An interesting part of coin collecting is to find a different niche that adds more to the collection than just the coin. I started with coin covers when the US Mint introduced them for various coins, including the 50 State Quarters series. Then I found that coin covers are popular in Europe, specifically in Great Britain and Australia where they refer to these collectibles as philatelic numismatic covers (PNC), to distinguish them from others like first day covers (FDC).
Recently, I was searching for PNCs on that famous online auction website when I came across an interesting cover. It was postmarked in 1972 and included a coin with an off-center strike. I did not know much about the cover but purchased it anyway because it had that “oh neat” quality.
When I received the cover, I examined it closely. It appears to be a souvenir from the Error-A-Rama Error Coin Convention held in 1974 at the El Cortez Hotel in San Diego. The convention is sponsored by the Numismatic Error Collectors of America, one of the two clubs that were merged to form today’s Combined Organizations of Numismatic Error Collectors of America (CONECA). The stamp was the common 8-cent stamp for the day and the postmark was made on the first day of the convention.
The coin is a Lincoln Cent that was struck 90-percent off center. The coin is held in place by a piece of cellophane tape on the reverse wit the entire inner card being wrapped in plastic. The envelope is sealed with the logo of the San Diego club and initials on the flap.
To find out more information, I wrote to several error experts sending images of the cover. I received a response from noted error expert and dealer Fred Weinberg. Weinberg said that the initials on the back of the cover are of Jim Heine, one of the organizer’s of the San Diego error club—one of three Southern California error clubs of the late 1960s through the mid 1970s.
“Covers like this were signed to both ‘authenticate’ the item,” Weinberg wrote, “and to show that the envelope hadn’t been opened or tampered with.”
Weinberg reports that these covers were issued for the Error-A-Rama shows in the 1970s. While there are no records of the number of covers made, Weinberg estimates that “at least 100-200 or so covers were made up” He also said that Heine also sold his own series of error covers with different error coins.
Aside being an interesting collectible, it is wonderful to be part of a hobby where you can email a leading expert for more information. I met Fred Weinberg at the World’s Fair of Money in Baltimore and thanked him in person. But I would like to repeat my appreciation here: THANK YOU, FRED!