Are numismatics a good investment in bad times?

When we have economic prosperity art and collectables are sort after and the prices rise.

Most of the members here seem to be into coins and collectables.
I'm not. I'm interested in gold and silver. As long as its pure I dont care what stamp the machine made on it.

I believe we are going to have a depression style drama worldwide. And this is why I got interested in stacking. If that does happen, it wont matter whether your ounce of silver has a pretty kookaburra on it or is a generic round. It'll be worth exactly the same. I doubt anyone will be so frivolous in that situation to care about such things, and I think trends historically in war and depression events suggest that will be the case.

Has anyone looked into this aspect as far as stacking against a financial collapse?

Are there examples historically that prove otherwise?

 

I suppose you are right. An ounce is an ounce during bad times.

But if we do survive through the bad times, the numismatic might then be a different story.

 

Numis are good if you know what you are buying.

I believe Pandas will do well in the future, not that I own any but I plan on buying some.

Good article on KWN regarding "collectable treasures" by Richard Russel, unable to open it now but will post by tomorrow.

 

I guess it depends on the nature and phase of the collapse. If financial institutions collapse, but stocks become non-institutionalised and commodities continue to be produced, then sure, there will be some store in numismatics. But if commodities become scarce during a period of hyperinflation, nobody's going to give a toss how rare something is if they can't eat it or sleep in it.

 

with u 100% RomanControl....an ounce is an ounce in times of financial uncertainty and distress...i do however stack ones that are well known, such as perth mint bars/coins, eagles, maples...so that when the time comes which i believe is inevitable, the average joe would be able to recognise them....generics would be harder to trade imo.

 

^^ An excellent point!

 

Stampstackers!

 

Personally my stack is slanted towards counterfeit proofing my wealth... If PMs go where I think they will the last thing you will want to do is try to prove that your maple is not a fake just like the other 3 the guy your trying to palm it of to saw.; Generic = easy target for counterfeiters

 

If you look at some places where people have endured a SHTF episode for extended periods of time (e.g. South Sudan, the Balkans, etc), I think you would be disappointed at what bullion would get you (not very much) - and very surprised at what the basics (e.g. ammunition, alcohol, cigarettes and tinned food) can get you.

If you look at some of the places where people have profited from a SHTF episode (e.g. Taiwan after the fall of the Republic), people profited with collectibles.

The rich usually have an appetite for luxury even during bad times

 

Some people I wouldnt deal with on principle alone.

But Im a kook and (premium) nugget fan so Im not likely to have to deal with tightarses anyway, good times or bad.

Same applies to smartarses.

 

Isn't this just the same topic as your rant against premiums?

Coin collecting is known as the 'hobby of kings' for a reason, rich people collect coins. During an economic crash, they will still be rich and you will be trying to buy some beans off GP with your buffalo round, but he will have none left to sell you, because I will have bought them all with my kooks, but I won't have because I too am stacking beans.

Beans are more use in an economic meltdown than any type of silver, and they have very low premiums.

Real numismatics will hold their value, old coins, historicaly important coins etc. A set of colourful painted dragons made this year by the Perth Mint will probably not fare so well if it all goes downhill, but will probably get you a few more cans of beans than generic rounds.

However most people collecting numismatics are not thinking of buying beans with them, they will be selling them at auction, mid march this year a 1.52g silver pfennig of Charlemagne from around 768-814 sold for 160,000 euros. For about $1.50 worth of silver. There have been quite a few economic collapses and depressions since 814, you just don't sell it then.

If the price of silver crashes, your numismatics will hold their value. If the world crashes and I have a can of beans, there is no way I would starve to death with your buffalo in my pocket, I will be eating beans, you will be congratulating yourself on saving premiums.

I have generics and numismatics and popular coins, I stack for all eventualities (and fun)

 

<Yennus is NOT Selco >



www.shtfschool.com
I'm Selco and have been through this SHTF school I never wanted to attend during the Balkan wars 1992 - 1995. I write about this here.

http://shtfschool.com/category/trading/

So again on bartering and gold and silver:
No, gold and silver was not like second money, or second value during SHTF, it was not even worth like in normal times, and in most of the cases it was dangerous to have it a lot ...

But in reality it was hard to find someone who give you some food or battery or whatever useful for one coin. Gold coin was not useful for 90 percent of people, what they could use it for? Eat it? Start fire with that?

Only people which could use that gold were people who had connection to outside world, so they could use it for buying things trough their connections. In most cases they just used situation to acquire great amounts of gold for the future and in exchange for some simple things, like food, or fuel or

They did that because they had everything else.

But thing is it was hard to make trade with people like that, because bad kind of people had connections or were gathering gold, so they can just gonna take that gold from you and give you nothing, or bullet in your head.

 

^^^Look at all them dribbles above. Gosh, just say yes or no. -_-

Numismatics are great investments, but only if you are convinced there will be a future.
Bad if zombie apocalypse future.
.

 

If you want to know if art/collectables are valued during a war - just look at what is stashed in Swiss vaults from the plunder done by the Nazis during WW2.

OR

If you want a more recent example - what was stripped from Baghdad just prior to and during the last US invasion.

malachii

 

Also, it depends what people consider 'numismatic'.

Kronas? Perhaps.
Pennys? Perhaps.
Redbacks? Perhaps.
Lunar Dragons? Perhaps.
ASE? Perhaps.

As THUCY said to me (which I agree), numismatics are not strictly determined by market value, but rather the mint year.

I consider a true numismatic having 100 years under the belt (as you would consider something like an antique). Anything that falls within the 100 years is just anomalies and el ninos.
.

 

No jizlizard, its a different point, but similar in that its about true value in future times. Which is something I'm trying to figure out without aid of a crystal ball. The first topic was about bullion and this is about numismatics.

So something that is truly a rare collectable is always going to be sort after at a decent price? I cant afford such things, Im not wealthy.But i can see the value of being able to fit a million dollars in your pants pocket

I suspect beanpelican has a greater knowledge of numismatics than the average bean seller, I think that point was a tad silly. No offence to any bean sellers. I'm picturing the soupnazi , with a line for lunardrgaon coins and then a line for those ugly koalas

Eureka I realise its politically incorrect here to have an opinion that isnt bullish, I hope you find it in your heart to forgive me when your collection is worth spot one day. And you realise if you had been willing to have an open mind, you couldve cashed in and picked up all the exotic art and collectables from a desperate middle class for nix.
At the risk of being a smartarse, what principle is that exactly?

 

Thanks Malachi, I was actually working off this time with my thinking too. But these were all either stolen or bought cheaply. Meaning the people who invested in them prior to the war lost out.