La Maison
Every coin has a story.
Some deserve to be passed on.
We select, authenticate and offer numismatic coins. For collectors, for investors, and for anyone new to the field.
My story
I grew up around coins. My father collected anything connected to Napoleon, and a display case stood in the entrance hall. I walked past it morning and evening for years without really looking at it.
At thirteen I came across the word sestertius in an Asterix album and went to tell my father I wanted to collect Roman coins. He said: “The Romans are not our history. Collect the Gaulish ones instead.” That same day he took me to Claude Burgan, a leading figure in the Paris trade. I left with my first Gaulish coin and with a book Monsieur Burgan gave me with his customary grace: Delestrée and Tache, the standard reference for the series.
Its author, Louis-Pol Delestrée, became my mentor. He taught me to tell a fine coin from one that is merely rare.
Six years studying finance changed none of it. Selling the duplicates from my own collection showed me the other side of the trade: valuation, negotiation, and responsibility for what you say about a coin. In 2022, at twenty-six, I made it my profession.
That is how HTN began: built on a love of the trade and a collector's standards.
« My father saw a dream life. My mother saw the end of her hopes of my joining the family business, the champagne in particular. »
Our expertise
Gaulish coins are where we began. Hugo Taittinger has collected and studied them for eighteen years, with Louis-Pol Delestrée as a constant reference. He has been a member of the SENA, the Société d'Études Numismatiques et Archéologiques, since the start, and several research papers carry both their names.
Moving to the dealing side, he met Nicolas Gimbert, founder of MDC Monaco and a figure in international numismatics, who guided him from his first steps and passed on both his knowledge and the fundamentals of modern grading.
Our range today covers Greek, Roman and Gaulish antiquity, the whole of French coinage from the royal series to the modern, and coins from around the world. A numismatist's eye is never quite formed: every new coin sharpens it.
Ancient coins
Greek, Roman and Gaulish
French coins
Royal, revolutionary, modern
World coins
All regions, all periods
Grading
PCGS and NGC certification
Private clients
Building and managing collections
RESEARCH
Active member of the SENA
Our method
Three rules, no exceptions.
AUTHENTICITY. Every coin is checked before it enters the catalogue. Any doubt and it stays out.
TRANSPARENCY. A scratch, a repair, an old cleaning: we say so. A description carries our name.
FAIR PRICING. There is nothing to be gained from overvaluing a coin. Our reputation is built on clients who come back.
Our coins come from auctions, from private collectors, from estates, from fairs, and sometimes from places you would not expect. All roads lead to Rome, coins included.
« Grading services provide a second opinion, uniform and recognised. That is useful. But personally, I like a coin that can still be held in the hand. »
Our vision
HTN exists for anyone coins matter to. The collector who has been after one particular piece for years. The investor who wants tangible assets outside the financial markets. The person who has inherited a collection and does not yet know its worth. The person stepping into this world for the first time.
For several years we have helped private investors build and manage numismatic holdings. That work taught us one thing: our standards do not change with the value of the coin.
The coming years will take us towards auctions of our own: a regular e-auction, and an annual prestige sale for exceptional pieces. The dates are not set yet, but the work is under way.
Contact HTN
A coin, a gold bar, a collection to be valued?
Write to us at expertise@taittingernumismatic.com. Describe what you have and attach photographs if you can. Hugo Taittinger answers you personally.
We see clients by appointment at our Paris offices, and we travel to you, in Paris and beyond.