2017 Silver American Eagle

[Overlord]

Picked up a couple of American silver eagle bullion pieces recently out of interest. These are the only slabbed/graded things I have. Photographing them was quite tricky due to reflection.

[Figleaf]

First strike, the label says. One of 1000. Huh? A thousand first strikes? Oh. Maybe they mean first batch! As in "when the die is new and just polished, the strike looks a little better. True that. But wait. What happens if the die is replaced, because it is worn? Another first batch, surely. But that would make it one of 2000. Or is the second die different from the first?

And what's so scientific about 1000? Was it established by multiplying their number of fingers with their number of toes and adding a zero? Do they really mean that coin 1000 is noticeably better than coin 1001? So what if I have coin 1001? Can I sell it as a first strike because it's just as good as coin 1000? Or can't I because first strike is defined by the mint as the first 1000 coins struck with the first die and since I am not the mint, my definition doesn't count?

I think I smell hot air, or, as it is known today, post-truth.

Peter

[Overlord]

"First strike" is indeed a marketing term that seems to have little bearing on the quality of the strike. If I correctly remember an article I had once read, PCGS apply the term to all coins received within 30 days of issue. The "1 in 1000", as I understand, applies to the "bundled" signature, making the already (perceived) "rare" first strike seem rarer. But since every slab is numbered 1 of 1000 (there being no "2 of 1000" to "1000 of 1000"), for all I know there may well be a million "1 of 1000" floating around, including the rare "no S in signature" and "no dot after S" varieties. Not to mention, there are more "rare" versions/grades signed (or is it autopen?) by various other guys associated with the mint.
In the end, the message I get is pretty much


As long as there are enough people who believe in and play by the "rules" (no matter how arbitrary they may be), their notion of (mutually) perceived value will drive the enterprise forward. But I don't think this is limited to collecting. If you think carefully, aren't most things in life founded on similarly absurd rules we are supposed to swallow without thinking to fit amidst the people around us who "also believe" in them? 

[Bimat]

Many European mints issue silver/gold/other precious metals collector coins with a Certificate of Authenticity which is individually numbered. Some of my friends who collect Euro coins are keen to receive the low numbered CoA, or even a fancy numbered one (786, 541 etc.). In reality, there's no relation between the CoA number and the sequence in which that particular coin was struck, but then you can't do anything about the craze...

Aditya

[Overlord]

The "Trump as Caesar" issue is much rarer than "Trump as Augustus". I expect to make at least 100,0000 Trump Dollars off it some day. 

[Figleaf]