Attendance was quite high at the recent Maastricht Paper Money Fair held in Valkenburg, Netherlands, as is typical for this popular show. Nearly every table was occupied within the main and theatre hall as well as the foyer and stage. Collectors and dealers packed the aisles with the focus exclusively on banknotes — not a coin in sight. Nationalities from the world over were represented by the attendees as well as the banknotes, providing the true “Maastricht Experience.”
The Stacks Bowers Rare Currency department was busy throughout the show taking consignments for our upcoming auctions including several significant pieces. We always encourage paper money collectors to attend this terrific venue as not a single other banknote-only show in the world can compare. Some attendees set aside important notes with Maastricht in mind, knowing that many collectors will not be available at other conventions.
The weather mostly cooperated with temperate weather throughout show hours; just a bit of rain was experienced at the end of the day Saturday. The show felt as busy as always and indicates another strong year for the world banknote market. The trend for high-grade material remains the focus for collectors and banknotes of the British Commonwealth also remained in heavy demand. We look forward to the coming months to see how our Official Auction of the August 2015 American Numismatic Association convention and our August 2015 Hong Kong sale shape up.
