WHEN IS A coin not a coin?
That is not a trick question for Peter Mercer, a Port Ludlow collector who has coins that can tell time, keep him from getting lost or get him out of a tight spot.
“These are just some of the interesting ones,” he said. “You wouldn’t think coins would be fun, but they are.”
Mercer is talking about the Liberian compass and sundial coin set, the Chinese knife coin and other legal currency from his collection that is on display at the Port Ludlow Bay Club.
The purpose: to pique interest in an antiques appraisal “road show”
June 25 being put on by the Community Enrichment Alliance.
A benefit for scholarships for Chimacum High School students, it features half a dozen appraisers, of which Mercer is one.
Know what you have
Mercer’s No. 1 rule of coin collecting: Know what you have.
“It is people’s responsibility to know what they are handing down to their children and grandchildren,” he said. “You want to write down what it is, where it came from and what you paid for it.”
Mercer has lots of coins in his collection that illustrate that rule. One is a tiny gold coin he bought at garage sale in Port Angeles.
Made in 950 A.D., the Byzantine coin was minted to pay the church, he said, which required payment in gold coins. So smaller and smaller ones were coined.
“This became the smallest gold coin,” he said, holding up the tiny button.
Then there are the small silver pieces — squares, pyramids and spheres — that he bought at a garage sale in Port Townsend for a few dollars. The seller thought they were toys. The pieces turned out be a limited-edition set of Somali coins worth $450.
Limited-edition set
“There are only 500 sets in the world,” Mercer said.
He also discovered two treasures in a box of coins he bought for a few dollars at a garage sale in Kitsap County. In the box were two coins that looked foreign.
Going through his reference books, he discovered they were 18th-century pennies from Massachusetts.
“It’s fun to do the research,” he said.
He also has a Chinese knife coin from 400 B.C. on display at the Bay Club. Knives were valuable in China and used for currency, Mercer said, but carrying them was a problem — the sharp edges cut into clothing — so eventually, the blades were blunted.
He also has coins from other countries in the form of crystal paperweights and medallions.
“America has such boring coins,” he said. “Canada produces some of the most beautiful coins you can find.”
Washington native
A native of Western Washington, Mercer was pointed down the road to coin collecting by his parents, who gave him a U.S. Mint proof set the year he graduated from Rochester High School in 1960.
They continued sending him proof sets during the years he was in the military.
Mercer, whose parents owned the Little Red Barn restaurant on the highway at the Rochester exit, moved to Jefferson County and owned the Chimacum Cafe from 1976 to 1985.
He also owned the Paradise Cafe in Paradise Bay, south of Port Ludlow, in the early ’90s; the cafe burned down.
A musician, he celebrated his 20th anniversary as organist at Community Methodist Church in Port Hadlock the first Sunday in June.
He still buys proof sets from the U.S. Mint but also collects sets of U.S. coins, world coins, tokens, medallions and “rounds” of noncurrency metal.
More rules
His No. 2 rule for owning coins and precious metal: Keep it in the vault.
Mercer keeps his coin and currency collection in a bank vault.
Rule No. 3: If it’s made of gold or silver, you don’t want to sell it.
Rule No. 4: Sell coins and currency to a collector, not a dealer.
“They’ll give you the highest price,” he said.
Mercer said a certain percentage of collectible coins are destroyed in disasters every year, so the ones left behind become more valuable.
To keep up with the value of his collection, he buys annual reference books that have also have become collectibles.
Mercer also collects paper money — his collections includes “horse blankets” — dollar bills printed before the size was reduced to fit into people’s pockets and specially printed bills distributed in Hawaii and to U.S. troops in Africa during World War II to identify them if those areas were captured and the bills reproduced.
He keeps an eye out for dollar bills with unusual serial numbers — ones with the same number repeated — and has a bill on which the serial number, printed twice, doesn’t match.
A star after the serial number means it was reissued because of a printing error; if the mistake gets through, it makes the bill more valuable.
Changes in style, such as making the presidents’ portraits larger, make the “small-head” bills collectible.
“Old ones become more valuable as you go along,” he said.
Other collections
Mercer also collects a wide variety of objects, including china and pottery.
Sometimes, the categories blend — he was replacing the pad on the base of a figurine he had owned for several years and found an envelope inside with a $500 bill in it.
Organizers of Port Ludlow’s antiques appraisal show hope the event will draw people who want to avoid losing track of time and prevent the loss of family assets — or at least keep them out of tight spots.
Antiques Appraisal Day is Saturday, June 25, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Port Ludlow Bay Club, 120 Spinnaker Lane, Port Ludlow.
Entry to the event is $25 in cash or check, payable to Community Enrichment Alliance, and entitles the entrant to three appraisals.
Appraisals are oral, not written, though notes can be taken. Additional appraisals are $15 per item.
Experts on coins, china, crystal, jewelry, linens, dolls, guns, fishing gear, furniture and art will be on hand.
Because of space limitations, entry is limited to people seeking appraisals.
Boeing Bluebills will help carry bulky or heavy items, and the Port Ludlow Computer Club members will search online at the request of appraisers.
For more information, phone Dee McConnell at 360-437-7648 or Margo Elton at 360-437-0758.
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Jennifer Jackson writes about Port Townsend and Jefferson County every Wednesday. To contact her with items for this column, phone 360-379-5688 or email jjackson@olypen.com.
