Although the United State Mint has changed the basic design of legal tender over the past few decades, the metals used have been the same. That has not always the case as there was a time in American history when bananas cost .10 a pound, Peter Paul and Mary were topping the pop music charts and the nation’s legal tender where authentic silver coins. 

That changed towards the end of 1963 when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, the US got involved in Vietnam and other innocence was lost. It was also a time that led to a big change in the country’s legal tender; the US Mint stopped minting silver coins out of 90 percent silver and anyone who stumbles across a quarter, silver dollar, dime or half-dollar minted prior to that date should pocket that pre 1965 silver coins.

Current legal tender is now minted of an assortment of less expensive metals than silver (silver prices have currently ranges from approximately $31 to $35 per 1 oz silver). The reason for the change away from using precious metals was that the silver weight value of the coins started to outweigh the proclaimed face value of the currency. That resulted in numismatists pulling those coins out of currency by the poundful. While there are not of ton of pre 1965 silver coins remaining in circulation, is one should appear in your spare change, pull it out and put it aside as it is worth something more than face value.

Ever since that change to currency, pre 1965 silver coins have become the bar of comparison. Now contemporary silver coins are a sandwich coins made of copper and silver. That is why if you are lucky enough to end up with an pre 1965 silver coins, saving that spare change may result in a profit.

I was digging through some old boxes the other day – boxes that must have come from my grandparent’s house years ago – and I came across a jar of coins. I set them aside, initially, but then was thinking “just what are those coins?” and I emptied the jar. It was full of a coin that I’ve never seen before: on the front is a portrait of Ben Franklin and on the back is the Liberty Bell, complete with the infamous crack. A few web-searches later, I determined what I had was a collection of Franklin half dollar coins!
 
Knowing absolutely nothing about these coins, I set out to do some research, starting with the Wikipedia page(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franklin_Half_Dollar) on the coins. It turns out that the Franklin half dollar was produced by the U.S. Mint between 1948 and 1963; production ceased with the death of President Kennedy in 1963 and the creation of the Kennedy half dollar. The coins are 90% pure silver and were produced at several U.S. mints, including in Denver, Philadelphia, and San Francisco.
 
There is, now, a significant demand among coin collectors – known as numismatists – for the Franklin half dollar, especially those which are in excellent or “mint condition” and those which have some odd quirks due to the minting process. Many of the coins were melted for their silver content, therefore decreasing the numbers of the Franklin half dollar available to collectors. According to an article on NumisMaster.com, many of these coins were worth more for the silver content (called the “melt value”) than for their collectability, at least in 1962.
 
As for determining the worth of a Franklin half dollar – I’d initially guessed that they’d all be worth the same – apparently that depends on the “grade” of the coin. As for determining the actual grade of each Franklin half dollar that’s now in my possession, I’m currently researching that. I found a website, NumisMedia.com, and there’s a whole page devoted to the Franklin half dollar(http://www.numismedia.com/fmv/prices/fnkhlv/pricesgd.shtml) coins – the year, the grades, and the value to collectors.
 
Another web page – from Coin Community (http://www.coincommunity.com/us_half_dollars/franklin.asp) – also devoted to the Franklin half dollar, explains a little more about the grading system of these collectable coins.
 
I’m going to continue my research into the history and worth of the Franklin half dollar and then I’m going to share the news with my family and we’ll decide what we want to do with this great find. I’m thinking that we’ll keep the jar – and each Franklin half dollar – in the family, though and pass them along to the coming generations.

Some friends and I were talking the other day about gold coins, specifically gold coin prices, and what constitutes a fair price. One of my friends’ husbands has been thinking about starting to get serious about collecting coins – he’s always collected, but not seriously – and was talking with her about starting to buy gold coins for his collection. So my friend went online, looked at gold coin prices and was stunned at how much some gold coins cost.
 
This whole conversation got me started thinking: how would one go about determining fair gold coin prices and what’s involved in making that determination? I went to a website called Coin Week (www.coinweek.com) and started reading about gold coins; I honestly had no idea that there were so many types of gold coins, from ancient to modern, from all over the world. And these coins are sought by collectors, so these gold coin prices are determined based on numerous factors, such as rarity, condition, how much a collector wants them to round out their collection, and so forth. In other words, collectable gold coin prices are based more on the amount that someone wants to pay for the coin rather than the actual worth of the gold in the coin.
 
With the other types of gold coins available, those which are more geared toward people looking for investment opportunities, those gold coin prices are – generally speaking – based on the amount of gold in the coin, especially when we’re talking about bullion gold coin prices.
 
The United States Mint (www.usmint.gov) makes both gold bullion coins and collectable gold coins. The Mint’s gold coin prices vary depending on which type of coin one wishes to purchase. You can read about the gold coin prices from the Mint here: catalog.usmint.gov/wcsstore/ConsumerDirect/images/catalog/en_US/GoldCoinGrid.pdf. When you’re buying coins produced by the U.S. Mint, there are varying “grades” of gold coins, including proof coins and uncirculated coins; these gold coin prices vary, too.
 
So how does one go about deciding on what makes for fair gold coin prices? It seems to me that one first must decide why they want to buy gold coins – to add to or start a collection or for investment purchases – and then to do lots and lots of research. There are some great, legitimate websites for those interested in coin collecting, such as My Coin Collecting (www.mycoincollecting.com) and Coin Collecting News (www.coincollectingnews.org) when you want to see what fair gold coin prices are. But if one is looking into gold coin prices for investment, the best place to start is with the U.S. Mint.

In times of economic uncertainty, which seems to include most of the last decade, investors increasingly turn to gold. Although that’s the rational first step, if the next step that's most critical. Where do you buy gold bullion? Unfortunately, when you go to buy gold bullion, it's generally a case of buyer beware. With the recent frauds of Bernie Madoff and Enron, one can't be too careful. The bullish gold market has been, and some say always will be, a magnet for swindlers looking to get rich quick. That's why it's imperative that you go to a reputable gold dealer. The best place to find a respectable establishment is through a trusted and financially knowledgeable friend.
 
Lately, gold has deviated from its up up and away scenario to a more stagnant situation. Although it may prove frustrating in the short-term, it is in fact often, the perfect time to buy gold bullion. 
 
The fact that the gold market has been defying logic makes it even more important that you buy your gold bullion from someone you know that you can trust. The global economy suggests that gold should be taking off, but it’s not. However,  if you look at the big picture, you can see that almost every boom was preceded by just such a dip. Most gold experts are realistic and realize that there are always setbacks even on a generally upward trajectory. 
http://bullionsupermarket.com/GOLD/News
 
So why...given the fiscal cliff, and the global economic uncertainty isn’t gold through the roof? Chris Martensen, a highly regarded analyst, notes that in the run-up to the QE4 announcement and then in the days that followed, thousands of gold contracts had been sold in the overnight market; and it happened so fast you'd have to use special charting to begin to decipher what was really going on. There's no normal justifiable reason for so much activity – except possibly to drive down prices dramatically.
For this reason, many analysts have become convinced that the gold market cannot be trusted or relied upon for clear tracking signals into the future. One would expect that in a situation like this, you would see dramatically reduced gold prices. For some reason, that has not been the case lately. This all makes the advice of a good gold dealer that much more valuable.
 
So now's the time folks – find that good gold dealer and buy.

People think buying gold coins for investment is a new thing.  The truth is, in times of economic uncertainty, the value of gold coins often rises.  This is because gold coins are not just an investment, they’re real money.  Gold has always had value.  It has never been totally worthless.  Since the beginning of civilization, man has loved gold. 
 
Today, the world is in an economic crisis.  Housing as an investment has lost its appeal for many.  Banks are paying almost nothing in interest.  People remember the loss of their stock portfolios took in the last big fall.  All these things contribute to gold’s popularity. 
 
Gold coins are a unique investment because they are both appealing to people who just want to buy gold and others who love gold coins.  So naturally, their value is a bit higher than just the spot weight of their gold.  This increased price is called a premium. 
 
Because premiums differ from dealer to dealer, it is essential that you comparison shop.  Make sure you are comparing the same coins and the same grade or condition.  Or you can simply ask what a dealer’s standard premium is for a certain gold coin. 
 
The world gold market is booming.  India, the world’s biggest lover of gold, had been driving price rises because of their growing middle class.  Gold jewelry and collecting gold has become one of India’s obsessions.  The gold market in China is also rising as a certain segment of the population seeks the pleasures of middle and upper class life.
 
What will happen in the future?  Analysts predict that gold will remain stable or rise.  No one is seeing a big drop in gold prices anytime soon.  Gold has established itself as a major investment.  The ability to track world prices on the internet and to easily see trends also fuels the desirability of gold.