Coin collectors hear this question fairly often from newbie collectors.
The U.S. Mint cranks out two types of coins, business strikes and proof coins. Business strikes are what are used in everyday commerce and what you receive in change from the coffee shop or the Mega Mart. Currently, each year every denomination has hundreds of millions and even billions of coins struck for general circulation.
Proof coins, on the other hand, are coins specially made for collectors. The banks don’t receive these to hand them out in change. They are originally obtained, by someone, from the U.S. Mint. You might purchase proof coins from the mint website when they are first offered, or older proof coins can be bought on eBay and from dealers. Generally, they are sold in sets from the mint, although a dealer may break up a set and sell the individual coins one by one. Many times, a proof set will have one coin that by itself is worth more than the proof set! For example, a 1970 proof set can be bought for $8-10, but the 40% silver Kennedy half is worth that by itself.
What makes a coin a proof coin? Proof coins are made from specially prepared dies. These have extra care taken in their production. For one, they are highly polished which imparts a really reflective surface to the coin, a mirror type of finish. Also, as the dies wear, they are replaced more frequently to keep the mirror effect.Cameo proof coins are those coins whose portraits and wording have a flat, or matte, contrast to the mirrored background of the coin. Prior to the late 1970’s, cameo coins were accidental; brand new dies would produce a few cameo proof coins before wear on the dies caused this to level off. Cameo proof coins prior to this time bring a premium price over non-cameo proofs. In the late 1970’s, though, they began to purposely make each proof coin a cameo. Although since that time they are all designated cameo, they don’t bring a premium. In fact, it would be really unusual to find non-cameo proof coins from the last 35 years!
Price guides usually have proof coins listed alongside their business strike brothers. Business strikes, in uncirculated grades, are labeled as “MS” or “Mint State” coins. All proof coins pre preceded by the label “PF” in the price guides. So, if you receive a Proof 1970 S Kennedy half from Santa Claus, you would refer to the Kennedy half dollar section of the price guide. However, if you received the entire 1970 Proof set, you would refer to the section of the price guide where values for proof sets are listed.
As a side note, “Mint Sets” are business strike coins that the mint packages for collectors. Usually, if these are broken out of a mint set, there is no way to tell that it came from a mint set. Mint sets have a section of their own near the proof sets in the price guides.
Proof coin sets are sometimes made in 90%, 40% silver, or just the everyday clad junk. Silver adds a premium to the set. Proofs from the 1960’s and later don’t sell for big prices, but proof coins from the early 1950’s and older can go for really big prices. Generally, a big mintage of proof coins of a certain date is about 3-4 million coins. Coins from the mid-1800’s may only have 500 proofs! Rarity comes into play in pricing proof coins. And, not every denomination in the old days had proof coins made every year.
Occasionally, someone will break up a proof set to spend. These coins will stand out from the rest of the cash register drawer or the coins in your hand. If you find a very nice coin, with a mirror finish to it, with our without a cameo effect, you may have received a proof coin in change.
Need to feed your coin fix? On Saturday and Sunday, November 9 and 10, the Fifth Annual Leon Boles Memorial Gun, Knife, and Coin Show will be held in Cisco, at the Myrtle Wilks Community Center on the I-20 frontage road. Saturday hours are 9 to 5 and Sunday, 11 to 4. I will have a table there, so be sure to come by and visit with me.
The Brown County Coin Club meets on the second Tuesday of each month, at 6:30 pm, at Principally Coins and Metal Detectors, at 3002 Early Blvd, in Early. Meetings provide a great opportunity to learn all about coin collecting. We hope to see you on November 12 for our next meeting. Call Robert Rollins at 325-201-6390 or me at 325-217-4129 for more information.
