Varieties, 1837 - 1891 http://www.seateddimevarieties.com/Table_of_Contents.htm
Capped Bust Half Dollar Cherry Picker's List, 1807-1839 http://coinauctionshelp.com/Capped_Bust_Half_Dollar.html
Early Half Dollar Information (Flowing Hair, Draped Bust, Capped Bust) http://www.maibockaddict.com/
What’s My Error Coin Worth? (US coins, values are in USD) http://coinsite.com/us-error-coin-values/
What’s My Paper Money Error Worth? (US banknotes, values are in USD) http://coinsite.com/us-paper-money-error-values/
Canadian Circulation Coin Die Variety Identification Guide http://www.saskatooncoinclub.ca/articles/03_canadian_coin_varieties.html
Counterfeit Coin Identification
Detecting Counterfeit Or Altered Coins (A Basic Guide) https://www.facebook.com/notes/2425026150/Detecting%20Counterfeit%20or%20Altered%20Coins%20/10154247560366151/
Is This A Real US Silver Dollar? (Identifying US counterfeits) (Flowing Hair Dollars, Draped Bust Dollars, Seated Dollars, Trade Dollars, Morgan Dollars, Peace Dollars and American Silver Eagles) http://coinauctionshelp.com/Counterfeit_Silver_Dollars_Fake_Trade_Dollars_Fake_Morgan_Dollar.html
Is This A Real Panda Coin? (Identifying Bad Bears: Counterfeit Pandas) http://www.pandacollector.com/rogue.html
Is This A Fake Gold Sovereign? (Fake gold sovereigns and spotting the counterfeits) http://goldsovereignexpert.com/info/fake-gold-sovereigns-spotting-counterfeits/
Fake Cobs Database http://www.sedwickcoins.com/fake_cobs.htm
How To Spot Fake Ancient Coins? http://www.calgarycoin.com/reference/fakes/fakesgiveaways.htm
Detecting Counterfeit Ancient Coins
This four part series covers how to detect counterfeit ancient coins. Each method of manufacture has its own telltale signs. These telltale signs also apply to counterfeits of modern coins.
Part 1: Counterfeits from newly cut dies http://www.coinsweekly.com/en/Archive/How-to-detect-forgeries/8?&id=11&type=a
Part 2: Cast counterfeits http://www.coinsweekly.com/en/Archive/How-to-detect-forgeries/8?&id=13&type=a
Part 3: Electrotypes http://www.coinsweekly.com/en/Archive/How-to-detect-forgeries/8?&id=14&type=a
Part 4: Transfer die forgeries http://www.coinsweekly.com/en/Archive/How-to-detect-forgeries/8?&id=16&type=a
Coin Identification or Coin Catalogs
PCGS CoinFacts (US coins) http://www.pcgscoinfacts.com
NGC Coin Explorer (US coins) https://www.ngccoin.com/coin-explorer/
US Proof Sets Guide http://proofsetguide.com/
US Mint Sets Guide http://mintsetguide.com
World Coins Manufactured By Mints of the United States http://www.pcgs.com/SetRegistry/setcomposition.aspx?c=4824
Large Cents with Interesting Counterstamps http://numismatics.org/digitallibrary/ark:/53695/nnan47820#d1e8738
Royal Canadian Mint Circulation Coins http://www.mint.ca/store/mint/learn/canadian-circulation-1100028
Royal Mint UK Coin Designs and Specifications http://www.royalmint.com/discover/uk-coins/coin-design-and-specifications
Coins of the UK http://www.coins-of-the-uk.co.uk/
Royal Australian Mint Circulating Coins https://www.ramint.gov.au/circulating-coins
uCoin (International Catalog of World Coins) http://en.ucoin.net
Spanish Colonial Coin Types http://www.newworldtreasures.com/cointypes.htm
Spanish Colonial Coinage http://coinquest.com/cgi-bin/cq/coins?main_action=spanish-colonials
Maria Theresa Thaler (Variants, Original and Restrike) http://www.theresia.name/en/
Russian Wire Coins Attribution Guide http://wirecoins.de/attribute/
Japanese Dragon Dollars (written in Japanese) http://chigasakiws.web.fc2.com/meiji-1yen-ginka.html
(in English using Google Translate) https://translate.google.com/translate?sl=ja&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Fchigasakiws.web.fc2.com%2Fmeiji-1yen-ginka.html
Chinese Silver Dollars http://www.dragondollar.com/coins/
Silver Dollars and Taels of China http://web.archive.org/web/20160802190813/http://exonumismatics.com/china/china.html
Primal Trek Ancient Chinese Charms and Coins http://primaltrek.com
Chinese Cast Coin Reference http://www.calgarycoin.com/reference/china/china.htm
Sycees Online (Chinese Taels) http://www.sycee-on-line.com
Chinese Money Matters https://chinesemoneymatters.wordpress.com/
Cash Coins of Korea http://coins.sudokuone.com/korea/korea_cash.htm
Historical Cash Coins of Vietnam http://vietnam.sudokuone.com
East Asian Cash Coins (focused primarily on Japanese, includes Chinese, Korean, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Cash Coin-like Charms) http://www.history.ucsb.edu/faculty/roberts/coins/ Oriental Coins Database http://zeno.ru
CoinIndia (Indian Coins from Ancient to Modern Times) http://coinindia.com
Coins of Mughal India http://www.coincommunity.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=93062&whichpage=1
Beast Coins (Ancient World, Medieval Europe, German Notegeld, and much more) http://www.beastcoins.com/toc.htm
Medieval Coinage http://www.medievalcoinage.com
Identifying Common Late Roman Bronze Coins http://romancoin.info/
Online Coins of the Roman Empire (OCRE) Identification http://numismatics.org/ocre/identify
Forvm Ancient Coins Numiswiki http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp
Dirty Old Coins Roman Imperial Coins (RIC) Database http://www.dirtyoldcoins.com/roman/Roman-Emperors.html
Greek Coinage http://www.greekcoinvalues.com/introduction.php
Ancient Coins (~650 BCE - 500 CE) (lists less common ancient coins such as those from Axum, Celtic Kingdoms, India, Judaea, Lydia, Persia, and Phoenicia. Includes China, Greece, and Rome too) http://worldcoincatalog.com/AC/Index/AncientCoins.htm
Odd-Shaped Coins From Around the World http://moneyandgeography.blogspot.com/p/odd-shaped-coins.html?m=1
Directory of World Mints http://www.mintsoftheworld.com
Historical and Commemorative Medals http://www.historicalartmedals.com
Medal Collections on the Web http://www.historicalartmedals.com/MEDAL%20COLLECTIONS.htm
Banknote Identification or Banknote Catalogs
US National Bank Charter Lookup https://mycurrencycollection.com/reference/national-banknotes/lookup
US Replacement (Star) Note Lookup https://mycurrencycollection.com/reference/star-notes/lookup
American Currency Exhibit (Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco) http://www.frbsf.org/education/teacher-resources/american-currency-exhibit/
US National Currency Foundation http://www.nationalcurrencyfoundation.org/exhibits/
USPaperMoney.Info http://www.uspapermoney.info/
Currency of the Province of Canada (1850 to 1866) http://www.saskatooncoinclub.ca/articles/80_prov-canada.html
Currency of the Dominion of Canada (1870 to 1934) http://www.saskatooncoinclub.ca/articles/81_dom-canada.html
Currency of the Bank of Canada (1935 to Date) http://www.saskatooncoinclub.ca/articles/82_bank-canada.html
Banknote World (Educational Banknote Images) http://banknoteworld.com
World Banknote Gallery http://worldbanknotegallery.com
British Bank Notes http://britishnotes.co.uk/news_and_info/
Banknotes of France http://www.frenchbanknotes.com/france.php
Price Guides
PCGS (US coins, values are in USD) http://www.pcgs.com/prices/
PCGS Price History (US coin price trends in USD) http://www.pcgs.com/pricehistory#/?
NGC (values are in USD)
US coins: https://www.ngccoin.com/price-guide/united-states/
World coins: https://www.ngccoin.com/price-guide/world/
Redbook (US coins, values are in USD) https://www.whitman.com/redbook
Coin Study / Coin Values Discovery (US coins, values are in USD) includes grading examples for values http://www.coinstudy.com
NumisMedia Fair Market Value (US coins, values are in USD) http://www.numismedia.com/fmv/fmv.shtml
CoinSite US Paper Money Values (US small notes, values are in USD) http://coinsite.com/us-paper-money-values/
Paper Money Guide (US small notes, values are in USD) http://papermoneyguide.com/us_currency_price_guide.php
Heritage Quick Reference Guide to U.S. Paper Currency Values (US large and small notes) https://currency.ha.com/worth/currency-value.s
Coins and Canada (values are in CAD) http://www.coinsandcanada.com/coins-prices.php
Values of Coins of England and Great Britain (values are in GBP) http://www.coins-of-the-uk.co.uk/values/index.html
Blue Sheet Coin Values (values in AUD) http://www.bluesheet.com.au
Red Sheet Coin Values (Wholesale) (values in AUD) http://www.redsheet.com.au
Australian Pre-Decimal Coin Values (values in AUD) http://www.allcoinvalues.com/australian-coins-and-notes/australian-predecimal-coin-values.html
Greek Coin Values http://www.greekcoinvalues.com/values.php
PMG World Paper Money Price Guide (does not include US notes, values are in USD) https://www.pmgnotes.com/priceguide/world-note-price-guide.aspx
Grading and Rarity Guides
Design High Points of US Coinage https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=oa.10155162986006151&type=1
US Coin Photo Grade Coin Grading Guide http://coinauctionshelp.com/US_Coin_Grading_Guides.html
PCGS Photograde (US coins) http://www.pcgs.com/photograde/
NGC Coin Grading Guide - One to Seventy (US coins) https://www.ngccoin.com/coin-grading-guide/
Coin Grading http://www.coingrading.com/
Canadian Coin Photo Grading Guide http://www.saskatooncoinclub.ca/articles/12_grading_canadian_coins-ver2.html
Grading Russian Coins http://www.realcoins.ru/condition/
Grading Swiss Coins http://www.swissmint.ch/e/downloads/produkte/Erhaltung-Muenzen-e.pdf
PCGS CoinFacts Rarity Scale http://www.pcgscoinfacts.com/Features.aspx?page=7a
BCCS Barber Quarters Rarity Ratings http://www.barbercoins.org/Barber-Quarters-Survey.shtml
Various Numismatic Rarity Scales http://www.novanumismatics.com/numismatic-faqs-guides/the-various-numismatic-rarity-scales/
Coin Rarity https://web.archive.org/web/20150913060325/http://www.coinsniper.com/info/numismatic-learning-center/coin-rarity/
International Bank Note Society (IBNS) Grading Standards http://www.theibns.org/joomla/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=30
PMG Paper Money Grading Scale (US bank notes) https://www.pmgnotes.com/paper-money-grading/grading-scale/
A Guide to Grading Old Banknotes (Irish bank notes) http://www.irishpapermoney.com/grading/grading_banknotes.html
Production / Mintage Figures
US Mint Circulating Coins Production Figures https://competition.usmint.gov/circulating-coins-production-figures/
US Bureau of Engraving and Printing Monthly Production Figures http://www.moneyfactory.gov/resources/productionmonthly.html
US Mint Foreign Coinage Production Figures http://minterrornews.com/foreign_coinage_production_figures.pdf
Royal Canadian Mint Circulation Coins http://www.mint.ca/store/mint/learn/canadian-circulation-1100028
Banco de México Banknotes and Coins http://www.banxico.org.mx/SieInternet/consultarDirectorioInternetAction.do?sector=11&accion=consultarDirectorioCuadros&locale=en
Royal Mint UK Circulation Coin Mintage Figures http://www.royalmint.com/discover/uk-coins/circulation-coin-mintage-figures
Bank of England Banknote Statistics http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/Pages/about/stats.aspx
European Central Bank Banknotes and Coins Production https://www.ecb.europa.eu/stats/policy_and_exchange_rates/banknotes+coins/production/html/index.en.html
Swiss Minting program (production figures) http://www.swissmint.ch/e/dokumentation/publikationen/index.php
Mintage figures for Swiss coins as of 1850 http://www.swissmint.ch/e/dokumentation/publikationen/liste.php
Royal Australian Mint Circulating Coins https://www.ramint.gov.au/circulating-coins
Reserve Bank of Australia Banknote Serial Numbers http://banknotes.rba.gov.au/resources/for-collectors/serial-numbers/
Japan Mint Coin Production http://www.mint.go.jp/eng/coin-eng/eng_number_of_coin_production27.html
Gold and Silver Spot and Melt Values
Kitco 24-Hour Spot Gold (Bid) http://www.kitco.com/charts/livegoldw.html
Kitco 24-Hour Spot Silver (Bid) http://www.kitco.com/charts/livesilverw.html
Melt Value of U.S. Circulated Silver Coins http://www.coinflation.com/silver_coin_values.html
Melt Values of World Silver Coins https://www.ngccoin.com/priceguide/Coin-Melt-Values.aspx?MeltCategoryID=4&BaseMetal=World-Silver-Coin
Melt Value of Canada Circulated Coins http://www.coinflation.com/canada/
Melt Value of Mexico Circulated Coins http://www.coinflation.com/mexico/
Melt Value of U.S. Circulated Gold Coins http://www.coinflation.com/gold_coin_values.html
Melt Values of World Gold Coins https://www.ngccoin.com/priceguide/Coin-Melt-Values.aspx?MeltCategoryID=3&BaseMetal=World-Gold-Coin
Coin and Bullion Melt Value Calculators http://coinapps.com
Gold Bars Worldwide (Industry info on gold bars, gold refiners and gold bullion coins) http://www.goldbarsworldwide.com
Currency, Other Converters / Calculators
XE Currency Converter http://www.xe.com/currencyconverter/
US CPI Inflation Calculator http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/cpicalc.pl
UK Inflation Calculators (pre-decimal & decimal) http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/currency/
Australia Pre-Decimal Inflation Calculator http://www.rba.gov.au/calculator/annualPreDecimal.html
uCoin Date Converter (Japanese, Muslim, Thai, Hebrew, Iranian, Taiwanese, Nepali, Burmese, Bengali, Roman) http://dateconverter.net
Gold Weight Conversion (Carats, Centigrams, Grains, Grams, Kilograms, Milligrams, Ounces class=SpellE>Avoir, Ounces Troy, PennyWeights, Pounds Troy, Tonnes) http://www.thecalculatorsite.com/conversions/substances/gold.php
Pre-decimal to Decimal Converter (in GBP) http://gwydir.demon.co.uk/jo/units/money.htm
Coin Clubs and Shows
Coin Clubs (US) http://www.thecoinlook.com/clubs.htm
NumisMaster Calendar of Coin Shows & Events (US) http://www.numismaster.com/ta/inside_numis.jsp?page=CoinShowsCalendar&@mc=1&ad=full
Canadian Coin News (Canada) Events http://canadiancoinnews.com/events/
Clubs and Societies in Australia and New Zealand http://www.numismatics.org.au/societies/
Coin Associations and Societies
American Numismatic Association (ANA) https://www.money.org
American Numismatic Society (ANS) http://numismatics.org
Ancient Coin Collectors Guild (ACCG) http://www.accg.us/
British Association of Numismatic Societies (BANS) affiliated coin clubs/ societies http://www.coinclubs.org.uk/societies.htm
International Bank Note Society (IBNS) http://www.theibns.org/joomla/index.php
International Bond & Share Society (IBSS) http://scripophily.org/the-ibss/what-is-scripophily-faq/
Numismatic Association of Australia (NAA) http://www.numismatics.org.au/
Oriental Numismatic Society (ONS) http://www.onsnumis.org
Royal Canadian Numismatic Association (RCNA) (Canada) http://www.rcna.ca
Royal Numismatic Society (RNS) (UK) http://numismatics.org.uk
Sociedad Numismática de México (Sonumex) (Numismatic Society of Mexico) http://sonumex.blogspot.mx/
Swiss Numismatic Society (SNS) http://www.numisuisse.ch/11543/index.html
Coin Associations, Clubs, and Societies http://www.coinsheetlinks.com/clubs.htm
Professional Trade Associations
Asociación Española De Numismáticos Profesionales (AENP) (Spain) http://www.aenp.org
Australasian Numismatic Dealer’s Association (ANDA) http://www.anda.com.au
Berufsverband des Deutschen Münzenfachhandels e.V. (Germany) http://www.muenzenverband.de
British Numismatic Trade Association (BNTA) http://www.bnta.net
Canadian Association of Numismatic Dealers (CAND) http://www.cand.org
International Association of Professional Numismatists (IAPN) http://www.iapn-coins.org
Japan Numismatic Dealers Association (JNDA) http://www.jnda.or.jp/
N.V.M.H. Nederlandse Vereniging van Munthandelaren (NVMH) (Netherlands) http://www.nvmh.nl
Numismatici Italiani Professionisti (Italy) http://www.numismaticinip.it
Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG) (US) http://www.pngdealers.org
Stamp & Coin Dealers Association of Australasia (Sydney AU based) http://www.scdaa.com.au/
Syndicat National des Experts Numismateset Numismates Professionnels (SNENNP) (France) http://www.snennp.com
Verband der Deutschen Münzenhändler (Germany) http://www.vddm.de/
Verband Österreichischer Münzenhändler (Austria) http://www.voem.org
Verband Schweizer Berufsnumismatiker (Switzerland) https://www.vsbn.ch
Numismatic Research & Reference
American Numismatic Association Library https://www.money.org/library
American Numismatic Society Archives http://numismatics.org/archives/
Bank of Canada Publications, Books, and Monographs (Souvenir Books for download) http://www.bankofcanada.ca/publications/books-and-monographs/bank-canada-souvenir-books/
Newman Numismatic Portal (Numismatic Books, Periodicals, and more) https://nnp.wustl.edu
Royal Numismatic Society Publications http://numismatics.org.uk/society-publications/
Yale University Coins and Medals Collection http://artgallery.yale.edu/coins-and-medals
Publicly Displayed Numismatic Collections Around the World https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Numismatics#List_of_publicly_displayed_numismatic_collections
Early American Research
Coinage of the American Confederation Period http://numismatics.org/digitallibrary/ark:/53695/nnan164667
Civil War Token By Type http://www.cwtoken.com/Civil_War_Token_Type_Set/Home.html
Collection of Hard Times Tokens by Merchant and Theme http://www.hardtimestokens.com/SearchbyMerchantandTheme.aspx
Thompson's Coin Chart Manual, Supplementary to Thompson's Bank Note Reporter (1848) https://nnp.wustl.edu/library/book/525250