How Do You Define Beauty?

A definition of beauty is “a combination of qualities, such as shape, color, or form, that pleases the aesthetic senses, especially the sight.”

How do you define beauty as it applies to numismatics? What is it about a coin or bank note that you may find pleasing? It may start with the design itself. The theme might be beautiful, or the extent of intricate detail may be impressive. Or, the representational or abstract style of the design may delight your senses.

The answer for numismatists is the cliché, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

Then there are the considerations of the state of presentation. What is most important between strike, luster, relative number, size and location of bag marks, and the existence or lack of toning? My understanding is that Australian collectors of that nation’s coin sets insist that every coin in the holder be in perfect vertical alignment.

It has happened multiple times in the store where I work where a customer was trying to choose the “best” coin among multiple specimens of the same grade. To try to be helpful, we have had three of our deeply experienced staff examine them to pick out the piece they would select if they were going to add it to their own collection. It has happened multiple times that the three of us each chose a different example. Did that mean that, at most, one of us was correct and the others were wrong? Not at all.

Then there are different tastes among collectors. Some admire pristine coins and currency that have probably never been touched by human hands. Others much prefer pieces that exhibit some wear to demonstrate that they were actually used by people at the time and place of issue. The company where I work once even had a U.S. large cent so worn that the date was totally gone. However, there was one visible unique bag mark on the planchet that made it possible to attribute the year as 1797. Although this was not a valuable piece in that condition, it was quickly purchased by a collector who appreciated its age and affordable price.

Another aspect that may influence how someone regards the beauty of a coin or bank note is the political and economic circumstances surrounding its issue. U.S. gold certificates, for example, are quite popular with collectors as these were issued in an era when it was possible to take these to a bank or the government and receive physical gold for them. For many decades after his death, Alexander the Great continued to be depicted on coins because his face on one side made the coin more acceptable to the public than did busts of his successors. It is the symbol of the past era that was “beautiful” rather than necessarily the design or state of preservation.

Numismatic Trivia Question

Of all the chief engravers of the U.S. Mint, going back more than 225 years, all but one were born in Scotland, England, Pennsylvania or New Jersey. Who was the exception, and in what state were they born?

Patrick A. Heller was honored as a 2019 FUN Numismatic Ambassador. He is also the recipient of the American Numismatic Association 2018 Glenn Smedley Memorial Service Award, 2017 Exemplary Service Award, 2012 Harry Forman National Dealer of the Year Award and 2008 Presidential Award. Over the years, he has also been honored by the Numismatic Literary Guild (including in 2021 for Best Investment Newsletter), Professional Numismatists Guild, Industry Council for Tangible Assets and the Michigan State Numismatic Society. He is the communications officer of Liberty Coin Service in Lansing, Mich., and writes Liberty’s Outlook, a monthly newsletter on rare coins and precious metals subjects. Past newsletter issues can be viewed at www.libertycoinservice.com. Some of his radio commentaries titled “Things You ‘Know’ That Just Aren’t So, And Important News You Need To Know” can be heard at 8:45 a.m. Wednesday and Friday mornings on 1320-AM WILS in Lansing (which streams live and becomes part of the audio archives posted at www.1320wils.com).