A while back, while walking in a shopping center, I spotted a five-dollar bill on the ground. To me that’s still a good chunk of money. I picked it up and looked around to see who may have dropped it. No luck. Just then, two people came up and mentioned they saw me pick it up. I assumed it was theirs and tried to hand it back. They told me to keep it. It turned out they had put it (and other bills) there as part of a study. It had to do with people being distracted and not noticing important things around them. They said, by their count, 73 people had overlooked the bill before I spotted it.
It does seem that more and more people are distracted by busy lives, social media or electronics. There are a few “old souls” who take the time to look a little closer at what’s around them – some in pursuit of treasure, hidden or not-so-hidden. For a few of them, 2021 has been an excellent year....
Some of the big stories of 2021 have been hurricanes in the Gulf, wildfires out west and flooding in the east. They all sound the alarm for the specter of climate change. Ironically, while a curse to some, that weather has benefitted others.
For instance, a massive melting glacier in Norway uncovered a cache of Viking treasures buried under the tundra for upwards of 500 years. Included were ancient beeswax candles, spears and other historic objects.
The storms in the Gulf of Mexico have uncovered dozens of Spanish shipwreck silver treasure coins on the beaches. They have also churned the waters further out to reveal even greater riches.
This past July, Zach Moore, a young man in Florida spotted a glimmer in 30-feet of water off the Florida coast. In the world of snorkeling or scuba, 30-feet is shallow. The glimmer turned out to be a rare gold coin from the Spanish treasure ship Atocha that sank in the gale of 1622. That small gold piece has an estimated value of $98,000.
Across the US, armchair treasure seekers have been hoping to score riches of their own in the form of limited-edition coins from the US Mint. I’ve written about how the Mint has recently been issuing silver and gold coins with mintages as low as 12,500 pieces. With millions of US coin collectors and even more speculator/investors, such numbers are exceptionally low. Even offerings of 150,000 coins have sold out quickly. The problem for some hopeful buyers is today’s technology.
These modern issues from the Mint often quickly soar in value – especially ones sent off for grading that receive a very high grade. Though the Mint may limit purchases to three or even just one item per household some people well versed in technology have found a way around that with “bots” – robot dialers and ordering programs that allow them to purchase hundreds of the coins.
This divisive technology has, in turn, shut out thousands of traditional collectors from owning one of the new items at issuance price. Their only option is to purchase them later from dealers at highly inflated prices. Many are understandably upset with that arrangement.
The US Mint claims it is feverishly working to thwart those “bots” with an ordering system that makes is nearly impossible for technoids to get around the ordering limitation. You have to hope that’s the case because legions of long-time collectors have been contacting hobby publications such as Coin World suggesting they are “through with the hobby.”
“I hope someone does something to change the customer service of the U.S. Mint – right now there is none,” writes Jerry D. “Your order system for limited-issue items is pathetically unfair and compromised,” wrote Bill C. And, Steve C. penned, “I am a collector for over 60 years. After my latest fiasco trying to order one 2021 Peace dollar (and failing with the first five minutes), I have ordered my final Mint product.” Not a lot of gray area there.
Clearly, all those who could have picked up that $5 bill I happened to spot is testimony to today’s distractions. Technology or no, let’s hope the Mint is smart enough not to ignore what their lifeblood base of collectors is trying to communicate. After all, if it’s just as easy to find treasure after a storm down south, who wouldn’t opt for a stroll on the beach rather than being shut out by the Mint?
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