Numismatic and History Discussion Forums > Ancient Coin Forum

widows collection

(1/1)

Digger:
Some time ago I read an artical about widows whose husbands had died .
The husbands had been roman coin collectors for many years and had large
collections but there widows knew nothing as far as roman coins were concerned.
The artical went on to try and explain some of the pitfalls that a widow might
encounter in trying to sell the collections.
Has anyone out there any info on the subject ?

Virgil H:
This is an interesting question and one I am trying to figure out for myself as far as what to do with my coin collection when I am no longer around. I did a search and there are quite a few articles out there about heirs, estate planning, advice on what to do with a collection, etc. Searching "heirs" returned better results than "widow," especially in regard to ancient coins as the page was full of widow's mite articles. Most articles I saw were dealing more with modern coins, but most of the advice is applicable to ancients. My collection is not a high end one, but still has a value that is worthwhile dealing with. Currently, I have my coins (and books) catalogued in a spreadsheet and instructions for my wife or son to contact Forum if they want to sell them. Alternatively, one of my kids may want the collection, or maybe one of my grandkids.

Not sure if this is what you were looking for, but I think it could be a good discussion topic. I will hopefully be around a few more years, but it is also time to plan what to do with my possessions that have value.

Here is one such article I found and I am still looking as your post got me interested in this again.

Jeff Garrett (NGC) What To Do With Inheried Coins: https://www.ngccoin.com/news/article/7718/

Virgil

lawrence c:
I'm in a similar situation, with my critical passwords, web addresses, etc. for my wife including the Forum web address. I'm not at all sure that I want her to have to deal with the big auction houses when I'm gone. At some point, we all have to think about this.
Best,
Larry

My Gallery:  https://www.forumancientcoins.com/gallery/index.php?cat=40464

Joe Sermarini:
If you advise your loved ones to consign to FORVM, I will, of course, do my best for them. I sincerely believe it is the best option.

PMah:
        The only useful aspect of that article is for the living collector to read it and realize how incomprehensible such "advice" would be to one's heirs.
       The key sentence is this: "This advice is for basic accumulations of coins and not true collections. If the person you have inherited coins from was a serious collector, you should take the same care with its disposal as the collector did assembling it"  .
       Since we are the collectors, we have to put that effort into documenting the collection, keeping realistic current value figures, and recommending (and updating) the sale venues we would have them turn to. Since most spouses will be aging along with the collector, they may not be in any better health position to make these decisions or actions. Electronic records may not be accessible and non-summary paper records are extremely time consuming to review.  A trusted non-spouse executor may be better for everyone.   It's always a good idea to use a reputable lawyer to discuss these things candidly and ensure you avoid your state's version of post-it note "wills".
   Someday I will get a return phone call from the consignment shop that sold my mother's own artwork, just like she listed on an index card left in a drawer.  It's been 14 years...

Navigation

[0] Message Index