WRITE a STORY about your COIN/s, what MOTIVATES U? ,

[petitioncrown 4]

The luck and the making of luck having our children join our hobby. Although this is not British it is British related as Jonathon remembers all the coins we acquire.

This is the first time he enjoys research to learn about currency.

How my youngest son 25 who knows we collect British & Roman became more interested in Numismatics recently ?

30 years ago I was paid for work done and with the money I acquired a mixed bag of Ottoman coins which I put away. These were days when a bag of coins would be melted for the silver value. Ottoman coins were not the most beautifully struck coins; in fact many were just awful.

Several months ago I started to look at these and Jonathon assisted me to start sorting them. This was at the start of 2011, the other day we looked again and had a new book and Jonathon began to sort out the dates, what they were and were from in the Empire. Learned the Arabic alphabet, how each mint was written on the coin and has begun to understand the different Pasha and there Tugra of the sultan and other markings on the coins.

One of the coins was this interesting piece from a mint at Gümüshane

TURKEY: Sultan Mahmud I, 1730-1754, AR kurush (26.49g), Gümüshane, AH1143, KM-212. NP-568, initial #10, great strike with virtually no weakness at all.

Gümüshane, The name literally means "silver house". It is composed of Turkish gümüş (silver) and the Persian خانه hane=khane (House). A small silver mining town now on the highway between Erzurum and Trabzon. The only coins I found bearing the name was during the Ottoman period during the reign of Mahmud I.

There was a time many years ago that the “rag and bone man†or “new for old†would go from village to village collect old brass plates, many silvered and occasionally amongst the plates you would find plates with the ‘Tugra’ of the Sultan or maker embossed.

Interested to understand more about such embossing on a plate ?

[Peckris 579]

An interesting story. I've often admired such coins though never had a yen to collect or research them. However I do know that desirable Arabic coins - especially when competed for by oil-rich buyers - know no bounds in price.

My own interests outside British milled, lie mostly in ancients, though my collection is quite small. It was helped considerably by an auction I picked up from W&W when dealing - a good mixed assortment of Roman and a few Greek and Macedonian types. After selling a few - including a rather nice Sassanid silver coin I wish I'd kept now - I thought "what the hell, I'm keeping the rest of these" and bunged them into my own collection.

Sadly the collection was lacking any early large bronze, and so was my collection, so when this Vespasian came up on eBay I decided to go for it (large bronzes are notoriously expensive). Although only Fine, and costing me getting on for £30, I didn't regret my purchase, though it is still my only large Roman bronze. And not THAT large either - a dupondius is a lot smaller than a sestertius.

[petitioncrown 4]

An interesting story. I've often admired such coins though never had a yen to collect or research them. However I do know that desirable Arabic coins - especially when competed for by oil-rich buyers - know no bounds in price.

My own interests outside British milled, lie mostly in ancients, though my collection is quite small. It was helped considerably by an auction I picked up from W&W when dealing - a good mixed assortment of Roman and a few Greek and Macedonian types. After selling a few - including a rather nice Sassanid silver coin I wish I'd kept now - I thought "what the hell, I'm keeping the rest of these" and bunged them into my own collection.

Sadly the collection was lacking any early large bronze, and so was my collection, so when this Vespasian came up on eBay I decided to go for it (large bronzes are notoriously expensive). Although only Fine, and costing me getting on for £30, I didn't regret my purchase, though it is still my only large Roman bronze. And not THAT large either - a dupondius is a lot smaller than a sestertius.

Your Vespasian still shows the powerfull portrait of an Imperial Brass Sestercius - you aquired the coin very well

[Peckris 579]

An interesting story. I've often admired such coins though never had a yen to collect or research them. However I do know that desirable Arabic coins - especially when competed for by oil-rich buyers - know no bounds in price.

My own interests outside British milled, lie mostly in ancients, though my collection is quite small. It was helped considerably by an auction I picked up from W&W when dealing - a good mixed assortment of Roman and a few Greek and Macedonian types. After selling a few - including a rather nice Sassanid silver coin I wish I'd kept now - I thought "what the hell, I'm keeping the rest of these" and bunged them into my own collection.

Sadly the collection was lacking any early large bronze, and so was my collection, so when this Vespasian came up on eBay I decided to go for it (large bronzes are notoriously expensive). Although only Fine, and costing me getting on for £30, I didn't regret my purchase, though it is still my only large Roman bronze. And not THAT large either - a dupondius is a lot smaller than a sestertius.

Your Vespasian still shows the powerfull portrait of an Imperial Brass Sestercius - you aquired the coin very well

Thanks

[Peter 615]

An interesting story. I've often admired such coins though never had a yen to collect or research them. However I do know that desirable Arabic coins - especially when competed for by oil-rich buyers - know no bounds in price.

My own interests outside British milled, lie mostly in ancients, though my collection is quite small. It was helped considerably by an auction I picked up from W&W when dealing - a good mixed assortment of Roman and a few Greek and Macedonian types. After selling a few - including a rather nice Sassanid silver coin I wish I'd kept now - I thought "what the hell, I'm keeping the rest of these" and bunged them into my own collection.

Sadly the collection was lacking any early large bronze, and so was my collection, so when this Vespasian came up on eBay I decided to go for it (large bronzes are notoriously expensive). Although only Fine, and costing me getting on for £30, I didn't regret my purchase, though it is still my only large Roman bronze. And not THAT large either - a dupondius is a lot smaller than a sestertius.

Your Vespasian still shows the powerfull portrait of an Imperial Brass Sestercius - you aquired the coin very well

Thanks

Thats a bag of old rubbish Peck..I have better with a hole in stopping the downstairs loo from dripping.

[Rob 2,998]

WRITE a STORY about your COIN/s, what MOTIVATES U? , Your coin related stories are important for the future of our hobby

Amongst other things the writer of the title of this thread. For the -

1. quality of the collection assembled.

2. the bloody-mindedness to acquire what he wants.

3. his appreciation of the coins as works of art and for their historical significance.

4. providing me with a kick up the backside through the knowledge that I need to work harder, earn more money and so make sure I do get some of the pieces where there is competition for ownership.

Or for another one. Knowing a close friend had a superb collection and thinking "that's just what I want". Not the same denominations as that would be too "me too", but something that could be appreciated as a comprehensive selection of decent material which was acquired with thought and selectivity.

Edited October 26, 2011 by Rob

[Peter 615]

WRITE a STORY about your COIN/s, what MOTIVATES U? , Your coin related stories are important for the future of our hobby

Amongst other things the writer of the title of this thread. For the -

1. quality of the collection assembled.

2. the bloody-mindedness to acquire what he wants.

3. his appreciation of the coins as works of art and for their historical significance.

4. providing me with a kick up the backside through the knowledge that I need to work harder, earn more money and so make sure I do get some of the pieces where there is competition for ownership.

Or for another one. Knowing a close friend had a superb collection and thinking "that's just what I want". Not the same denominations as that would be too "me too", but something that could be appreciated as a comprehensive selection of decent material which was acquired with thought and selectivity.

We all collect within a budget(or one assumes no one here goes into debt in doing it).

I'm sure we all have coins which we believe are quality...and within individual parameters are.

An exclusive coin is great...but imagine if its only 2nd best.

Everyone needs a kick up the backside...BUT if we all sought the Holy Grail of coins there would be a lot of disappointed collectors.

I look at what I believe other collectors have...and yes I am jealous only to the extent that I will get there at my own speed.

History and coins goes without saying...imagination.

[petitioncrown 4]

WRITE a STORY about your COIN/s, what MOTIVATES U? , Your coin related stories are important for the future of our hobby

Amongst other things the writer of the title of this thread. For the -

1. quality of the collection assembled.

2. the bloody-mindedness to acquire what he wants.

3. his appreciation of the coins as works of art and for their historical significance.

4. providing me with a kick up the backside through the knowledge that I need to work harder, earn more money and so make sure I do get some of the pieces where there is competition for ownership.

Or for another one. Knowing a close friend had a superb collection and thinking "that's just what I want". Not the same denominations as that would be too "me too", but something that could be appreciated as a comprehensive selection of decent material which was acquired with thought and selectivity.

We all collect within a budget(or one assumes no one here goes into debt in doing it).

I'm sure we all have coins which we believe are quality...and within individual parameters are.

An exclusive coin is great...but imagine if its only 2nd best.

Everyone needs a kick up the backside...BUT if we all sought the Holy Grail of coins there would be a lot of disappointed collectors.

I look at what I believe other collectors have...and yes I am jealous only to the extent that I will get there at my own speed.

History and coins goes without saying...imagination.

You wrote

“We all collect within a budget (or one assumes no one here goes into debt in doing it)” WRONG

I was totally crazy

Many coins I acquired have stories, I do not go to the bookies or gamble, drink heavily, smoke but one day I heard about a coin being sold in Sotheby’s. It was a Roman imperial Brass Sestertius. I saw a picture and fell in love with the coin. I did what can only be called a reclus action. The coin was going to fetch +/- £X. I went to the Bank, and tried to borrow the money. The story ended that I took the house we lived in and put this as security.

Agrippina the Elder (ca 14 B.C. - 33 A.D.) the mother of emporer Caligula

I purchased the coin; the portrait could have been created in the beginning of the 20th Century not the 1st Century. I have loved the coin ever since. The coin in my eyes was beautiful; it was the cover coin ‘WOMEN OF THE CAESARS’

IF A COLLECTION COULD BE ONE COIN, THIS IS ONE

[Peter 615]

A very understanding wife.

The fact its brass and may I say something I would even overlook (However the retreat of Dale Farm springs to mind)...What makes a coin worth 20K?....it is simple but never beautiful.

[azda 973]

Ooooh ouch, how did the wife take that Geoff? Or did you trade her for the Tournai lol?

[petitioncrown 4]

A very understanding wife.

The fact its brass and may I say something I would even overlook (However the retreat of Dale Farm springs to mind)...What makes a coin worth 20K?....it is simple but never beautiful.

BEAUTY IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER

[petitioncrown 4]

Ooooh ouch, how did the wife take that Geoff? Or did you trade her for the Tournai lol?

I NEVER SAID I WAS NORMAL NOTHING A WEIRD AS FOLK I DID SAY LET US OPEN AND TELL STORIES -WHO CAN BE NORMAL COLLECTING PIECES OF METAL

[Rob 2,998]

We all collect within a budget(or one assumes no one here goes into debt in doing it).

I'm sure we all have coins which we believe are quality...and within individual parameters are.

An exclusive coin is great...but imagine if its only 2nd best.

Everyone needs a kick up the backside...BUT if we all sought the Holy Grail of coins there would be a lot of disappointed collectors.

I look at what I believe other collectors have...and yes I am jealous only to the extent that I will get there at my own speed.

History and coins goes without saying...imagination.

Motivation is derived from many sources.

Other collections provide inspiration when you are clueless. How often do you hear new collectors saying "what should I collect?" Almost all collectors start out with a bit of this and a bit of that, but eventually settle on a focussed set of criteria. Something has to motivate them to specialise, or does the motivation arise from the captivation of their chosen criteria?

Some collectors stay focussed over decades, others not. Some experienced collectors migrate from one theme to another either by choice or out of frustration from not being able to fill the vacant slots in the series. Maybe it's down to boredom, or maybe lack of funds, because as Peter says, I don't think many people would ever go into debt for a hobby. Basically we all have to go at our own financially constrained speed, which is why it doesn't help to get too worked up over the contents of someone else's collection that you have no control over.

It's always nice to have the best known, but that comes with the caveat that a better best known may well be just around the corner. Having 2nd best is not a large problem as long as it is within spitting distance of the best. Far more important is that it has eye appeal, which for anyone interested in detail by definition means as high a grade as possible, though toning has a major part to play. People collecting at the top end will always have a mixture of top quality and not quite there pieces because there simply isn't sufficient material to go around. Most quality collections will have a few best knowns, but hidden away will also be a selection of indifference. Some of the Slaney hammered pieces were absolutely top drawer, but some of the milled were not. Some coins you get and others you miss out on. Some you bought whilst wearing rose tinted spectacles and live to regret. You can be collecting for decades, but still make new discoveries that motivate you on to find out more.

My motivation is frequently refocussed based on a recent purchase, or a potential future purchase that I see in a forthcoming sale catalogue. I want to know if that coin on offer represents a good example to acquire. I don't want to buy something that I would later duplicate with a vastly superior piece.

We are all motivated differently, with probably more divergence of viewpoints than you get with grading - which is saying a lot.

Edited October 26, 2011 by Rob

[Peter 615]

Ooooh ouch, how did the wife take that Geoff? Or did you trade her for the Tournai lol?

I NEVER SAID I WAS NORMAL – NOTHING A WEIRD AS FOLK I DID SAY LET US OPEN AND TELL STORIES -WHO CAN BE NORMAL COLLECTING PIECES OF METAL

Pieces of metal ummmm.

Funny how it seems that I don't have to write down where I took custodian of various coins...most stick in the mind and where bought for a reason (whatever that was )

[Peter 615]

We all collect within a budget(or one assumes no one here goes into debt in doing it).

I'm sure we all have coins which we believe are quality...and within individual parameters are.

An exclusive coin is great...but imagine if its only 2nd best.

Everyone needs a kick up the backside...BUT if we all sought the Holy Grail of coins there would be a lot of disappointed collectors.

I look at what I believe other collectors have...and yes I am jealous only to the extent that I will get there at my own speed.

History and coins goes without saying...imagination.

Motivation is derived from many sources.

Other collections provide inspiration when you are clueless. How often do you hear new collectors saying "what should I collect?" Almost all collectors start out with a bit of this and a bit of that, but eventually settle on a focussed set of criteria. Something has to motivate them to specialise, or does the motivation arise from the captivation of their chosen criteria?

Some collectors stay focussed over decades, others not. Some experienced collectors migrate from one theme to another either by choice or out of frustration from not being able to fill the vacant slots in the series. Maybe it's down to boredom, or maybe lack of funds, because as Peter says, I don't think many people would ever go into debt for a hobby. Basically we all have to go at our own financially constrained speed, which is why it doesn't help to get too worked up over the contents of someone else's collection that you have no control over.

It's always nice to have the best known, but that comes with the caveat that a better best known may well be just around the corner. Having 2nd best is not a large problem as long as it is within spitting distance of the best. Far more important is that it has eye appeal, which for anyone interested in detail by definition means as high a grade as possible, though toning has a major part to play. People collecting at the top end will always have a mixture of top quality and not quite there pieces because there simply isn't sufficient material to go around. Most quality collections will have a few best knowns, but hidden away will also be a selection of indifference. Some of the Slaney hammered pieces were absolutely top drawer, but some of the milled were not. Some coins you get and others you miss out on. Some you bought whilst wearing rose tinted spectacles and live to regret. You can be collecting for decades, but still make new discoveries that motivate you on to find out more.

My motivation is frequently refocussed based on a recent purchase, or a potential future purchase that I see in a forthcoming sale catalogue. I want to know if that coin on offer represents a good example to acquire. I don't want to buy something that I would later duplicate with a vastly superior piece.

We are all motivated differently, with probably more divergence of viewpoints than you get with grading - which is saying a lot.

The day I bore of getting out my coins and feeling so so is the day I will give up.I often go to bed thinking how I will refocus everything.We can always do better.

I'm savaging my collection to come up with a streamlined choice but many coins have memories.Apart from my 1/4d's maybe I could end up with 50 coins....Right top 50 coming up... & at the end of the day position 45 to 50 will have to watch their backs

[Rob 2,998]

A top 50 collection might be an interesting thread. What coins and why? What to include and what to leave out? There you go - another motivating topic.

[petitioncrown 4]

A top 50 collection might be an interesting thread. What coins and why? What to include and what to leave out? There you go - another motivating topic.

Hi Rob, is it the electric is on a low rate at 2 in the morning? or is it you just cannot sleep?

[Rob 2,998]

A top 50 collection might be an interesting thread. What coins and why? What to include and what to leave out? There you go - another motivating topic.

Hi Rob, is it the electric is on a low rate at 2 in the morning? or is it you just cannot sleep?

I discipline myself to turn in at 2. Left to my own devices I would keep going all night, maybe go to bed when the sun comes up and in which case wake up at the crack of lunch.

[Peter 615]

A top 50 collection might be an interesting thread. What coins and why? What to include and what to leave out? There you go - another motivating topic.

Hi Rob, is it the electric is on a low rate at 2 in the morning? or is it you just cannot sleep?

I discipline myself to turn in at 2. Left to my own devices I would keep going all night, maybe go to bed when the sun comes up and in which case wake up at the crack of lunch.

I would happily become an owl.The peace and quiet you can't buy.

[Peckris 579]

You wrote

“We all collect within a budget (or one assumes no one here goes into debt in doing it)†WRONG

I was totally crazy

Many coins I acquired have stories, I do not go to the bookies or gamble, drink heavily, smoke but one day I heard about a coin being sold in Sotheby’s. It was a Roman imperial Brass Sestertius. I saw a picture and fell in love with the coin. I did what can only be called a reclus action. The coin was going to fetch +/- £X. I went to the Bank, and tried to borrow the money. The story ended that I took the house we lived in and put this as security.

Agrippina the Elder (ca 14 B.C. - 33 A.D.) the mother of emporer Caligula

I purchased the coin; the portrait could have been created in the beginning of the 20th Century not the 1st Century. I have loved the coin ever since. The coin in my eyes was beautiful; it was the cover coin ‘WOMEN OF THE CAESARS’

IF A COLLECTION COULD BE ONE COIN, THIS IS ONE

That is a staggeringly beautiful coin. I can well understand why you were smitten. Its age and historicity is only part of the appeal, it shines also in its own right.

Motivation is derived from many sources.

Other collections provide inspiration when you are clueless. How often do you hear new collectors saying "what should I collect?" Almost all collectors start out with a bit of this and a bit of that, but eventually settle on a focussed set of criteria. Something has to motivate them to specialise, or does the motivation arise from the captivation of their chosen criteria?

Some collectors stay focussed over decades, others not. Some experienced collectors migrate from one theme to another either by choice or out of frustration from not being able to fill the vacant slots in the series. Maybe it's down to boredom, or maybe lack of funds, because as Peter says, I don't think many people would ever go into debt for a hobby. Basically we all have to go at our own financially constrained speed, which is why it doesn't help to get too worked up over the contents of someone else's collection that you have no control over.

Yes, I have migrated from date runs of pennies and halfcrowns (which I loved) and sixpences and farthings (which were affordable) - and became a type collector quite a number of years ago. But even there, I now ask myself, "what constitutes a TYPE"? A few years back I would have said "it means I must have one of each denomination within each obverse issue, per reign". But now I say to myself "Why bother with a very common and persistent reverse type (e.g. silver 3d) when you have larger denominations for those obverses?" The same applies with sixpences, and many other types.

Yet now I have moved on even further. I look at the second and third reverse types of George IV halfcrown - unique types - and think "Actually I hate those reverses." And I keep them only for the obverse. So the type collection has become more dictated by what I actually like.

And beyond even that - there are the questions of "how far down the varieties line does one go?" and "how far down the rarities path does one go?". So now, if I was putting a collection of George VI pennies together in BU, I'd go with :

- one of 1937, 38, or 39

- the 1940 single exergue line

- a 1944 or 45 Mint toned

- either a 1950 or 51

Similarly with Edward VII halfcrowns in as high a grade as I could afford :

- either 1902 or 1910 UNC

- either 1904 NVF or 1903 GF

- 1905 Fair+

So it's a mix of types and rarities that both appeal to me and which I can afford. The latter being not even on the same planet as you Rob. Though you make a good point about not looking at what other people have in their collections.

I have begun to love early milled in the last decade or so, but these are now frighteningly unaffordable in any grade worth having. I console myself with the truth (and it is a truth) that the reverse designs were scarily and unimaginatively repetitive from Charles II all the way through to George II - essentially the same design on all silver coins (though with subtle variations and interesting byways involving harps, crowns, plumes, roses, LIMA, Edinburgh, etc), and largely the same on coppers.

[Peckris 579]

I'm already thinking about my own Top 50 !!

[petitioncrown 4]

You wrote

“We all collect within a budget (or one assumes no one here goes into debt in doing it)†WRONG

I was totally crazy

Many coins I acquired have stories, I do not go to the bookies or gamble, drink heavily, smoke but one day I heard about a coin being sold in Sotheby’s. It was a Roman imperial Brass Sestertius. I saw a picture and fell in love with the coin. I did what can only be called a reclus action. The coin was going to fetch +/- £X. I went to the Bank, and tried to borrow the money. The story ended that I took the house we lived in and put this as security.

Agrippina the Elder (ca 14 B.C. - 33 A.D.) the mother of emporer Caligula

I purchased the coin; the portrait could have been created in the beginning of the 20th Century not the 1st Century. I have loved the coin ever since. The coin in my eyes was beautiful; it was the cover coin ‘WOMEN OF THE CAESARS’

IF A COLLECTION COULD BE ONE COIN, THIS IS ONE

That is a staggeringly beautiful coin. I can well understand why you were smitten. Its age and historicity is only part of the appeal, it shines also in its own right.

Motivation is derived from many sources.

Other collections provide inspiration when you are clueless. How often do you hear new collectors saying "what should I collect?" Almost all collectors start out with a bit of this and a bit of that, but eventually settle on a focussed set of criteria. Something has to motivate them to specialise, or does the motivation arise from the captivation of their chosen criteria?

Some collectors stay focussed over decades, others not. Some experienced collectors migrate from one theme to another either by choice or out of frustration from not being able to fill the vacant slots in the series. Maybe it's down to boredom, or maybe lack of funds, because as Peter says, I don't think many people would ever go into debt for a hobby. Basically we all have to go at our own financially constrained speed, which is why it doesn't help to get too worked up over the contents of someone else's collection that you have no control over.

Yes, I have migrated from date runs of pennies and halfcrowns (which I loved) and sixpences and farthings (which were affordable) - and became a type collector quite a number of years ago. But even there, I now ask myself, "what constitutes a TYPE"? A few years back I would have said "it means I must have one of each denomination within each obverse issue, per reign". But now I say to myself "Why bother with a very common and persistent reverse type (e.g. silver 3d) when you have larger denominations for those obverses?" The same applies with sixpences, and many other types.

Yet now I have moved on even further. I look at the second and third reverse types of George IV halfcrown - unique types - and think "Actually I hate those reverses." And I keep them only for the obverse. So the type collection has become more dictated by what I actually like.

And beyond even that - there are the questions of "how far down the varieties line does one go?" and "how far down the rarities path does one go?". So now, if I was putting a collection of George VI pennies together in BU, I'd go with :

- one of 1937, 38, or 39

- the 1940 single exergue line

- a 1944 or 45 Mint toned

- either a 1950 or 51

Similarly with Edward VII halfcrowns in as high a grade as I could afford :

- either 1902 or 1910 UNC

- either 1904 NVF or 1903 GF

- 1905 Fair+

So it's a mix of types and rarities that both appeal to me and which I can afford. The latter being not even on the same planet as you Rob. Though you make a good point about not looking at what other people have in their collections.

I have begun to love early milled in the last decade or so, but these are now frighteningly unaffordable in any grade worth having. I console myself with the truth (and it is a truth) that the reverse designs were scarily and unimaginatively repetitive from Charles II all the way through to George II - essentially the same design on all silver coins (though with subtle variations and interesting byways involving harps, crowns, plumes, roses, LIMA, Edinburgh, etc), and largely the same on coppers.

THIS CHAT IS GREAT, A PERSONS COLLECTION IS VERY PERSONAL, A GOOD FEELING AND HAPPY FACTOR OF BEING ABLE TO CHAT, POST COMMENTS, EXCHANGE THOUGHTS IS A GREAT PART OF WHAT MAKES US COLLECTORS. IT DOES NOT MATTER IF YOU COLLECT WEL WORN VICTORIAN BUN PENNIES (I ONCE BOUGHT A SMALL BAG OF THEM), WHAT MATTERS IS EACH PERSONS COLLECTION IS IMPORTANT.

[Rob 2,998]

I suppose the ultimate motivation is that of being an innate collector. Irrespective of the quality of the collection, it is the desire to collect - coins, stamps, antique clocks, cuddly toys, newspaper clippings or whatever it is that stimulates your interest.

Funnily enough, having the best (coin) collection of all time is unlikely to feature in any list of motivating factors because the museums have a 200+ years start on us, and the likes of Montagu can't be repeated because so much material from this era is already off the market for good. The most you can aspire to is the best collection amongst your contemporaries and even then it is in the hands of a very select few.

Edited October 27, 2011 by Rob

[Peter 615]

I enjoy the pursuit of collecting.Coins fit the bill nicely having art,beauty,history and lets not deny intrinsic value.

I have no qualms in buying coins for my collection although I have slowed up and take more time (saying that I've just ordered 3 farthings from the internet).

I'm quite happy to tick along.

Museums...there is a subject.Apparently my local museum has a large quantity of coins in storage.I enquired whether these were available for purchase.NO.

Some of the coins they do have on display are incorrectly attributed....they need liberating.I have a re occuring dream of the glass being open as I fill my boots up.Have I the potential to be a common thief or the saviour of works of art?

[Accumulator 52]

I suppose the ultimate motivation is that of being an innate collector. Irrespective of the quality of the collection, it is the desire to collect - coins, stamps, antique clocks, cuddly toys, newspaper clippings or whatever it is that stimulates your interest.

Funnily enough, having the best (coin) collection of all time is unlikely to feature in any list of motivating factors because the museums have a 200+ years start on us, and the likes of Montagu can't be repeated because so much material from this era is already off the market for good. The most you can aspire to is the best collection amongst your contemporaries and even then it is in the hands of a very select few.

Whilst I agree it would be impossible to better the best of the museum held collections in overall scope, it's still possible to improve on them in the area of varieties. I'm not aware of a museum that has anything like a full collection of, say, 20th century bronze listed by Freeman, let alone that listed by Gouby. I think that's part of the attraction of collecting varieties. Over several years, it's still possible to put together a leading collection of this type without necessarily breaking the bank. For the moment, that's where I am, though I admit to straying into other areas from time to time.