What are the goals of the Historical Collections module?

There have been significant Liberty Seated Dime collections formed and dispersed in the past 30 years. The most famous is the Louis E. Eliasberg, Sr. Collection auctioned by Bowers and Merena during May 20-22, 1996. Additional notable collections include the John Jay Pittman collection with its notable proof examples and Kamal Ahwash Liberty Seated Dime collection which formed the basis for the Encyclopedia of United States Liberty Seated Dime 1837-1891. Later Brian Greer built a substantial Liberty Seated Dime collection that faciliated The Complete Guide to Liberty Seated Dimes, published by DLRC Press.

Major collections include noteworthy coins. Maintaining an understanding of provenance for coins in major collections is important for future generations of collectors. Coins, by their nature, are historical items and I believe that the numismatic community should strive to capture the ownership history of these items, again for subsequent generations to enjoy the historical significance of the coins in their collections.. This is the premise for the Historical Collections - Provenance and Current Ownership module at www.seateddimevarieties.com. Tracking ownership information is presently fragmented and a difficult challenge. Anyone taking up the challenge typically tracks individual coin pricing and ownership via auction catalogs and/or knowledge of private sales. The Historical Collections module seeks to organize and publish existing provenance and to act as a information depository for increment ownership transfers. For plate coin collections formed by Kam Ahwash and Brian Greer, many of the coins were in AU to lower Mint State grades and thus not obviously tracked by major auction houses. Tracking ownership for the Kamal Ahwash and Brian Greer "Plate Coin" collections is a difficult challenge for Liberty Seated Collector Club members who may be so inspired to solve the puzzle of the location for these coins today.

The Historical Collections - Provenance and Current Ownership module is a new concept recently announced at the LSCC meeting during the 2009 Los Angeles ANA show. I am uncertain about website user response but do plan to market the concept initially in the LSCC's E-Gobrecht for awareness and acceptance. Your participation is important to build a comprehensive listing of provenance and current ownership of Liberty Seated Dimes in the three initial sets. Comments and feedback are always welcomed.

Please contact Gerry Fortin at info@www.seateddimevarieties.com or wuximems@hotmail.com if you desire to submit additional information.