What are those mysterious KM numbers?
by Joel Anderson
The KM number frequently cited on my website, as well as the websites
of other world coin dealers, is the Standard Catalog of World Coins
reference number. KM stands for Krause and Mishler, the original
authors of the Standard Catalog of World Coins. The catalog, now
expanded to five volumes, attempts to list, picture and price most
coins issued since 1600. Each of the five volumes covers the
coins issued in a particular century, thus there is a volume for the
17th, 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st century. The volumes are updated
about every one to three years. The catalog is usually
soft-cover, and due to its thickness (often running over 2000 pages),
it is sometimes referred to as “The Telephone Book”. It is also
commonly refered to as the Krause catalog. When
collectors or dealers of world coins refer to a coins catalog price,
they are usually referring to the price in the Standard Catalog of
World Coins.
Each type and denomination of coin from a country is assigned a KM
number. Many collectors use the KM numbers as an easy way of keeping
track of coins they want or have. By having the catalog and
knowing the country name and KM number, collectors can look up the coin
in the Standard Catalog of World Coins (though it is VERY helpful to
also know the denomination, as the numbers are assigned chronologically
but the coins are listed by denomination in the catalog.) The
exact information included for a particular coin varies, but will often
include a picture, metal content, including the amount of precious
metal for silver and gold coins, description of the design, mintage
figures, and estimated retail prices for the coin in multiple grades.
The retail prices are the most controversial aspect of the
catalog. The catalogers depend on a number of volunteer
contributors to submit pricing information. Some contributors
think very highly of their specialty and submit high catalog
values. Other areas may lack active contributors, so prices do
not get updated to reflect current market activity. And sometimes
I just don’t understand how they get the prices listed. The
prices should be understood as a person’s estimate of a coins value,
and should not be taken as Gospel Truth. I regularly offer
coins on my website at a fraction of their catalog value, because I
feel the true retail price should be substantially less than the
current catalog value. I also offer coins at well above the
catalog value, because in my experience the coin is a lot scarcer than
the catalog indicates, or the catalog prices for that issue have not
been updated for many years. Interestingly the items priced well
above catalog value tend to sell out faster than the items that are
heavily discounted from the catalog price!
The Standard Catalog of World Coins has its faults, but it is the best
general reference available for world coins. It is available at
many public libraries (though sometimes through an inter-library loan)
and we usually offer it on the World Coins Book page on our website at:
www.joelscoins.com/bookfs.htm#world
JOEL ANDERSON
INTERESTING WORLD COINS & PAPER MONEY
www.joelscoins.com
PO Box 365
Grover Beach, CA 93483-0365 USA
phone/fax 1 805 489 8045
email: orders@joelscoins.com
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