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    • A Tribute to Rhode Island Numismatist, and My Dear Friend, George H. Champlin IV
    • A Raw Roosevelt Dime Silver Set as a Side Project
    • 2018 Article Archive >
      • The Beloved PCGS Old Green Holder (OGH) Passed Away Approximately 20-Years Ago This Month
      • Archive of Cool Coins, Medals & Exonumia Added
      • EEMcD & The Mystery of the 1838 Reeded Edge Half Dollar
      • Book Review "An Inside View of the Coin Hobby in the 1930s: The Walter P. Nichols File"
    • 2017 Article Archive >
      • You Never Know what Events will Transpire to get You Home...
      • April 2017 Baltimore Show Report
      • A Glimpse into a Coin Deal
      • Observations from the Bourse; Hairlines
      • Thomas Bush Wins David Lawrence Literary Award (Again)
      • The Colors of Autumn; A Toning Enthusiasts Friend
    • 2016 Article Archive >
      • Observations from the Bourse; But Coins
      • Will the Efficiency of the TPGs Naturally Lead to all Worthwhile Coins Becoming Overgraded?
      • April 2016 Baltimore Show Report
      • A British Historical Medal Featuring a Canadian Train Trip that also Included Stops in the United States
      • New Barber Half Dollar Article for Barber Coin Collectors' Society
      • Circulated Barber Half Dollars-A Look Back at Two Decades of Specialization
      • Mistaken Misogyny-Andrew Mellon, Laura Fraser & The George Washington Portraiture
      • Thomas Bush Wins David Lawrence Literary Award
      • Standing Lincoln Monument Dedication at Saint Gaudens National Historic Site
      • November 2016 Baltimore Show Report
    • 2015 Article Archive >
      • The Mighty, Toned Washington Quarter
      • Collecting Mid-Grade Barber Half Dollars
      • A Simple Study on the Frequency of the Center Mintmark Position for 1897-S Barber Quarters
      • Thoughts & Strategies for Building a US Type Set
      • Three Fortuitous Auction Victories Illustrate the Importance of Knowing the Quirks of the Venue
      • Canadian Gold Reserve Coinage 1912-1914
      • A Young Numismatist & A Lost Future
      • Observations from the Bourse; CAC
      • August 2015 Chicago ANA Show Report
      • Saturn, Saint Gaudens & the Tom Seaver Era New York Mets
      • Cpl. Michael Eyre Thompson & the Walking Liberty Half Dollar
      • That's a wrap! Canadian Gold Reserve Coinage Melted
      • November 2015 Baltimore Show Report
      • Wonderful Die Polish on Newfoundland Coinage
Thomas Bush Numismatics

The Mighty, Toned Washington Quarter

I've been collecting and/or dealing coins for many years and my first great love in numismatics, once I figured a few things out, was with mint state Washington Quarters (WQs). Initially, it was a quest to find white or lightly toned gems that would be carefully placed into the pair of translucent blue Capital Plastics holders that were broken up into two frames; one for 1932-1947 and the other for 1948-1964, or thereabouts. I broke quite a few old green holder (OGH) coins out for those sets, but of course in the 1990s they weren't yet known as OGHs.

Later, that white set of gems departed and I scanned the bourse for any wonderfully toned gem WQs. In the mid-and late-1990s these could be found with some frequency and often they carried relatively little premium. The premium might have been large as a percentage of price, but was actually fairly small in terms of actual increased dollars to acquire. I bought and sold, bought and sold like you might wash your hair; lather, rinse, repeat. However, by the new millennia, that relatively shallow pool of exquisitely toned WQs just waiting to be purchased had dried up and within a few years after that the prices rose something fierce. Those prices might not be today as uniformly high as they were 10-15 years ago, but the best coins still cost a stiff sum...and they aren't found all that often.

The following pieces were mostly purchased uncertified and in the 1990s. All eventually made their way to PCGS and CAC, and the names I have given to the files will disclose the PCGS opinion on them. The group makes me smile, but it also makes me somewhat sad. After all, what happened to those other great WQs that populated the bourse floor in the 1990s? Are they enjoyed and in collections today and at what grade slab might they be certified? I'd imagine that many of those coins I sold years ago would have been cracked out and resubmitted in the hope of an upgrade numerous times until the grade on the holder might exceed the quality of the coin. Truly, the 1990s were at times an embarrassment of riches for this niche. 

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Thomas Bush Numismatics
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