United States Coin Collections

Coin collecting has a long tradition in the United States, due in part to the relative collector friendliness of the Mint. Some collectors opt to develop their own coin collections, focusing on specific issues, denominations, mints, or designs that they find particularly compelling. Others inherit coin collections that their parents, grandparents, or other relatives began.

One of the most noteworthy numismatic feats ever accomplished by a United States collector, Louis Eliasberg successfully compiled a complete set of United States coinage. Eliasberg's collection includes all dates from each mint. The only exception is the 1849 double eagle, a specimen pattern coin that was never released to the public. Only one copy of this coin is extant, and that copy resides in the National Collection at the Smithsonian.

Certainly not everyone is capable of such a collection, of course. Recent changes to United States coinage have helped facilitate fledgling collectors, especially through the State Quarters program. The state quarters are a popular collectible series of quarters easily obtained from circulating currency on a daily basis. They feature a unique design for each state on the reverse of the coin with five different quarters issued per year. These designs generally feature the name of the state, date of its acceptance into the United States, state motto, and an image considered emblematic of that particular state's history.

Quick Facts

• Upon the dissolution of Eliasberg's collection, the comprising coins were sold across three auctions in 1982, 1996, and 1997. Together, these auctions summed just over $57 million
• Egypt's King Farouk was a noteworthy coin collector. Farouk's impressive collection included a complete set of the Saint-Gaudens run of double eagle coins, including an especially storied copy of the 1933 coin
• Most collectors specialize in one or several types of coins that resonate with them in some way. Some specialists branch out over time and become generalists, but this tends to be rare due to the amount of capital required