Peter Rexford has more than 45 years experience with collectible coins, stamps, currency, autographs and related rarities. He has handled the disposition of over $70 million of rare and collectible assets. In 1981 Peter founded the first Rare Stamp and Coin Investment Service to be offered by a New York Stock Exchange firm.
Since 1981 Peter has written the nation’s premier, weekly, nationally syndicated, award-winning, newspaper column on Stamps, Coins, and Collectibles featured in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Washington Post, Washington Times and dozens of other major newspapers across the country.
Peter is a three-time winner of the New York Times Lidman Award for his newspaper column, and is a regular consultant and guest on radio and television, including the CBS and FOX Radio Networks, and NBC’s Today Show.
Peter has written articles for Barron’s, Collector-Investor, Coin World, FACT, Collectibles Illustrated, Business Week, Dunn’s Weekly, and The Wall Street Journal, and co-authored the Encyclopedia of Investments. (Warren, Gorham & Lamont, 1981).
Trust companies, banks, law firms, museums and individuals have relied on Peter to garner the highest returns for numismatic, philatelic and other estate assets. Peter is not a dealer and not a buyer. Instead, he works strictly as a partner/agent on commission to realize the maximum value to benefit the estate, family or trust. He has a vested interest in obtaining the highest price for his clients - as opposed to a stamp or coin dealer, who wants to pay you the lowest price for your collectibles and resell them to others for the greatest profit.
Peter’s Success Stories
Henry Ford Museum Collection - Valued at $1.7 million. Realized: $2.6 million
A large collection of stamps and coins estimated at $1.7 million was donated to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. Peter traveled to Dearborn and spent a week certifying and grading the collection. He discovered several rare plate blocks and valuable colonial issues. The final sale yielded over $2.6 million.
Graham Philatelic Collection - Valued at $80,000. Realized: $308,000
This estate was offered $80,000 by a reputable, local stamp dealer, who was well known to the estate owners. Before accepting the offer, Boatman’s Bank asked Peter to examine the estate holdings. He saw that the collection was clearly undervalued, and he coordinated a national sealed bid sale of the estate, which yielded $308,000.
Paquet Gold Coin - Valued at $1,800. Realized: $59,000
This family inherited a collection of coins, including four double eagle, $20 gold pieces. They were offered $1800 each for the gold coins, which was the standard price at that time. Peter took a closer look and determined that one of the coins was a rare 1861 Paquet double eagle. He strategically placed the coin at auction, where it sold for $59,000.
Da Vinci Painting - Valued at $65. Realized: $450 million
This wasn’t Peter’s discovery, but in 2018 art experts examined a painting that was selling for $65. When they discovered that it was actually the work of Leonardo Da Vinci, it sold for $450 million. Peter didn’t find that one, and you may not have such luck either, but you’ll enjoy the weekly discoveries in Treasure Hunt, and perhaps, with Peter’s suggestions, you will find your own hidden treasures.
Peter’s Professional Memberships
American Philatelic Society
American Numismatic Association
ANA Century Group
Philatelic Writers Group
Philatelic Foundation
Numismatic Guarantee Corporation
Professional Coin Grading Service
Professional Numismatics Guild
Some of Peter’s Clients:
Boatman's Trust Company
Bank of America Trust Company
Bryan Cave Law Firm
Armstrong Teasdale
Greensfelder, Hemker & Gale
Wells Fargo Advisors
Culver Educational Estate, Culver, IN
Henry Ford Museum Collection
Johnson Gold Coin Trust
Langenberg Stamp Portfolio
Layton Stamp Estate
Everett Graham Collection
Missouri History Museum
Harold Thayer Collection
Stamp Portfolios Disposition
Steinhoff Rare Jewelry Collection
Russell Estate Classic Gold
Howell Double Eagle Gold Estate
Fidelity Rarities Collection
Washington University Law Philatelics
How It Began...
I'd say it started in college when I noticed my father’s collection of rare stamps and coins. Dad collected coins, because he wanted to own gold. Only bona fide coin collectors were allowed to own gold after the Great Depression. From 1933 until 1968, US currency was based on the gold standard, and it was illegal for ordinary citizens to own gold. Dad had accumulated a little stash of stamps and coins, and I noticed that many items had appreciated more than stocks and bonds.
After I graduated from Webster University in 1979, I suggested to a prominent St. Louis investment company, Newhart Cook and Company, that they include stamps and coins as investment options. The company compared prices of various stamp and coin dealers and found that there was a significant disparity in the prices that dealers were willing to pay. They realized that there was a significant investment opportunity in rare stamps and coins, so they hired me to manage the first stamp and coin investment service ever offered by a New York Stock Exchange Company.
One day while I was in the Post Office buying stamps, I noticed a slight discrepancy in one sheet of stamps. Knowing the value of misprinted stamps, I purchased the sheet with the inconsistencies, and soon found myself thousands of dollars richer. Similarly when Donald Trump was elected President, the media was caught off guard. The night of the election I was in a local grocery store and noticed an edition of Newsweek announcing “Madam President” with a picture of Hillary Clinton on the cover. The next day the magazines were recalled and destroyed, but my copy is now a collector’s item.
I began writing a weekly newspaper column on stamps and coins for the St. Louis Post Dispatch in 1995. Before long, dozens of major daily newspapers and millions of readers across the country took an interest in my entertaining and profitable insights on America’s most popular hobbies.
I also began an advertising agency, which soon became the fastest growing ad agency in St. Louis. Now I continue to advertise, and write my collectibles column, as well as consult with estate lawyers and individuals, who want to get the best return when liquidating their stamp and coin collections. If you have a collectible that has been estimated at a significant value (over $10,000), I may be able to help you sell it most profitably.
