\"Rare Coin Collector\" A.J. Vanderbilt Signed FDC Dated 1974 For Sale

Up for sale "Rare Coin Collector" A.J. Vanderbilt Hand Signed First Day Cover Dated 1974.

ES-0799

A.

J. Vanderbilt starting buying coins from Stack’s Rare Coins in New York City in

1936, at the age of 15? We are proud to present the A.J. Vanderbilt Collection

of U.S. Coins and Currency at our upcoming official sale of the Whitman Coin

and Collectibles Spring Expo. In 1926, an emergency appendectomy put a curious,

intelligent 5-year-old boy in bed for an extended period of time. His concerned

mother wanted to find a way to keep him still so that he could heal from

surgery. She had come up with a few ideas, but the one that he seemed to enjoy

the most was sorting through a large bag of pennies she had brought home from

the bank. He would sit for hours, looking at them with a magnifying glass and

categorizing them by date, mint and condition. The seed was planted, and a coin

collector was born. In 1936, at the age of 15, he started buying and selling

through Stack’s Rare Coins in New York City. He was their youngest client and

worked with them until his death at age 96. He traveled the United States and

visited many banks to find the newest and best coins he could. After joining

the Navy and serving in the Pacific during World War II, he started a

collection of foreign coins, but only from places he had visited. After World

War II ended and he received his PhD, the collector went to work for the

government in Washington, DC. His job required a fair amount of travel, giving

him the opportunity to add to his foreign collection. He was also in much

closer proximity to New York and Stack’s. With the help of the Stack’s brothers,

his collection grew into what is one of the finest in the country. For his

family, it was fun to see his face when a box from Stack’s arrived at the

house. He would first examine the box to check the seal. Then his pocketknife

came out and he precisely sliced the tape. The lid was raised with reverence;

he would almost be holding his breath. And, there in that little brown box was

a small envelope with a plastic bag inside holding a beautiful coin. His eyes

would light up as he removed the coin, holding it only by the rim. Out came the

magnifying glass to check for any scratches or marks. He was truly like a kid

in a candy shop. After he looked it over, my mother and I would be called into

the room to see the new addition to his collection. After much oohing and

aahing, he would place the coin back into the little plastic bag and set it on

his desk so he could look at it again later. There is something almost magical

about these coins, not only their physical beauty but also wondering where they

had been, who had held them in the past and where they might have traveled. The

man who collected them truly cared for his coins, not just their value, but

their history as well. The family this collector left behind hopes those who

purchase his coins and paper money will find them just as beautiful and

interesting as he did, and that they will make new history with them.?