A History of Silver 'Round the World - Part 3

All of us have a story about how we got involved in coin collecting and/or investing. Since Silver 'Round the World developed as a result of my interest in coins, it seems like a logical place to start both as an introduction and for kicking off the blog. So, here's part 3 of my story. [Part 1, Part 2]

It was a couple of months until the next show. During that time, I worked diligently compiling a list of soccer coins. I searched eBay in hopes of finding items that were being offered for sale. I discovered and purchased a Krause Standard Catalog of World Coins 1901-2000. Those years contained most of the soccer coins that have been issued. After poring over eBay and the catalog, I finally had a list and felt that I was ready for the next show. The list was almost 3 pages long, and some of the items were sure to be available at the next show.

On the day of the show, our anticipations were high. My son was excited simply because it was a coin show, but my excitement stemmed from the fact that I had prepared a list and was well on my journey to finding a collecting niche in this hobby. After signing in at the show, my son scurried off in excitement, but I casually walked towards the nearest dealer's table, confident that my list would be the key to turning up items to purchase. Upon inquiring from the first dealer whether he had any of the items on my list, he responded that he didn't because he dealt only in US coins, and these were all foreign. The response from the next dealer was much the same; he only sold US material as well. Three or four dealers later, I finally found one that handled foreign coins, but they were not organized, and I had to search through them myself. I did, but came up empty. It took me 45 minutes to visit every dealer at this small show and ask them if they had any soccer coins. Despite having a list, not a single coin had turned up. This wouldn't work at all! It seemed like I was back at square one; meanwhile, I could see my son having the time of his life.

I found a chair and sat down to watch for a little bit. After some time, I decided that I would just walk around and talk with the dealers. Mostly, I was intrigued to hear their stories and how they became coin dealers. At one table, though, something caught my eye. There was a box sitting to one side that had round "tokens" and bars in it that I knew were not coins. Upon inquiring what they were, I was informed that they were silver rounds and art bars. The dealer told me that most were made of 1 Oz of pure silver and that there were collectors who looked for them because of their motifs. The conversation then veered into the price of silver, and how many people felt its price was undervalued because of its many industrial uses. This intrigued me because I could see value in collecting something for investment purposes. I spent the rest of the show peppering this dealer with questions, about silver rounds and bars, about silver and its uses, about investing in silver, anything I could think of to give me insight into pursuing silver as an investment. As we talked, I browsed through the box and noticed that there were both older and newer rounds, some had dates, some didn't, some had interesting content, others were minted by governments. All of them were priced about 50 cents above the value of 1 Oz of silver, which I had learned was called "spot."

As the show drew to a close, I knew I didn't want to purchase anything on the spur of the moment, but I also knew that investing in silver interested me, and I wanted to look into it further. As my son and I left the show, we were both quite content, he, for the coins he had bought, and I, for potentially finding another niche in the coin world. Over the next couple of months, I researched silver and read Robert Kiyosaki's "Rich Dad Investing in Gold and Silver." In general, I became convinced that silver did seem to be historically undervalued, and furthermore, that a long-term investment in silver might be a good idea.

By the time the next show rolled around a couple of months later, I knew how much I could afford to spend and exactly what I was going to buy. At the show, my son and I again parted ways, and I went around to each dealer, this time asking if they had silver rounds and what their prices were. Three or four dealers did, but I wanted to purchase the cheapest silver I could find. Most of the dealers priced their silver rounds between 50 cents and $1.50 over spot. I went back to the cheapest dealer, who happened to be the dealer I had talked with at the previous show. I browsed through the box of silver rounds and bars, noticing that he had some new ones. The bars didn't interest me, but I liked the rounds because they were "coin-like." I made my selection, choosing to get the older interesting ones over the newer buffalo rounds. I even picked up a Silver Eagle that, to my eye, was in great shape. For my initial investment, I had enough cash to purchase 7 silver rounds. But more importantly, I had found my collecting niche at that show. In hindsight, this would become the first step towards Silver 'Round the World.

To find out what happens next, check back for the Part 4.