Chuck K. writes:Â I have many old coins, Is there a site on the internet that gives the value of coins.
Yes, but you have to have more information about the coins in order to be able to get a good idea of their value. Coins are collected by rarity and condition. Grading is an art devoted to evaluating the state of preservation of coins or paper money.
There can be vast differences in value between one grade and another. This is easy to understand. Coins were simply a convienient medium of exchange and were used until they were worn out. Relatively few coins, especially 19th century issues and earlier, were kept, unused, in their original pristine condition. Most people couldn’t afford to to that. They needed to spend the coins to provide for their daily needs.
There is another problem. Relatively few people lived near a Mint and therefore had access to fresh undamaged mint specimens (few cared also). By the time the coins were available locally, they could have been banging around in a bag for days if not weeks, leaving the coins still uncirculated but with cuts and bruises. Even today, with modern roads and transporting techniques, the coins still arrive “baggy” at the local bank. The US Mint makes quite a nice profit selling collectors nice current year uncirculated coins in the form of Mint Sets.
Try the Coin Site’s Numismatic Links Page for other coin information sites or try looking the coins up in a world coin catalog. That book should be available at your public library
