In today’s world, an image of a coin is nothing but a click away. Auction sites and many other platforms have technology that allows you to magnify the smallest of details by the touch of a finger. Often these photos are of the coin only, which itself is a beautiful work of art, culture, and history. With that said, on the occasion I find myself wanting more imagery context with the coin. Questions I ask are, what tools did this numismatist use to view, magnify, study, catalog and identify the specimen being photographed. I understand none of this is necessary for the research or purchase of a coin, but it is a small piece of provenance that can be tacked onto the life history of such a coin. Think about it this way, choose the favorite coin of your collection, wouldn’t you like to have a photo of that exact coin from 100 years ago? Me too.

A Deeper Dive Into Numismatics