A Coin I Didn’t Consider Offering Until I Saw the 19-Year Graph
I’ve been looking for a coin to recommend to CMI readers that would combine beauty and value in a very competitive market place. I also wanted this coin to be trading at a low enough level to make it comfortable for first-time investors.
Sounds easy but not so! With the entry of more and more first-time investors and the high level of activity among the collector community, it is increasingly difficult to pry coins away from my fellow dealers, especially coins that meet my objective. Clearly, there are low-cost coins that I could recommend to most any entry-level investor. However, I want to recommend coins with enough upside potential to warrant you tying up your money.
So I had to get back to basics and find a coin with a strong collector base that was inexpensive enough to attract a large audience, never forgetting that the coin’s history and beauty were of paramount importance. After reviewing the above chart, it hit me like a trunk full of gold pieces…
The answer: The stunning $2.50 gold Indian.
So I checked with my head buyer about availability and current price trends. He agreed emphatically that these coins should be an excellent choice to achieve my goals: offering true value at a low cost.
The $2.50 Indian is only one of two coins ever minted (the other being the $5.00 Indian) by the U.S. Mint with an incuse design. This means the impression was struck into the coin rather than creating a coin with a raised design. The $2.50 Indian was minted for 15 years and in just two mints, Denver and Philadelphia so collecting a complete set is an obtainable goal. Because of its unique design, the $2.50 Indian enjoys a tremendous amount of collector appeal, which is one of the best buffers an investor can have, given the fact collectors seldom sell at any price!
Since 1981, when MS63 became a recognized grade for choice uncirculated coins, the $2.50 Indian has only twice before been at its current low level, and the last time was December 1991.
Having met my criteria for beauty and history, I then turned to the numbers for the $2.50 Indian. Let’s face it, anyone can page through the Red Book and find a coin that people want to buy. The real trick is to find one that they can buy at the right price. And I’ve done it, with the $2.50 Indian.
Picture yourself owning a piece of U.S. history that may have passed through the hands of the likes of Theodore Roosevelt, the Wright Brothers or Andrew Carnegie. One can create their own historical scenario on how their Gold Indian reached their collection. Imagine the possibilities!