Showing Your Coin Collection
By Coins and coin collecting | Wednesday, 17 May 2006
How to show your coin collection
If the time has come for you to sell your prized coin collection or if you simply want to catalogue the coins you presently have, it isn't always feasible or desirable to carry round a case with hundreds of potentially valuable coins in. As with any potentially large valued collection, a coin collection going up for sale is going to potentially create interest all around the world from both genuine parties and possible scammers. You will probably get requests to send your entire collection to dealers in order that they can evaluate the collection effectively and give you a true valuation.
Saving you money
Sending a portfolio of coins half way across the world to someone you don't even know could prove very costly indeed and will certainly cost you a lot of money in postage and packaging. For this reason it is best if you can document your anthology and send a high quality presentation. If a potential buyer is truly interested in your coin collection they will undoubtedly be willing to make the journey to you in a bid to see the coins in person.
Digital imaging of your coin collection Probably the most effective way of doing this is by using a good quality scanner. Digital imaging technology is such nowadays that with a perfectly affordable 1000 dpi scanner and some intuitive software you can quickly and effortlessly scan both sides of every one of your coins without any fear of damaging, losing or devaluing your coins. You really should take the time to scan both sides in a bid to show the true quality of your coin collection.
Once you've scanned all these images you can create a fantastic looking compilation of the whole of your coin collection into a glossy 3d catalogue. You will undoubtedly have the information pertaining to each coin and it's lineage and by creating this anthology you are afforded the opportunity to impart your knowledge of the coin next to each picture. You should also include the condition of the coins whether they are in mint condition or not, lying will only come back to haunt you when a collector pays thousands in travel and accommodation only to find that your collection isn't anywhere near as valuable as you first had them believe.
Top quality
It's also important that you use full color and a printer that can print effectively on glossy paper. Scrimping on this will make your coin collection look a lot less desirable than it may actually be. While it's true that you will probably send digital copies to most interested buyers you will certainly be posting some hard copies out too. Presentation is everything for your coin collection and if you are unable to show a collector exactly what you have to offer in person then you should make your catalogue portfolio look as good as you possibly can. Make it look professional and you will be treated like a professional. The more knowledgeable you appear the more likely it is that you will put off any potential scammers that want your collection for less than it's real worth.
The worth of a coin portfolio
The inventory you create will not only make your collection appear more professional but it will also increase its value. A serious collector will want to create an inventory once they have bought your collection for both insurance and other factors. Some collectors will pay a company a fairly large amount of money to do this and so you are saving them money in the long run.
Creating and sending your electronic or paper portfolio in this manner will stop companies that from swapping your high value coins for lower value ones. It will stop potential buyers being able to dispute the worth of your collection and it will save you money as well as potentially make you money.
This article is part of the Coins and coin collecting articles.
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