Whether you've just started coin collecting or you have a collection worth hundreds of thousands of dollars it's important that you understand the importance of security and the measures you can take to improve the safety of your collection.

We've come up with our top 10 tips for the secure storage of your coin collection and we'll publish them in 2 articles. This article lists tips 1 to 5.

Security of your valuable Collection Part 1.

1. Opening your mouth. The biggest taboo with regards to the security of your coin collection is talking about it or your love of collecting. Telling people that you collect coins and what you have can get you into a lot of trouble leaving you wide open to be the target of the theft of your valuables. You might trust the person you tell implicitly but who will they tell about your hobby? You really do not know, so the best thing is to tell no-one. The internet is a great place to chat incognito under a username that doesn't have to identify you personally in any way. If anyone finds out your name or where you live then you have opened yourself up to a huge security issue.

2. Get a post office box. This will allow your mail to find you but not your home. A lot of people add to their collections via online purchases or mail order and a post office box of your own will keep your home address secure from any unscrupulous sellers. Also, mail hanging out of your street mailbox with the sender "Terry's Coin Shop" can only be an inidication that there is something valuable in your home.

3. Use secure off-site storage. We suggest that regardless of how secure your home is that the only safe place for the valuable parts of your collection is in secure storage away from your home. Banks in capital cities can provide safety deposit boxes and some also offer a service where you can keep a locked box in a secure room inside the bank vault. This is often cheaper than a safety deposit box but still only you have the key to the box. Pricing for safety deposit boxes and keeping items in secure custody in the bank vault can vary from $150-$500 a year depending on the size and space needed. Availablity can be very limited so shop around to find what suits you. Storage companies sometimes offer secure storage options but we don't think you could go past the security of the bank vault. I always dreamed that I'd buy a house one day that was a converted bank and that in the basement was my own personal bank vault. This wasn't to be but they are about.

4. Get a home alarm. If you're going to keep your coins at home then you'll need to consider some pretty tough security measures. Getting your house alarmed with a back-to-base system means that if the intruder alarm sounds the police and security company will be knocking on your door in minutes. Signage to this effect on the windows is also a great deterrent. Home alarm systems can sometimes be set to lock your family inside the perimeter at night so any attempted entry (or teenager exit) will be immediately discovered. Another option to consider is to have your home safe fitted with a sensor to trigger your home alarm.

5. Record it! Keep receipts from your purchases or record where and when you purchased items. Have your own personal catalogue with distinguishing marks, rim nicks, bagmarks noted so your individual coin may be identified. Photographs or scans of individual items are also helpful. If coins are in third party graded slabs such as those by PCGS, the record the registration numbers for easy identification later.

That rounds-up points 1-5, see Part 2 for the points 6-10.

The second in a 2 part article series covering aspects of coin security and what you can do to keep your collection safe.

Part 1 discussed points 1-5 relating to keeping good records of your collection, alarming your home, safety deposit box options, hiring a post office box and limiting discussion which might lead others to think you have something valuable in your home.

Part 2, points 6-10 approaches more ideas in coin security.

6. Spread the risk. The stash here and there approach is popular with some, coins hidden in the mattress, on top of the wardrobe, in the old suitcase, some maybe even buried in the backyard although I wouldn't suggest the last one. This means that you've spread your risk and likelihood of losing the lot to a burglary would be reduced but what about a fire in your home? This would be devastating.

7. Get a dog. Have you considered getting a dog? A barking dog, even a small one will create a scene and deter anyone looking to jump your back fence or jimmy the side window.

8. Buy a safe. Cash handling shops and businesses store their takings in heavy bomb-proof safes and there's no reason (finances permitting) you couldn't have one of these at home. If you're building a house your options are many, you could build it inside a fake wall integrating it into the plan of your home. Floor safes can be easily covered with a rug or built into a tiled floor.

There are many types of safes available and you don't always have to use a cash safe to store your valuables. You might like to consider a fire-proof media storage safe or a fire-proof gun safe which can be a lot cheaper than a cash safe. These can easily be bolted to walls or floors and can provide much more space than a bank safe for a smaller cost.

Think about how your coins are stored, they mostly live in 2x2's covered in mylar, eagle mounts, capsules or PCGS or NGC slabs all of which are plastic. So you want to have some sort of fire proofing in the safe that you choose. Consider the weight of a safe and how easy it is to move or be broken into. Small safes can be purchased from around $500 up to thousands of dollars for larger one's. Obviously you want to make sure that you don't leave the combination out anywhere where it wil be found. I came across an interesting safe option when browsing the internet recently where he owner had covered their safe to look like it was a fridge, let's hope the burglars aren't wanting a beer on their way out!

9. Now you see it. It is said that a thief won't spend more than 6 minutes in your home so wouldn't you rather they did take your big plasma tv or your video camera in plain sight than your beloved collection? Out of sight is the key. Don't leave your latest purchases on your desk or by the phone or on the coffee table. Get them catalogued, photographed and locked away quick smart. Leaving coins laying around your house is also a security risk when visitors pop around, or tradesmen are in your house to do some work. Again, they might be quite trust-worthy but you don't know who they will tell what they happened to see lying on your desk!

10. Repeat steps 1-9. Grouping a number of the secure measures above can only help to keep your valuables safe. Think smart and be safe.

When push comes to shove remember that your life and that of your family is more important that any coin collection. If an armed intruder enters your home demanding that you open your safe then do so without a seconds hesitation. A collection can (almost) always be re-built, your life is invaluable.

All I can say is wow. A stunning visual piece but will never fall into my collecting radar, nor yours I suggest. My interest in this coin lies in the process of it's manufacture and I thank the Perth Mint for sharing this with readers. This one million dollar Australian legal tender 99.99% pure gold coin has been cast and not struck as most coins are. Fitting really as it's likely there will only ever be one of these and can you imagine a coin press big enough? Manufactured from one tonne (1,012kg) of pure gold, it's bullion value of just over $AUD53 million (work it out on the Scrap Gold Calculator) far surpasses it's legal tender face value -but you'd never go out to spend it, it weighs a tonne!

The process of making this kangaroo coin has been captured in it's entirely and published on Youtube and the coin cast by the Perth Mint even has it's own website. The images of the process are a real treat for collectors.

2011 Uncirculated Queen's Visit $5 (image courtesy www.ramint.gov.au)

Queen Elizabeth II is currently in Australia to officially open the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, WA tomorrow. As a memento of this visit by the Queen and her husband Prince Phillip the Royal Australian Mint have produced an uncirculated $5 coin. She previously visited in 2006 with a 50c coin issued then.

The reverse design of this five dollar coin incorporates 16 St Edward's Crowns, this collectible commemorating the Queen's 16th visit to Australia was designed by Wojciech Pietranik. The St Edward's Crown is part of the British Crown Jewels (it is the principal piece of the Royal Regalia) and representations of it are used on badges and coats of arms throughout the commonwealth indicating the authority of the reigning monarch. It was last worn at HM's coronation in 1953. It weighs 2.2kg, is made of gold and features 444 precious stones.

Issued at $20, this coin in a presentation card has been minted on an aluminium, zinc and bronze planchet with a $5 legal tender denomination. It weighs in at 20g with a diameter of 38.74mm, a NCLT -non-circulating legal tender coin not intended for circulation. Certainly a collector piece for Royal followers but I doubt will ever increase much in value from an investment point of view with an unlimited mintage. The $5 denomination releases have proven to perform poorly for investors.

If you're collecting as a memento of this event then the one dollar coin also issued by the Royal Australian Mint which has been released into circulation and is available in Mint rolls for CHOGM is also a must for your collection. The packaging of the $5 Royal Visit coin has a special pocket to add your commemorative one dollar!

2011 Uncirculated Queen's Visit $5 in Collector Card(image courtesy www.ramint.gov.au)

Another ANDA coin fair has passed by and with it another round of show product from the Royal Australian Mint. Of particular interest to us is the A Counterstamp Shilling Ram $1 where visitors could strike their own A counterstamp onto the one dollar coin. We saw many young show visitors grinning from ear to ear as they struck their own coin. 800 mobile press coins were handstruck by their new owners each day of the 2 day show held in the Adelaide Festival Centre in the heart of the city. The remaining of the 5,000 show mintage were counterstamped beforehand and distributed throughout the show.

A very quiet show and one not often held in the City of Churches we think it was tough getting South Australian's out of bed on a Sunday. The show opened at 10am both show days (the shops don't open usually until 11am on a Sunday) and concluded at 6pm and 5pm respectively.By the 10am opening on Saturday a reasonable queue had formed with a treasured Goldseeker near the front. Our own mate Peter had nipped in first and beat Goldy to the post for the first counterstamp of the day. Almost all of the queue from the front door joined the portable press queue. It seemed that's what the collectors wanted. The Royal Australian Mint also had a second show product with the fifth in the Capital Bridges 1 ounce silver series.

There were fewer dealers than usual at this show. Present were the show organisers VP Coins and Sterling and Currency run by the ANDA president. Among others were Canberra Numisco, Salamanca Rare Coins, Rare Coin Co, Universal Coin Co, Watermans' Coins from Melbourne and local sporting memorabilia enthusiast Gerry from At the Toss of a Coin who has a shop just down the road at Unley. The Perth Mint was absent from this particular show.

After just a few hours into the show the crushing need for a counterstamp dollar had subsided and activity wound down. We were lucky enough to be helping out at the At the Toss of a Coin table so we got to mingle and chat to collectors and also browse dealers books as well.

The entry queue was big on Sunday - Hi Eric! Yes, the queue numbered just one lonely person and people wandered slowly through the door in dribs and drabs in what was a very uneventful Sunday. The lovely Helen at the Royal Australian Mint stand and Guy, the portable press guy were happy to have a chat and share Mint mints with us whilst we browsed the new and exciting coin issues. We gathered from buyers in general that there was a keenness for decimal mint product and not so much for pre-decimal, world coins or even slabbed coins.

The show drew to a close and a tired blog crew went home.

2012 Uncirculated Year of the Dragon $1

This is the sixth one dollar coin issued by the Royal Australian Mint in the lunar series, a coin design being released every year since 2007. The 2012 issue features the Year of the Dragon following the traditional chinese zodiac calendar. The one dollar legal tender issue is the standard 25mm 9 gram size made from aluminium bronze but you most likely won't ever find one of these in your change. It has been struck for the collector market known as NCLT where a coin bears a legal tender value but has not been made to be traded as everyday currency.

If you were born in the Year of the Dragon, 2000, 1988, 1976, 1964, 1952, 1940 or 1928 then it is said that you are bold, passionate, brave and much admired for your individuality. Your faults are that you may be egotistical and ambitious.

The reverse design (the tails side!) is sculpted by Vladimir Gottwald. A central circle contains a flame, the designers initials "G" and an intricate mythical dragon. To the left, a flame, and to the right the chinese character for dragon. In the 'corners' appears four identical lunes (crescent shapes) trailing long curling flames. The legends read 2012 and YEAR OF THE DRAGON.

The heads side, or obverse depicts the Ian Rank-Broadley portrait of Queen Elizabeth II which has been in use on legal tender since 1999. The obverse is different to other aluminium bronze standard sized dollars in that it has the denomination value -one dollar, appearing on the obverse.

Issued for $13.50 in a protective plastic blister snapped into a descriptive card it is housed in a symbolic bright red envelope. It has an unlimited mintage for now, the collector market will set the mintage through demand. We'll update this info when the annual reports are released.

The Purple Penny Mini Coin Album

Nowhere before have collectors been able to purchase small portable coin albums that are PVC free(*). After months of research, design and prototype development The Purple Penny now have a non-pvc, secure and durable 48 pocket 8 page mini coin album available. Made from archival polypropylene this 2 ring mini coin album has cleverly designed pages which include a safety flap so your coin stays put! So many times before have collectors turned their portable coin albums upside down only to have 2x2's bouncing on the floor, even opening your backpack to find stray 2x2's not where you had left them.

Lift the safety flap on the page, slide your coin inside the pocket -both cardboard 2x2's and Saflips are the perfect size and lay the flap down over your holder. The album cover also features fold and clip wallet design holding the album closed and your collection secure inside. It's so versatile that if you need more space then just add another page or if you damage a page then no need to throw out the whole album, just discard the page and add a new one.

Attending a coin show? Take an empty mini album and fill it as you make your purchases. Meeting coinie friends for a coffee show and tell? Take your special coins and you know they'll be safe. This mini album is the perfect size to slip into your backpack, handbag or manbag!

Because this album is made of archival polypropylene and stainless steel ring mechanism you can be sure that if stored in your safety deposit box or safe then no harm will come to your coins over time.

This product is new, and has been designed by collectors to fit a need within the industry. The Purple Penny would love to hear your feedback, likes and dislikes about the product. Head over to the website and add a comment.

(*) We don't know of any available (in Australia), do you?