Simply put, as a rare coin dealer, my goal is to help you build a rare coin collection that will grow in value for your future.

To achieve this objective, the coins in a collection need to grow in desirability and stature over time.

The above statement may seem like common-sense, but think of all the coins on the market that are available and easily replaceable today.Virtually all the coins available today were available and replaceable 20 years ago. And they will be available, and replaceable, 10 and 20 years from now.

As long as such coins are readily available, their ability to grow in desirability and stature over time is relatively limited.

To build a collection of superb, rare coins whose desirability and value will increase over time (i.e. appreciate), a collection must be built around coins of rarity offering the finest quality and eye-appeal possible for their respective issue - the irreplaceable!

While there are few guarantees in life, your best guarantee for the future appreciation of your collection is to own rare coins that, in eye-appeal and grade, rank at the highest peak of desirability for their issue, with few if any of comparable symmetry and beauty.

Finding coins of this caliber, in virtually all price ranges (they don't have to be priced in the millions, or even in the tens of thousands of dollars), is my specialty.

In achieving the above stated goals for my clients, my track record is second to none in numismatics.

I encourage you to take the time to review some of the coins in our Everest Archive of The Finest Known. The R & I clients who own these coins possess numismatic Mona Lisa's that are the Finest Known in every sense of the word - they are not only the highest grade for their respective issue, they also offer the eye-appeal and beauty one would expect for a coin with "The Finest Known" superlative placed on its mantle. For those of you who value the CAC premium quality sticker (as I do), I guarantee virtually all the coins in our Everest listing would also receive CAC certification, signifying they are not only deserving of the grade on the holder, they are also premium quality for that grade!

In acquiring that list of the "Finest Known", an archive that has taken me the better part of two decades to assemble for my clients, I usually have had to pay what many other dealers would consider "premium" prices. In other words, I paid more to acquire the coin than they were willing to pay!

But what a premium price is to one individual, is quite often a bargain to another.

For without exception, what was considered a "premium" price in the short run for these Everest coins, turned out to be a bargain in the long run, for every one of the coins in this list is valued considerably higher today, then when it was first acquired, and every one of these coins have appreciated at a pace that has outstripped the general numismatic market of gem quality coinage.

Some of the coins in the Everest list were struck in the1800's. But one was struck as late as 1965. Some of the coins sold for over $200,000. But some sold for under $2,000. An Everest coin can be a cent, nickel, or half. Or it might be struck in gold.

What all the Everest coins in our Finest Known archive have incommon is:

1. EVERY one offers outstanding, ultimate quality and eye-appeal for their respective issue!

2. They are all extremely rare in the condition being offered - some are unique!

3. They all offer outstanding potential for long-term appreciation.

The above three criteria are my guiding principles when I look for rare coins for my clients. I do not discriminate based on coin's vintage, or price.

There are dealers who discriminate based on a coin's year of mintage, or its series, and would prefer that a collector believe the only coins worth buying are the kind of coins they are selling.

DON'T BELIEVE IT!

Some of the greatest rare coin opportunities, in terms of percentage appreciation, are in rare coins struck since the 1940's.

And it is also true some of the greatest rare coin opportunities, in terms of percentage appreciation, are in rare coins struck before 1916.

Too many dealers only see the opportunities within a narrow field of vision.

Illustration#1

In the 1980's there was a dealer who told my client he was "crazy" for buying a 1954 cameo proof set from me.  Every coin in the set was a stunning cameo, bordering on perfection. Yet all this dealer could see was that the coins were struck in 1954, and in his mind, coins struck in 1954 had no investment potential, since over 233,000 proof sets were minted. In other words, they weren't rare.

My client paid $700 for the set. Instead, that dealer offered to sell my client an attractive gem 1954 proof set for $150.

I would be the first to agree that, indeed, your typical 1954 proof coin is not rare. They are very common. What is most un-common, however, are those earliest strikes from matching new proof dies, offering heavy cameo contrast, that have survived in virtually flawless condition. The ULTRA CAMEO 1954 proof coins. Just as an 1880-O Morgan dollar is quite common in average BU condition (over 5 million struck), a gem MS 65 1880-OMorgan is extremely rare, and understandably highly valued among knowledgeable collectors.

Last year, that client submitted the coins from the 1954 proof setI sold him to NGC. Every coin graded either Proof 68-69 CAMEO or Proof 68-69 ULTRA CAMEO. He sold the set for over $11,000.

And what of the "nice gem"1954 set offered to him by dealer X? That set is worth about $150 - about the same value today as 20 years ago.

That is just one story of many that I can share. Another.....

lllustration #2

In the 1990's I was selling clients 1956 Lincoln cents in PCGS PR 68 D CAM for $2,000. If you would have taken a poll of dealers at a local coin show, if given the choice, the majority of dealers would have much preferred to sell you a Proof 64 Morgan dollar, or Proof 64 1936 Walking Liberty for $2,000.

How have these coins performed the past 10 years?

The last 1956 PCGS PR 68 D CAM Lincoln cents to appear in auction have all sold for $8,000 - $16,000 – an average appreciation of 400% - 800%. The passage of time has proven their rarity in superb condition - to date, PCGS has only graded a mere 5 examples in PR 68 D CAM - none higher, and none in the past several years. So these coins continue to appreciate in value.

While Proof 64 Morgan dollars and 1936 Walking Liberty halves have also appreciated, they typically trade between $3,000 and $4,000 today - an average appreciation of only 50% - 100% in the same time frame that 1956 proof Lincoln appreciated over 400%, as Morgan dollars and 1936 Walking Liberty halves in Proof 64 grade are available at any major coin show - in quantity!

Illustration#3

In the most recent 2008 Heritage F.U.N. auction a 1954 FranklinPCGS PR 68 D CAM sold for $24,300. A 1956 Type 1 Franklin PCGS PR 68 CAMEO sold for$6,800. A 1959 Franklin PCGS PR 67 D CAM sold for $18,400. A 1960 Franklin PCGS PR 69 D CAM sold for $27,400.

All the above are extremely rare in the condition they were offered in, and I advertised them as being extremely rare when I offered these coins 10-15 years ago - when I was selling them to clients for ¼ of the price.

When buying rare coins, I alway shave one eye on the coin, and the other eye on the future. It's really not as important as what some dealers might think a coin is worth today, as what it will be worth in 5 years, 10 years, or 15 years.

Too many dealers are not able to see beyond the present. In numismatics, it is almost always a good idea to pay a little more today for the "right coin", as it will reap dividends far greater in the future than for coins of lesser quality, rarity, and eye-appeal.

There was a time when Michelangelo's "Mona Lisa" was just another painting.

There are numismatic opportunities today offering you the opportunity to own a future Mona Lisa - a numismatic rarity offering the absolute finest in eye-appeal and quality for its issue.

Your coin budget may be $1,000,000 a month, or it may only be a few hundred a month - there are opportunities in U.S. numismatics for you!

If you are interested in acquiring rare coins whose luster and desirability will only glow brighter with the passage of time, give me a call, or email. I am a very easy guy to talk to, and I truly enjoy working with fellow collectors- whatever your budget!

Whether you are seeking that ultimate quality, ultra-rare Gem ULTRA CAMEO proof $20 Double Eagle struck in the 1800's (a $300,000 coin today- a $3,000,000 coin for the future), or that finest known MS 67 FBL 1952-P Franklin for $9,000, an amazing and very rare ULTRA CAMEO SMS Roosevelt dime struck in 1966 for $2,000, there is a "Mona Lisa" waiting for you.