Collectors Corner^SM: The Collectibles Marketplace

(Anaheim, California) -- The PCGS CoinFacts Coin Dealer Hall of Fame has inducted two more distinguished professional numismatists from the past and present.  Joining the esteemed members of the Hall of Fame are John Albanese and the late Augustus B. Sage.

The two renowned numismatists were inducted into the Hall of Fame as part of the PCGS Set Registry luncheon, which took place during the American Numismatic Association World's Fair of Money in Anaheim, California on Friday, August 12, 2016.

"In 2010, we decided to recognize integral figures from numismatics' past and present.  Our field wouldn't be where it is today if it wasn't for these individuals who laid the foundation for our industry, while handling incredible coins and collections," said Ron Guth, President of PCGS CoinFacts.

Before founding various companies in the coin industry, John Albanese was a founding member of PCGS.

John Albanese (1959-present): Since 1978, John Albanese has been at the forefront of many of the coin industry's greatest innovations.  He was a founding member of the Professional Coin Grading Service (http://www.pcgs.com/) in 1986, founder of Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) in 1987, founder of Intercept Shield (a line of products designed to protect coins from corrosive gases) in 2001, and founder of the Numismatic Consumer Alliance in 2005, an organization dedicated to protecting individual coin buyers.  In subsequent years, the Numismatic Consumer Alliance has assisted in the recovery of over $10 million lost under abuses in the coin industry.  In 2007, Albanese formed the Certified Acceptance Corp. (CAC) and has rendered opinions on hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of rare coins.  Albanese continues to deal in high-end rare coins and to fight for the numismatic consumer.

Augustus B. Sage’s 1858 gathering of fellow numismatists would later become the American Numismatic Society.

Augustus B. Sage (1841-1874): The late Augustus B. Sage is a key figure in the history of American numismatics, showing interest in coins at the early age of 15.  On March 8, 1858, Sage invited four other collectors to meet at his family residence to establish what would later become the American Numismatic Society.  Only a year later, in 1859, Sage opened a shop in Manhattan, offering coins and other goods for sale.  Coin sales from his Manhattan-based shop took off, catalyzing a steady stream of numismatic auctions by others, from 1860 to present.

Sage later served in the Civil War, after which he practiced law.  He died from pneumonia on February 19, 1874 at the age of 32.

"We borrowed a famous quote from Sir Isaac Newton as the motto of our Hall of Fame: 'If I have seen farther it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.'  These men exemplify the quote and were both instrumental in steering our hobby and profession from its simple beginnings in the 1800s into the future," said David Hall, President of Collectors Universe and a PCGS Co-Founder.

To be inducted, Hall of Fame members must be determined by a vote of the 29-member PCGS CoinFacts Board of Experts and all living members of the PCGS CoinFacts Hall of Fame.  Additional biographical information about the 2016 and earlier Hall of Fame inductees is available online at www.pcgs.com/pcgscoinfacts/coindealerhof.html.

PCGS CoinFacts is the Internet's most comprehensive, one-stop source for historical U.S. numismatic information.  Since its founding in 1986, PCGS experts have certified over 33 million coins with a total market value of over $30 billion.