Category Archives: Collectors Articles
The Royal Australian Mint Commemorates 250th Anniversary Of Captain Cook’s Voyage With Gold Coin
Captain Cook is an important figure in the history of Australia. It has been 250 years since the British Naval captain embarked on his first voyage in 1768 to find the Southern Continent along the Pacific Ocean. Cook set sail on the “HM Bark Endeavour.” To commemorate this, The Royal Australian Mint is releasing a high-end 3-coin series.
This is a continuation of the Royal Australian Mint program of gold coins depicting the night skies launched a couple of years ago. The series known as the “Southern Sky” and “Northern Sky” coins insists of coins wrapped in a one-ounce gold dome.
The Gold Coin Design
The new Captain Cook series of commemorative coins was created by designer and sculptor, Gary Breeze. He has worked with the Royal Mint before on the design of the “75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain’s ” 50p commemorative coin in 2015.
The design is based on the 18th-century maps of Captain Cook’s voyage. There is a map of the Southern Hemisphere etched on the coin. The concave face has fine details of the voyage bordered by inscriptions. These coins will be released over three years and will chart the progress and discoveries of Cook’s epic voyage.
How much will these gold coins cost
These coins do more than honour Captain Cook but they pay tribute to the man’s spirit of adventure. There is a lot that was discovered by Cooks sojourns, he may have never reached the fabled Southern Continent but he made some important discoveries. The three coins have a central uniting image, “The Endeavour.” The ship that first carried the Captain to the “new world” plays centre stage. The coins come in a nice wooden presentation box and a certificate of authenticity. According to the Royal Australian Mint, only 750 coins will be made. These will sell for $2,795 AUD.
Advantages of buying these coins
These coins are a great investment because they are made of gold, which has always been a safe haven asset. There are considerable advantaged for owning gold coins:
#1. It’s a highly liquid asset. You can coins worth ten of thousands of dollars in your hand. They can be sold anywhere in the world.
#2. Gold cannot be destroyed by fire or water or any natural or man-made disaster or time itself.
#3. Gold coins don’t carry counterparty risk. They are the only financial asset that is not some entity’s be it a bank or government’s liability.
#4. The price of gold has been always in flux, but the value of gold is timeless. Unlike paper currency, gold retains it’s purchasing power for years.
#5. You don’t require any special knowledge to enjoy owning your own gold collection.
This is a beautiful collection depicting and celebrating a pioneering spirit and an important time in the history of Australia. The design incorporates text of key location point in Cook’s voyage from his departure from Plymouth, discoveries of new lands and astronomical discoveries in Tahiti.
$2,795 AUD might sound a little bit pricey, but a lot of collectors and gold bugs will be lining up to get their hands on one of these coins. At the low mintage of 750, these might just turn out to be highly collectable coins in the next couple of years.
Ref: https://www.royalmint.com/discover/uk-coins/captain-cook/
http://agaunews.com/royal-australian-mint-commemorates-captain-cooks-voyage-domed-gold-coin/
Tricks of the Trade: Selling Gold Coins
For most of us who are new to the world of gold coins or numismatics might find this article useful, especially if you are about to embark on mission to sell your gold coins. What you must know and what you know may differ greatly and when it comes to selling gold coins, both perspectives are equally important.
First and foremost, when you decide to sell your gold coins, you have to think about, why you bought them in the first place and if it had anything to do with hedging your wealth, but your financial situation got a little out of hand, then maybe ‘selling’ your gold coin or coins may not be the best alternative. Consider using them as collateral to get a ‘friendly’ loan and make a dal whereby, you will be in possession of your coins as soon as you pay the loan within a specific time frame.
This way, you would probably be able to get at least 90 % of the value of your gold coins. If this alternative proves to be unviable and selling them is the only option. Here are some things that you should know and consider before selling your gold coins.
1. What is the Value of the Gold Coin?
Although most gold coins have predetermined values based on their weight in gold, always double check and do your homework as some gold coins gain value due to their rarity and these coins often fetch higher prices than their net weight in gold. Some coins are worth double or triple their net weight in gold, thus make sure you know the exact value of your gold coin.
2. Whom do you sell gold coins to?
Anything containing gold is highly liquid and this means just about anybody would be willing to exchange their cash for your gold. Therefore, in ordr to get the best price out of your gold coin sale, it is best that you shop around and take your coin to more than just 1, 2 or 3 dealers. Take it to at least 5 or 6 dealers and assess the best offer against market value. Alternatively try to sell it online, however, when you do this, do not throw caution to the find, be extremely careful and never let your gold coin or coins out of your sight.
3. Consider the cost of selling gold coins
Normally the best prices offered for gold coins comes from the people who sold it to you in the first place, but you should consider the costs involved in obtaining the coin (shipping and handling and insurance) and the cost of sending it back to them. Compare these costs with what you will be receiving and calculate your returns.
4. Should you really sell your gold coins?
If you can get by without selling your gold coin or coins, then, do not sell. Gold coins increasing in value as they age and over a few years they normally gain numismatic value as they become scarce and this would be an added advantage, if you are able to wait a while.
How to begin collecting gold coins
One of the biggest secret that seasoned and experienced gold coin collectors keep is the fact that gold coins may be purchased at a relatively cheap price when the market is not rife with activity and seek out undervalued gold coins that may have numismatic value attached to them. The fact that gold coins that are actually quite rare are sometimes caught up with the market gold flow and is sold at the gold price value that is determined by the London gold fix.
Rare coins are most definitely worth more than the market gold prices due to the numismatic value it has based on date, region and rarity of the coin. Coming across these coins and being able to buy them at the market will definitely churn very good returns. The biggest setback however in this trade is the fact that the existence of gold coins are very niche and as such it is extremely difficult to find rare gold coins that are in good condition. Searching or hunting for these coins are not only difficult but very meticulous. However, once a formula and a path have been created it becomes quite easy.
Knowing what you are seeking is the first step to attain in this field. Read of on the existing coins, do research start from the top of the chain with finding out which is considered very rare and from there work your way down. After you are able to recognise these rare coins (bear in mind that copper coins that are rare also fetch very high returns and the same goes to silver coins. There are thousands of these coins ranging from extremely rare, very rare, rare, quite rare, and common. Most collectors specialise in a certain type or group of coins. Some go by region, some go by date, some go by origin, and some even adhere to the kind of rulers that issued the coins. Most of them do not keep track of all the coins that they possess.
It is a good idea to specifically choose a niche, but then again it might cause you to miss out on an opportunity coin. Even if you will be starting off with the American eagle or the Canadian Eagle it is still a worthy start that would eventually lead you into the right direction. Another factor that may help you into bargaining for the reduction in the price of the coin is getting well versed with the grading method attached to coins.