By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes …..
(n.)
A certification number is a unique identifier printed on a certified coin’s label on pieces encapsulated by a third-party grading company. It identifies the coin in the respective company’s database and allows anyone to look up the number to determine whether the coin is authentic and that the grade imprinted on the insert is correct.
CACG Coin Certification Number Format
CACG (Certified Acceptance Corporation Grading) uses a nine-digit sequence for its certification number. While difficult to read at a distance, this number is followed by a digit that indicates the coin number from the submission, and if the coin is being crossed from another service’s holder that was previously CAC-approved, an L denotes “Legacy”. The digits before the certification number indicate the coin’s sequence number in the CAC database, a period, and the coin’s assigned grade. The CACG format is quite similar to the one used by PCGS.
Click here: CACG Coin Lookup.
NGC Format
NGC (Numismatic Guaranty Company) uses a seven-digit certification number that identifies the invoice number of the submission and the sequence of each coin in that order. For the Barber Half Dollar pictured above on the left, the digits “3193674” represent the submission or order number, and the -002 indicates that this was the second coin graded from that order.
Click here: NGC Coin Lookup.
PCGS Format
PCGS (Professional Coin Grading Service) launched in February 1986 with a seven-digit certification number and switched to the current eight-digit certification number format in the mid-’90s. The font PCGS uses for its certification number is typically found on the front of the insert but occasionally appears on the back of some novelty inserts. The digits before the certification number indicate the coin’s sequence number in the PCGS database, a period, and the coin’s assigned grade.
Click here: PCGS Coin Lookup.
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What happened to the format that ANACS has. Why has The ANA forgotten their services and contributions to the coin collecting community?
The ANA rid itself of ANACS on the faulty assumptions that its members didn’t want the service and on the basis that its governing system has for decades resulted in a dysfunctional organization that seldom acts with its long term interests in mind. ANACS would never have proven to be as succesful as PCGS or NGC, but it could have served the ANA and its members’ needs.