Three stamp albums. One heavy coffee can. Twenty-six coin sets, still in their mailing envelopes.
That’s what my father left in the bottom drawer of his desk. My mother never touched it after he passed. When we cleared out her house, I brought it all home and set it in the closet of my husband’s den.
It stayed there for almost three years.
I didn’t open it because I didn’t know what to do with it.
Part of me was afraid I’d give away a small fortune. Part of me was afraid I’d get cheated. And part of me just wasn’t ready to see my father’s handwriting on all those little labels.
Then last month, my grandson found the coffee can while he was helping my husband in the den. He carried it into the kitchen with both hands and said, “Grandma, this thing weighs a ton. What’s in it?”
So we finally found out. This is what Dad’s stamp and coin collections were really worth, what we kept, and what I learned that might help you with your own.
The Hard Truth About Most Collections
I’ll tell you the hard part first, so it doesn’t surprise you the way it surprised me.