There have been several notable examples over the past thirty years where dealers have gotten “lucky”. But more often than not, once a coin has lost its provenance the information is lost forever. Occasionally a dealer will get “lucky” and stumble upon a coin’s pedigree when researching a specific coin–especially if it is rare or unusual. When attempting to research a “lost pedigree”, one quickly discovers that many coins have been cleaned or conserved throughout the years, making it more difficult to easily identify a coin from an earlier photograph or plaster cast. Thanks in large part to the advent of the internet and the use of online stores and internet based auctions, that situation is changing. Photography did not even exist until the mid 19th century and did not become common in the numismatic trade until the later 20th century. The vast majority of coins sold in private transactions were not photographed. Many common or low value coins were sold without provenance information and typically were not photographed for the sale catalogs-If there even was a catalog or public record. In the antiquities trade, these items are considered “orphaned artifacts”. Simply put, this information rarely exists. In my experience, less than one coin in a thousand has retained its provenance/pedigree information over the past five centuries of active coin collecting. ![]() ![]() She asked if NAC can provide such documentation why can’t other firms? Of Course, NAC cannot provide provenance for all the coins in its sales and the documentation cited would undoubtedly be some form of certification by personal knowledge or belief. Patty Gerstenblith, Chair of CPAC, cited text from a Numismatica Ars Classica catalog stating that the firm will provide documentation for coins subject to US import restrictions. At the 2015 Cultural Property Advisory Committee (CPAC) hearing to discuss a potential renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Italy, Prof.
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