This current set by Barry Enholm, named "Ally" in the PCGS Registry after his granddaughter, was put together with the typical eye for quality by this proficient numismatist. He previously assembled a complete set of high-end Indian cent proofs and Mercury dimes, both of which were named for his grandson "Joshua" and sold in recent Heritage auctions. He's since reassembled an even finer collection of Mercurys! It can be viewed in the Registry (under the Ally name) as can his nearly complete set of Dahlonega gold dollars (the Green Pond Collection). Any one of these would be a lifetime accomplishment for most collectors.
As for his most recent attention to MS Indians, some grade stats:
1) 34 coins grade MS66 or higher, including 3 elusive MS67s.
2) 14 of the 55 coins have none graded higher by PCGS, including the finest known 1906 and rarely seen 1871 and 1872 in MS66RD (pops 2/0).
3) 10 other dates have only 1 coin graded higher by PCGS.
His collection began in 1998 with both PCGS and NGC examples. He eventually broke it up, due in part to the frustration of finding true red examples of dates like 1872, but kept the best PCGS specimans "just in case". Those he kept included the 1871 in 66RD and 1877 in 65RD. He was then fortunate enough to have a complete set offered to him with some exceptional 64-65's which, combined with his existing coins, he eventually sent for regrading. Amazingly he got 27 upgrades, some by two points. Since then he's made many upgrades to his now complete collection.
Some incites from Barry, as published in the Pinnacle Rarities article Inside the Minds of Successful Collectors: "One thing I found out early on was I had to formulate my own pricing guide from all the available sources -- auction prices, published coins for sale, and coin shows. Because of the inherent problems in grading Indian's -- color, strike, spots -- it is very hard to get an accurate pricing level. The guides list prices for the best of the condition, not the average. I have seen prices for a certain date in MS65 Red fluctuate from $2,900 to $12,500! It was also important to view as many pieces as possible to learn and understand the grading criteria."
