Coin collectors and enthusiasts have a lot of questions they frequently ask and often wonder about certain terminologies that sometimes put them in perplexity. To ease this kind of communication burden, here are some of the terms that only the numismatics and the coin aficionados can sometimes comprehend. It may not be the whole list of terminologies of the coin-collecting world, however these words should provide you sufficient details regarding your chosen hobby.
Some acronyms are really greek to common readers and so for coin enthusiasts willing to dig deeper on the world of coins, it is important for them to familiarize some helpful terminologies. Not all coin collectors know that ANACS stands for American Numismatic Association Certification Service- Grading service, while NGC refers to Numismatic Guaranty Corporation. ANA means American Numismatic Association on the other hand. Common association of Bugs Bunny is maybe the cartoon character that loves to nimble carrots however for coin buffs, it refers to a Franklin Half that is similar like Franklin and has dollar teeth.
Clad in coin terminology means coins having a core of a certain metal type and another metal type for its outer layer. A coin cleaned once is referred to as a cleaned coin. Commemorative coins are those produce during some special events or honoring one person or place. The letter F solely stands for Fine, on a grading scale called Sheldon, its’ range is from 12 to 15. EF is for extra fine, ranging a grade of 40-45, still basing on the Sheldon scale. AG means almost good. Its grade is 3 on Sheldon while AU is almost un-circulated having 50 to 58 as its grade scale. Luster like how you commonly understand it is the coin’s brilliance, which is the result of light reflection.
Motto denotes the imprinted saying on the coins. Previously, a lot of state quarters have motto stated on the coins. The front of the coin is labeled as obverse. PQ stands for premium quality, while porous refers to coins that have rough surface due to oxidation. Coins that are not certified or are not stabbed are called raw coins. The coins’ rarity number ranges from 1 to 10. The coin with the higher number also is the coin considered to be rare.
Most of the coin collecting terms truly creates confusion especially to those amateur collectors. Knowing the basic coin collecting terms facilitate you easily on your coin collecting interest.
