Top Class Coin Trade Fair

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Four cities, four trade fairs. Whilst Munich and Vienna are the focus of numismatic events in the spring, Berlin and Frankfurt am Main share the honour of welcoming Numismata as their guest in the autumn. The tradition-rich trade fair established by Erich Modes in Munich at the start of the 70s has enjoyed constant growth in past years. At the same time, Modes has successfully preserved the character of the trade fair.

Because of the simple stand configuration, visitors can effortlessly find their way around even in the biggest crowds. Most specialist dealers book a table draped with a blue cloth. Next to these are boxes with conventionally structured stands, which act as islands in the trade fair hall.

The success endorses Modes' carefully developed concept. Before the doors open, the first queues are usually already forming at the tills. The hall is soon filled with a large crowd, which lasts for hours. Even in the period before the trade fair closes, when the dismantling tolerated by organisers through gritted teeth has long since begun at other events, visitors here are still patiently and critically inspecting the diverse ranges of the specialist dealers, auctioneers, and accessory manufacturers. The trade fair is therefore equally worthwhile for everyone.

For a number of years, Modes has implemented a new, trend-setting concept in Berlin. He has integrated the Berlin stamp fair into Numismata and thereby brought together what belongs together. Coin and stamp dealers, numismatists and philatelists now share one hall and one event. The ties are already close anyway, as many stamp dealers also supply coins and some coin dealers also offer philatelic material. The accessory manufacturers work in both segments anyway, producing coin boxes and stamp albums alike. Tweezers, magnifying glasses and other tools of the trade are equally required by all collectors.

As such, Numismata offers the opportunity to add to and expand your own collection in an exceptional way. Nothing could be more attractive than comparing the graphical solutions at an event that is valued by philatelists and numismatists alike. You can focus on parallel issues, such as have been common in Germany for several years. The stamp and the coin are released at the same time and the philatelic service of the German post office creates attractive add-on products here, such as coin letters and coin sheets.

Likewise, issues from different times and even different countries can be found. Here, for example, the Goethe coin from 1932 can be found in the album next to the Goethe special issue stamp from 1982. The imagination knows no bounds!

This makes both hobbies equally exciting. Numasmatists and philatelists alike will always find something new. Even those who have been here for decades and think they have seen it all are regularly surprised – in no way a reference to the tiniest manufacturing defects that have been discovered only a long time later.

Even for philatelists, it is therefore worthwhile visiting a pure coin fair, such as is held in November in Frankfurt am Main. The ideas gained from looking over the fence definitely help with the composition and design of the collection. At the same time, new contacts can be made – with collectors and therefore likeminded people. You can then see each other again in Munich in the spring. Here, Numismata and the stamp fair are held next door to each other, in two parallel trade fair halls. In Vienna, the stamp fair is then part of Numismata again. Four cities, four coin fairs, with two stamp fairs as a bonus! Modes has also recently started working with the organiser of a coin fair in Warsaw. It is not only as a hobby that there are close ties.

Torsten Berndt

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