( Cet article sera bientôt traduit. )
Australian collector Don Edwards began his numismatic journey when he was a kid, enjoying coins alongside his prevailing philatelic passion of collecting stamps. As so many young collectors experience, Don found other interests. "But I was still interested in coins even though I wasn't collecting them," he says. "After a while you start to settle down and begin a family and money spent on hobbies goes by the wayside. It wasn't until about 15 years ago that I again started collecting, this time Australian coins."
Edwards says he initially set out to focus on collecting Australian pre-decimal coins from pennies through crowns. "I would collect the best available coins and store them in coin albums, then I discovered PCGS and realized that getting them graded and put into holders was a much better collecting option."
He carried on collecting the best PCGS-graded pre-decimal Australian coins he could afford for a few years. Then, something happened.
"For some reason that only collectors would know, I started collecting Australian decimal coins from one cent through $5 denominations." He collected the best Australian decimal coins he could afford and eventually migrated into collecting proof decimal coins. "So, from initially only wanting to collect pre decimal coins my collection has grown quite substantially."
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The biggest challenge Edwards faced in collecting Australian coins is just the sheer number of coins issued by the "Land Down Under" since 1910. "Pre-decimal coins were never issued with many mintmarks or privy marks, but most issues in the last 25 to 30 years have had multiple mintmarks and privy marks issued with each series of coins - mostly in the $1 denomination."
Despite the monumental task in pursuing the bulk of the Australian catalog, Edwards felt compelled to trudge forward. "When I first started entering coins into the PCGS Set Registry I noticed there was a competition against other collectors to achieve as many points and medals as possible." Many of the Set Registry objectives involved collecting coins from other countries, so Edwards expanded his collection beyond the island nation of Australia so he could compete in more categories. "Hence, some coins in my collection are from British North Borneo, and include the U.S. 2019 Apollo 11 series and the U.S. 2019 Quarter Quest."
Even as his collection reached across the Pacific to places like British North Borneo (a former British protectorate now known as Sabah and part of Malaysia) and the United States, Edwards maintains a special place in his heart for the coins of his Australian homeland. He doesn't necessarily have a favorite coin, but his favorite set is his Australian Dollars Commemorative, Circulation Strikes (1984-Present) assemblage of 658 coins. "I am still needing two coins to 100% complete the set," Edwards explains.
As he closes in on some of his magnificent collecting goals, Edwards advises others who wish to build PCGS Registry Sets to start off by collecting coins within their budgets. "Many times I have started with lower-grade coins and waited until higher grades came along in auctions or other sites that I could afford. Part of the fun for me is searching and acquiring higher-graded coins that I already have."