Colorful Gifts Could be Worth Less Than You Hope by Peter Rexford on Creators.com

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Colorful Gifts Could be Worth Less Than You Hope

I grew up under the premise that Santa makes his list and checks it twice. I've come to believe that doesn't happen. Naturally, I believe in Santa. I pretty much have to, given the number of less appealing things I've believed in that have fallen flat. In that respect Santa's always been a winner.

But considering the gazillions of people returning gifts the day after Christmas, the list-checking thing doesn't hold water. Somebody either didn't double-check the list or just guessed wrong.

With good intentions aside, I've seen items that may appear collectible regularly given as gifts. They frequently appear to have value. They don't. I'm not alone on this. Countless coin dealers around the country see many of these, especially shortly after Christmas.

I'm referring to coins that have been colorized or have some sort of added finish to them. People flock to these as stocking stuffers. One you may recall was the quarter issued for the state of Tennessee. On that, a private company fashioned a colorized sticker featuring an image of Elvis Presley and permanently affixed that to the George Washington side of the coin. They sold the item for a hefty premium.

Now, as some believe, such coins aren't illegal. They haven't been modified or manipulated to be worth more than their face value. Granted, some are patently ugly and/or frightening. The Isle of Man issued one this year that includes a colorized image of Santa that looks borderline satanic or something akin to a biker. Of course, beauty is capricious. So who am I to judge?

Those who will judge are coin dealers. Actually, they'll just be brutally honest. Those Elvis quarters dealers were selling for $10 apiece are worth only their face value of 25 cents. That's all dealers will give you, if that. Hopeful owners always think they are worth more. No such luck.

It's similar for colorized coins. Sure they may be attractive, but the coin underneath is just that — a coin — nothing more.

It gets even trickier if the coin is silver or gold. In that case, dealers will weigh the coin and then subtract any weight the colorization may add.

If the coin is a gift, then the recipient really isn't the loser. After all, they still have something they didn't have before. But for givers, their money goes much farther buying legitimately issued, circulating proof or bullion coins directly from the Mint or a trusted and reputable dealer you know.

To avoid purchasing mistakes or confusion about the most popular collectibles, I've long advocated giving New Year's gift memberships to the American Numismatic Association for coins and American Philatelic Society for stamps. Technical as the names may sound, the hobbies are based on fun and information. Those are exactly the benefits offered by each organization.

Membership in either group comes with a subscription to their monthly magazine. In addition to genuinely fascinating articles and photos, the magazines are some of the best respective sources for learning the true value of what collectors may have or want to buy.

Additionally, memberships include library privileges, purchasing discounts, mail sales, expertizing opportunities, online "members only" areas and many more benefits than can be listed here.

Rates for membership are very similar for either organization — around $48. Gift membership opportunities are available through either the APS or ANA and can be done online.

To access the ANA site and see all that is available log onto: Money.org. For the APS go to: Stamps.org. A visit to either site will quickly show the broad offerings there are for both groups and the obvious benefits members enjoy.

Naturally, there are no guarantees and memberships may not be on your collector's list, but it could make for a fun, educational and very profitable New Year's for a collector you know. Jingle Bells.

Editor's Note: A JPEG visual of the colorized Isle of Man Christmas coin has been sent with this column.

To find out more about Peter Rexford and features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.