My old holder collection
NGC Gen 1 Black insert example

Owner Comments:

This is just a place holder example not a coin that I own. Photo credit to Conder101's NGC generations thread. This is the very first slab used by NGC when they began operation in 1987. Conder101 reports this was used only from Sept 1987 to Nov 1987. These black 1st gen slabs have gotten so incredibly expensive, not to mention difficult to find, that I doubt I will ever be able to afford an example of this generation.

Gold coins look fantastic in this holder, but the biggest complaint I have read that was voiced when this holder came out was that small or dark coins tend to get "lost" in the black core. Due to the general unpopularity of the holder it was not used for very long before NGC switched to the gen 2 with the solid white core. As a result, not many of these holders were produced and many that were eventually were cracked and the coins moved into newer more popular holders. Of note the use of the NGC foil logo on the obverse of the slab. Conder101 writes, "From my understanding, this was thanks to a marketing consultant who insisted that it was of paramount importance to keep your logo in front of the customer at all times and therefor it was more important than the coin information."

In 2013 NGC celebrated its 25th anniversary by introducing a limited edition retro version of the original black slab and followed that with subsequent limited rereleases in 2015 and 2022. All of the new retro versions differ from the original as they use the prong style, non solid black insert. But I have seen a few collectors that were confused and even a few that thought the new retro holders were the original 1987 holders.