Iowa coin dealer and buyer of rare currency

About Christopher's Rare Coins - your Iowa coin dealer

I grew up on a farm in the small town of Mapleton in western Iowa. Like many kids, I collected lots of things including butterflies, insects, rocks and coins. My interest in coins started when I found a 1919-S Lincoln Cent in my “red pot penny jar”. I really thought this was a rare coin! On a trip to the local Coast-To- Coast store, I noticed some blue Whitman coin folders and talked my dad into buying a Lincoln cent and Jefferson nickel folder so I could collect coins.

I would go through my change, my parent’s change and all the change of my relatives at family functions. Family members would make a point to bring lots of pocket change whenever I was around.

After a while, it became difficult to add to my collection from pocket change. My father, Wayne knew a coin dealer and farmer named Earl Peterson from Anton, Iowa. He and his partner Ted Alvey had a coin shop in Sioux City called U.S.A Coin Co. Earl would call me whenever he had coins I needed for my collection. As my collection neared completion, I became interested in how Earl and Ted bought and sold coins. The first coin collection I bought was from a lady in Smithland, Iowa. With Earl’s guidance, I bought the collection for $57 and sold it to Earl for $90. It was a windfall acquisition! I had made my first step to becoming an Iowa coin dealer!

I began buying coins from U.S.A. Coin Co. for inventory, and had a desire to exhibit at trade shows. Since I didn’t yet have a driver’s license, my mom would take me to Sioux City to flea markets once a month. She dropped me off Saturday or Sunday mornings and picked me up in the evenings. It was a 45-mile drive each way. To supplement my coin sales, I also sold car hood ornaments off of antique cars from the salvage yard and antique glass insulators from old telephone poles.

When I could finally drive, I got my first experience as an Iowa coin dealer. I set up at the Storm Lake Coin Club coin show. Since it was quite a drive each way, my mom and dad agreed to let me stay over night at a hotel at the age of 16! My coin cases consisted of cookie sheets with curtain material glued to the bottoms, and Plexiglass tops. I made lights from thin lead water pipe with wire running through and a fixture on the end. My mom, dad, aunt and uncle showed up at the show on Sunday with Chris’ favorite food, peanut butter and jelly and dried beef sandwiches!

Later I would exhibit at coin shows in Omaha and surrounding areas. When I was a senior in high school, Earl Peterson called me and said he need help at the F.U.N. coin show in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. This was very exciting, especially considering the fact that I had never flown before. At the show, I observed the excitement of a major coin convention and I was hooked. I knew I wanted to be a full time Iowa coin dealer some day.

I graduated from high school and attended college at Des Moines Area Community College in Ankeny, Iowa. While I was in school, I still attended coin shows, and followed in my father’s footsteps by attending auction school in Mason City, Iowa. I then began auctioneering at local Coin Auctions and Shows for J&P Coin Co. of Des Moines.

I later received my real estate license and sold real estate, but still kept my part time coin business alive. When the gold and silver boom hit in 1979, I was receiving calls from a lot of folks around Mapleton wanting to sell coins. My folks would set up the appointments and I would go home a couple of times a week, travel to peoples’ homes all around the area and buy their coins, gold and silver and then take them back home to sell them.

In 1980 at age 21, I decided to give up the real estate business and become an Iowa coin dealer by opening up a small coin store in Ankeny, Iowa called “Coin World”. The people from the trade paper called “Coin World” weren’t too happy about the name, so I changed it to “Coin Works” so it would look similar to existing yellow page ad.

While still auctioneering for J&P Coin, a man named Mike Cunningham called me and asked me to conduct the auction for the INA coin convention in Des Moines. I accepted and the auction was a success. Mike Cunningham was then awarded the contract to conduct the auction for the first Mid Winter ANA auction in Albuquerque, NM. I cataloged most of the lots for the sale and also did the auctioneering with the help of my folks.

After that, I cataloged auction lots and did auctioneering all over the country including Hawaii, New York and Long Beach, CA for Cunningham’s, Kagin’s of Des Moines, and Davis Rare Coin Auctions and Shows. I also conducted my own auctions for INA conventions and Des Moines Coin Club Shows. Several years ago, I bought Sterling Coin Co. Rare Coin Auctions and Shows and have conducted over 50 rare Coin Auctions and Shows as an Iowa coin dealer since then.

During the gold and silver boom of 1979 and 1980 I also purchased quite a bit of scrap gold and previously owned jewelry from the public. A customer would come in occasionally and purchase items from my scrap bin. He eventually told me that he was getting them refurbished at Herman Bros. in downtown Des Moines and would re-sell them to other dealers and at shows. I decided to investigate this myself and visited with Frank and Donny Herman about having them refurbish my better scrap jewelry.

My trips to Herman Bros. soon became a weekly tradition. Herman’s would spend a lot of time with me teaching me about jewelry and gemstones of all types. They were the “Earl Peterson” of my jewelry business. I probably would not be in the jewelry business as extensively as I am today without Frank and Donny Herman.

My primary jewelry customers were my coin customers. As word of mouth spread, I eventually developed a growing base of jewelry customers.

When I first relocated in 1985, I changed the company name to Christopher’s Coin Works and Fine Jewelry. The store eventually became known as Christopher’s Fine Jewelry and Rare Coins and has had several changes of address in Ankeny and Des Moines.

From a farm boy with a card table at a flea market, Christopher’s has developed into the largest full service Iowa coin dealer.

Christopher’s Rare Coins deals in all types of U.S. coins, gold, platinum and silver bullion and has the best inventory of coin supplies in the region. Christopher’s is also a top buyer of estates and collections of all sizes.

Christopher’s Fine Jewelry carries a vast inventory of certified loose diamonds, engagement sets, colored stone jewelry of all types, gold and silver jewelry, Seiko and Pulsar watches and estate and previously owned jewelry. We are also one of the top buyers of estate and previously owned jewelry.

Christopher’s Fine Jewelry also wholesales closeouts and jewelry of all types to various stores in Iowa and neighboring states. Trade shows are also a large source for wholesale sales.

Despite the continuous evolution of the company, one thing has remained constant for 27 years, and that is my commitment to provide quality products, fair prices, superior service and treat all customers with courtesy, respect and understanding.

I am a member in good standing of the American Numismatic Association and the Central States Numismatic Society, and am past president of the Iowa Numismatic Association. We are also members of the Iowa Jewelers Association and Jewelers of America.

Your visit to this web site is much appreciated, and it is hoped that you enjoy the numismatic experience half as much as I have.

Sincerely,

Chris Seuntjens
President, Christopher’s Fine Jewelry and Rare Coins