Markus Anecdotes - Selling my collection of gold coins

Written/Photos by Markus October 2020

The financial tightness due to the Covid19 crisis has also hit me. And as gold prices are high, I decided to sell some of my gold coin collection.

After having done some research, I found a buyer who gives the best price. Before I tell what happened, let me share a bit more about these coins.

These coins have been with me for decades. They are part of a small collection that I cherished. With great care I’ve kept them in albums, rarely taking them out, but sometimes look at them to enjoy the shine and glistering. I have kept them in sleeves, that were in an album. I took great care not to scratch or otherwise damage them as, so I thought, the need to remain in close to mint condition. And as ".999 gold" damages quickly, they always have taken my special love and care.

In the last decade, I moved house about 5 times. Moving is always a hassle as one tends to lose and damage stuff. These coins were always on top of my list not to damage. They were moved in separate boxes and I never lost track of where they were and that they are treated with care.

And between moving, I made sure they were overly protected, with plastic, albums, specially dedicated drawers, and boxes. Many arguments arose when they were put “in a better spot” by my partner, where, so I thought, they could become damaged.

But then I decided to sell them. The buyer was an hour's journey away, and I had had to do some other things along the way, so again I packed the coins very carefully. Made sure that not only the coins but also the sleeves, album, and protective plastic were in pristine condition.

Once I arrived at the buyer, I was received with a nice cup of tea and we discussed that I wanted to sell them and agreed on a final price. Once done so, I hand her the package.

And what does she do? She rips open the packaging and throws it in the bin. Then she grabbed a pair of plyers and simply cut the coins in half, before putting it under some kind of machine that tests purity.

And she did not just gently cut the coins. No, she jammed the plyers on the edge while using all her force and while making grunting noises, plowed through the coins. These are the same coins I made sure they would not be damaged for decades that she now plows through.

I felt heartbroken to see my valuables be destroyed, but, so she explained, they’d be melted anyway.

She then quickly paid me and even gave some extra for the album that she threw away. I left her place with money but also the feeling that I wasted a lot of effort into keeping these coins safe. But then I realized that I enjoyed keeping these coins safe. I enjoyed their pristine condition and looking at them. Though they are now gone, at least I have the memory of playing with what I enjoyed.

The money I received I spend wisely on daily necessities while cherishing the memory of my 3 gold coins.