Pedigrees
By Bradley R. NelsonWhy record pedigrees?Coin dealers and collectors have long thought that coins with a pedigree are more valuable than those of similar quality without pedigrees, and command a premium at auction. No meticulous study has been done to prove whether this is correct, but from CNG's standpoint, auction results seem to corroborate it.
Coins that have a pedigree to a famous collection, such as Gillet, Hunt, Lockett, Pozzi, Rhousopolous, or Weber, do often command higher prices at auction, particularly because there are collectors who specifically target coins with these pedigrees. The same also seems to apply to coins pedigreed back to its original find or hoard, probably because many collectors want to know where their coins come from.
Unfortunately, today we are faced with a new reason to record pedigrees for coins. Over the past few years, the U.S. Department of State has signed new Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) with Bulgaria, China, Cyprus, Greece, and Italy that restrict the trade of many ancient and, in some cases, medieval, coins in the United States. Currently, a new MOU is under consideration for Egypt, and it is expected that other countries will also request new MOUs that encompass coins. All of these MOUs have an effective date, whereby coins in the trade before such date are exempt. Thus, it is important that coins that fall within the scope of these MOUs have a pedigree that proves they were in the marketplace or outside the borders of the respective country before the effective date of that country's MOU with the US.
It is, therefore, more important than ever that collectors keep a record of where they purchased their coins, and any other pedigree information that they may be aware of. This includes keeping the original tickets that come with any coin they acquire. Conversely, it is important for dealers to record pedigree information carefully with the coins they offer, if that information is available. Dealers also should sell coins with tickets that clearly note their firm's name and all details necessary for the purchaser of one of their coins to have a record of the transaction.
What goes into a pedigree?Nothing is more frustrating for someone researching a pedigree, than to find a coin accompanied by an auction envelope or "flip" that has nothing but a lot number on it-no company name, no sale number, and no date. While this might save time and a miniscule amount of money for the dealer, it does a great disservice to collectors, researchers, and the trade in general. With today's technology, it is unreasonable for a dealer not to have tickets or coin holders that have the basic information necessary for tracing a coin back to them in a pedigree; the time, effort, and cost are minimal.
So, what information should a pedigree contain? If the coin is from a sale, such as a public auction or mail bid sale, the pedigree should contain the name of the coin firm conducting the sale, the sale number (if used by the firm), the specific date(s) of the sale (not just month and/or year), and the lot number. If it is from a price list, the information is similar, except that the date is usually simpler, like "Summer 2012", and rather than a lot number, the item number for the coin is given. Finally, if a coin is bought out of a firm's inventory, the purchaser should record the firm's name, the inventory number for that coin given by the firm, and the date of purchase.
What about named collections?Of course, if a coin is from a named collection, such as Pozzi, that name should also be recorded in the pedigree. Unfortunately, many coins are often erroneously attributed to a collection because people simply look at the cover or title page of an auction and record the name given there, without reading the full details of the sale. For instance, it is common to see coins that appeared in the Naville IV sale pedigreed to the collection of Grand Duke Michaïlovitch or Sir Arthur Evans. What most people overlook is that the cover of the sale states that, in addition to the two named collections, there are coins "d'autres amateurs" from other unnamed collectors! Thus, as none of the lots in the catalog note as to which collection they come from, it is impossible to attribute any of them to a particular collection without any further evidence. Although this example considers a catalog from the early 20th century, this practice of combining multiple collections without any differentiation still persists today, a lamentable practice that virtually destroys any record of each collection.
A basic rule of thumb regarding named collections: Unless a sale is from a particular collection in its entirety, has particular collections sectioned-off, or individually notes the collection on each lot, it is not possible to pedigree a coin to any specific collection named on the cover or title page of that sale.
A shared responsibilityDealers should strive to ensure that the pedigrees they cite are correct, especially if they cite named collections. It is a common mistake that dealers simply accept the pedigree information they receive with consigned or purchased coins without verifying them. The information should be verified even when prior auction tickets accompany the coins, as some collectors will keep tickets separate from the coins and then try to pair them up when they decide to sell them, causing some tickets to be paired with incorrect coins. Of course, small dealers often will not have the resources to always verify pedigrees, as having a reference library of old catalogs is not economically feasible for them. If dealers cannot verify pedigrees that are important, perhaps citing the collection prefaced with "reportedly" would be preferable to simply not citing the collection at all.
Collectors, at the same time, should keep in mind that all dealers can make mistakes, so they should attempt to verify pedigrees on their own before buying or bidding on coins they are interested in obtaining. They also should strive to maintain the data that they received with the coins they acquire, whether they are old auction, inventory, or collector tickets. Coins are only in a collection for a relative time before passing to a new owner, and it is important that this information is maintained for them, as well as future researchers who may need to cite the pedigrees in published numismatic works.
How to Describe a PedigreeLots originating from printed, electronic, fixed price, or buy/bid sales are described by the word "ex," followed with the firm's name, the date of the sale in parentheses, and the lot or inventory number.
- Ex Classical Numismatic Group 96 (14 May 2014), lot 57
- Ex Triton XVI (8 January 2013), lot 233
- Ex Classical Numismatic Group Electronic Auction 335 (25 September 2014), lot 125
- Ex Classical Numismatic Review XXXIX.1 (Spring 2014), no. 973330
Lots that were pedigreed to a named collection are described by the word "ex," followed by the collection name, the firm's name and date of the sale in parentheses, and the lot number from the sale.
- Ex BCD Collection (Triton XVI, 3 January 2012), lot 98
Items that originate directly from a named collection, without being offered from the collection elsewhere first, are described using the word "from" in place of "ex."
- From the BCD Collection
Items sold privately without any public record are described by the words "purchased from," followed by the dealer or firm's name it was purchased from and an approximate date.
- Purchased from Classical Numismatic Group, June 1998
Hoards may be described several ways, depending on the circumstances. If published in an auction catalog, they are described using the name of the hoard, followed by the firm's name and the date of sale in parentheses. If published as part of an inventory, they are described using the date of the find, followed by the name of the hoard, then the inventory number of the hoard in parentheses. Fully published hoards are described using the name of the hoard, followed by the entry for the specific coin. "Ex" or "from" are used as appropriate.
- Ex Beauvais Hoard (Glendining, 4 November 1987), lot 14
- Ex 1867 Auriol Hoard (IGCH 2352)
- Ex Vatican Hoard, 220
Ground fines with a certain provenance are described using the word "found," followed by the circumstances, location, and date of the find.
- Found on the Thames River foreshore at Battersea, 1983