In 1974, multimillionaire LaVere Redfield left a great hoard of coins in a false wall of his basement because he distrusted banks and the government. Some 407,000 silver Morgan and Peace dollars were uncovered.
A-Mark Coin Company bought the hoard for $7.3 million and named Paramount International Coin Corp. as distributor.
This occurred before PCGS, NGC and other grading companies were established.
Paramount used a color coding system that specifically read “Redfield Collection.”
Red holders are labeled MS65. These were considered gems. Black holders (some say Mint State 60, others no numerical grade) sometimes contain coins with flaws (usually bag marks).
Later the company used holders that stated Paramount Coin Corp. without noting the Redfield hoard (because these coins were just part of Paramount’s inventory).
These often are marketed as “Redfield,” but they they are not. They often do not command as high a price because collectors favor the legendary Redfield mythology.
Redfield and similar Paramount holders often have cracks, so be sure to view both sides of the holder. These coins are popular for the toning that often develops in these holders. But the plastic holder is thin and cracks easily.
Cracked holders bring lower resale values.
Another problem with a cracked holder is grading the coin with NGC. The company retains the Redfield holder with a label about mint state on the reverse, as depicted here:
Cracked holders may be crossed over to PCGS in one of its standard holders:
You can read about the Redfield holders and how to submit them to NGC in this article.
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