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FUN Coin Show 2022

It was a great FUN show 2022. From the beginning of the show on dealer day on Wednesday through the end of the show Saturday, sales were brisk and purchases were good as well. Although we have not done a final tally, it was probably our best FUN show for sales ever, with both wholesale and retail activity strong. Collectors came into the show looking to buy coins, and the had the money to do it. Dealers need to restock (including us) and so purchases from the public and amongst dealers were strong as well.

Although some dealers did not make it to the show due to various concerns ranging from Covid to flight delays, it really didn’t feel like almost anyone was missing from the show, since probably 95% of dealer did show up and collectors came in strong as well. There was the “buzz” about the show floor all week. Every dealer we talked to was having a “average’ to “incredible” show, and no one had a bad show that we are aware of.

There were a number of mint errors on auction, including an incredible 1886 Morgan dollar obverse die cap, which is the finest known of the 2 known Morgan dollar die caps (and more importantly, is arguably the most dramatic Morgan dollar error in existence), and was auctioned off for $160,312.50. We had estimated it would sell for $125,000 to $150,000, so a bit stronger than the “high end” of our estimate, and a solid number which shows that demand for high end, dramatic mint errors is high.

Other errors on auction leading up to the show included a mix of major errors, proof errors, as well as a lot of cheaper more common errors. Overall, results were average to strong for the majority, with notable strength in some of the more “special” errors selling for average to strong prices (a high grade 2c die cap sold for an incredible $45,000, for example, which is a lot more than we would’ve estimated.) A unique 1866 2c on cent sold or some $18,000, which is about what we would have estimated it to sell for (our estimate was more around $20,000.)

Some of the proof errors were strong, selling for double what we would’ve estimated on some of the more unusual pieces, while the more “common” examples (proof Kennedy half off-centers, proof wrong planchets of the more common types, etc) were in some cases weaker, reflecting the surge of proof errors on the market in the last several years diluting the values of the more common pieces. Still, prices for all the proof error coins were generally average to strong.

An excellent start to the year for numismatics, and we are excited for what the year will bring to the hobby. If you want to start the year off right, we would suggest joining some of the coin clubs such as the ANA, CONECA, as well as the specialty clubs focused on various individual series such as the Fly In Club or the CWTS.  Here is a handy link to some of the clubs mentioned: https://www.sullivannumismatics.com/website-links