Originality
Steve: Occasionally the Wall Street Journal will ask various personalities to comment on a word and a few months ago it was “Originality.”
Coin collectors are familiar with the term in lots of contexts. Dealers might say a coin has “original” surfaces when it doesn’t have impairments like inappropriate cleaning. Collectors of Proof coins from the first half of the 19th century might distinguish a coin as an “original” or a “restrike” with the latter being struck by the U.S. Mint potentially decades after the date on the coin to satisfy collectors.
For some collectors, originality isn’t more important than attractiveness. A toned classic U.S. commemorative coin from the 1930s that was stored in its original holder and has splotchy green toning might be original, but it’s not necessarily eye appealing. Restaurateur Andrew Tarlow told the WSJ, “I don’t spend much time thinking, is this egg sandwich the best, most original egg sandwich ever? Instead: Does it taste great? Does it have some sense of nostalgia? Does it evoke a memory that you’re like, “Oh, that’s the sandwich I had with my grandfather?”
His comments suggest that originality isn’t that important, since our personal perception of something being original is shaped by our own experiences. Does a coin that has been treated by a “coin doctor” that fully replicates an original look have significant differences from an “original” coin if nobody can even tell? If one has to understand the difference of the serif of a certain letter on the edge of a coin, does the difference between an “original” and a “restrike” even matter?
Of course, these are questions that every collector has to consider when collecting, but tell me friend, how important is “originality” to you?
Dennis: Sometimes I tell young numismatic writers and researchers, “Don’t try to be the next Q. David Bowers. Aim to be the first YOU!”
That kind of originality is different from what we’re talking about here, but it came to mind and I thought I’d share.
In terms of coins, originality makes me think of Capped Bust half dollars, and the “skin” or untampered surface quality that many specialists prize as they seek out “crusty Busties.” The crust in question is an eye-pleasing steel-gray or brownish-gray patina (although other colors are possible) across the entirety of the coin, with traces of antique dirt in the protected areas of the design. All of this points to an “original” coin—one that hasn’t been cleaned, dipped, or artificially altered. Some descriptions of this effect, from auctions and retail sales:
- “Completely original coin with an old thick crust. Gray and purplish black toning coat the coin, giving it the look of a coin that has been in an old barn for a very long time.”
- “deeply colored pinkish-gray surfaces”
- “a deep, lightly iridescent crust of antique toning over original, unblemished surfaces”
- “The crust of antique grey toning, tinged with pale gold, bespeaks originality.”
- “Original silver-gray skin covers both sides of this early date Bust half . . . with occasional bits of crust hidden in the protected areas.”
The opposite of originality would be the handful of poor defenseless 1964 quarters I scrubbed up nice and ugly with silver polish when I was a kid. Ouch! Better to have some crust than to be dull and lifeless. Lesson learned.
I value originality in coins and medals that I buy because there’s a timeless appeal to a naturally aged piece of material culture. Once it’s lost, it’s gone forever. I’ll share photos here of several beautiful silver medals designed by numismatic artist Ron Landis. I bought these three years ago and took pictures of them in my office. As time has passed, some element of the environment they’ve been displayed in—maybe a combination of the fabric, the wooden bookcase, the relative humidity, who knows what—has made them tone darkly but (in my opinion) beautifully. When I added them to my collection, their lustrous silvery surfaces were original. Now, years later, their iridescent, purple-gray, darker surfaces are dramatically different, but I still consider them original. I wouldn’t dip them or do anything to alter them or return them to their old appearance (even if it were possible, which it probably isn’t). I like them just the way they are.
[Image: A collection of Ron Landis silver medals, photographed in 2022.]
[Image: A collection of Ron Landis silver medals, photographed in 2022.]
[Image: Obverse of Ron Landis’s “Life and Death” silver medal, photographed in 2022.]
[Image: Obverse of the same “Life and Death” silver medal after several years of display in a wooden cabinet (photographed in 2025.]
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About the Collecting Friends Blog
Hello! And welcome to the ANA’s blog series, “Collecting Friends.”
We decided to approach this much like a conversation between friends. One of us starts with a topic, then the other responds. Simple as that. Along those lines, we’ll keep the tone conversational as much as possible.
We both write about coins professionally, and will keep our relative style guides in our writing. For Dennis, former Publisher at Whitman Publishing, that means capitalizing “Proof” and italicizing Red Book and never saying anything bad about Ken Bressett, who’s awesome anyway.
For Steve, who’s written with Coin World for 15 years, it means Winged Liberty Head dime instead of “Mercury” dime, and similar nuances and oddities. And, it means writing A Guide Book of United States Coins (better known as the “Red Book”).
Both of us started collecting when we were little, introduced to coins by a chance encounter with an old coin that sparked our curiosity. One of Steve’s interests is coin valuation, and he gravitates towards the intersection of art and coins. Dennis enjoys medals and world coins, and studying modern U.S. coins in the context of older series, what came before.
We met in 2012 at the American Numismatic Association World’s Fair of Money in Philadelphia at an event hosted by the Austrian Mint where there was both a Ben Franklin and a Betsy Ross impersonator. We’ve become great friends in the past decade. We even were appointed together to sit on the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee starting in 2016, but Steve resigned soon after he was appointed to accept a full-time job at the Treasury Department while Dennis was re-appointed in 2020.
We taught a course together on numismatic publishing and writing a few years ago at the Summer Seminar, and while life has gotten in the way of us teaching another class, we jumped at our friend Caleb’s suggestion that we write a column. We hope you enjoy it!
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About the American Numismatic Association
The American Numismatic Association is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating and encouraging people to study and collect coins and related items. The Association serves collectors, the general public, and academic communities with an interest in numismatics.
The ANA helps all people discover and explore the world of money through its vast array of educational programs including its museum, library, publications, conventions and numismatic seminars.