Hi all, I'm a newbie in this. Can anyone advise me what's the difference between this 3 categories? Pls throw some common known coins in each category as illustration so that I can understand better. Thanx!
Someone will do a better job than me certainly, but basically... Coin: is legal tender, it is money and backed by government. Round: Anything coin shaped that is not legal tender. bullion: A term used for metal that is close to spot, you buy bullion for the metal content. Numismatic: is a term used when buying something that has an added premium to the price of the actual metal. This could be down to rarity, purity, minting process (look up definition of proof coins). These explanations are very basic, and not perfectly accurate but it's a start.
Yup, that's pretty good as a simple, one sentence description of each. Also worth pointing out is that some of the above aren't mutually exclusive. 'Bullion' could be bars, rounds or coins. 'Numismatic' also includes some (but not all) bullion (e.g. in the case of limited mintage/collectable bullion releases like Lunars etc ... these are sometimes referred to as 'semi-numismatic' ... but this wouldn't extend to, say, proof coins (even proofs of bullion coin designs), which are firmly in the numismatic category).
So am I right to classify : Coins : Pandas, Ase & Kooks etc? (Does it neccessary to be Proof? I've heard of people talking about Kooks as Bullions) Bullions : Bars? Rounds : SICF Pandas? Numismatic : SICF 5oz Panda cos low mintage?
You'll find some really good info in here. http://forums.silverstackers.com/topic-880-buying-silver-in-australia.html
A coin is ANY legal tender token. Doesn't have to be made of precious metals. The 20c pieces in your wallet are coins (obviously). If it has an amount of currency printed on it (and is officially issued by/on behalf of a government), it's a coin. Pandas, ASEs, Kooks etc. are all coins (and also all bullion as well, as they are mostly priced in relation to their metal content rather than their collect ability) Bars of precious metals are indeed bullion, but so are many coins, including the ones you mentioned above (ASEs and AGEs, Kooks, Kangaroos, Pandas, Maple Leafs, Philharmonics, Krugerrands etc.). Most rounds are also bullion too. Basically if it's something valued primarily (though not necessarily completely) for its metal content, it's bullion. Investment-grade precious metal. A round is essentially a coin-shaped piece of precious metal that isn't legal tender in any currency. Are SICF Pandas legal tender? (I dunno ... not aware of what 'SICF' means) Regular pandas ARE legal tender so they'd be bullion coins, not rounds. Numismatic just means that they are valued due to their collectability, not merely their metal content. An obvious example would be someone collecting, say, Australian Pennies - some are worth a lot due to their rarity, but there is nothing inherently valuable about the metal content of the coin itself. So falling firmly into the category of numismatics are: non-precious metal coins which nonetheless are highly valued, and 'limited mintage' stuff issued by mints, such as proof coins, commemorative coins etc. Note that some bullion coins are 'slightly' numismatic because although they are bullion, they do have a limited mintage, and thus are valued a bit more than merely the price of their metal. Lunars, Kooks etc. are in this category, whereas things like ASEs (which are minted by the millions) are not (other than some key/rare dates).
This is confusing! Why is ASE classified in the article as Bullion & not as Coin? Majority is saying as long as Rounds have Face Value, it's a coin but minority claims that ASE are bullions ignoring the fact that they have Face Value too.
try to buy something at the store with your bullion....good luck....90% dont even know what it is.....thats the difference between coins and bullion, even tough some bullion have face value doesn't mean its a coin....
An ASE is a bullion coin. Backed by the US government (for what that's worth) and produced in such large quantities that its price stays pretty close to spot. Same can be said for the Canadian maple or the Austrian Philharmonic. bullion = cheap numismatic = expensive coin= legal tender round= not legal tender So basically a coin will be either bullion (mass produced 1,000,000+) semi numismatic (somewhat mass produced, up to 1,000,000) or numismatic (up to 50,000). Very rough numbers but hopefully it allows you to understand the terms a little. Once you understand that you'll realize some coins are strange and don't really fit in with what I have said above, Pandas come to mind.
