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1887jubilee

Unidentified Variety
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Posts posted by 1887jubilee


  1. I am trying to track down a shilling collector who might know where this coin is. ESC 1406 (3rd. ed.) BSC 1000 (1st. ed.) I know and have seen the Royal Mint example but where is the one sold  Spink & Son 11/7/2001  lot 1039 £1450 (£1668). I have the corresponding sixpence. The designer is said by Davies to be J E Boehm and the engraver said by Seaby & Rayner to be L.C. Wyon.

    1887 Shilling Pattern ONE SHILLING by JEB.jpg

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  2. The delay suited me perfectly as I managed to log on just a few lots ahead of the one I wanted. I should have missed it really. There was no sound though which was a pain. I can't get used to the extortionate charges though. Why do we put up with it. My local auction house do not charge ANY buyers premium. Which is fine if all you want is a few modern Royal Mint proof sets and a second hand fridge freezer.

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  3. Looks like a classic Rev. B unless you have other information. Of course it comes in proof as well......... or does it?

    When you say "we did the sixpences" what were your conclusions? I have worked on an analysis of over 2000 and I don't know of anyone who has come up with anything in the statistical form of pie charts, and statistics that I could talk to. The only other person that has heard it all is my grand daughter and since it sends her to sleep ................the floor is open.

    • Haha 1

  4. Yes. The R/V is a variety of the R/I.  You will notice the serifs on all the Rs are long on the right of each foot. You will also have noticed the R/V on the R of Gratia which is not so strong. This is on all R/Vs.The R/B is not R/B it also is just a variety of the R/I . So there you have three R/I varieties already.


  5. OK . You have got my attention. It is good to see I am still remembered amongst the officionardos. How many varieties are there? Well I will give you a clue. When my daughter wants the children putting to sleep she says "Grandad tell them the story of the die varieties of the 1887 sixpences. It has become something of a joke in our family. Pekris has an odd one which was thought to be a pattern and may still be I have only seen 3. (2 are mine and one is his.) If you really are interested and can cope with the mind numbing minutiae it would be best to begin with the R/I of which there are more than a dozen. Then the various proofs:-  R/I ,matt, YH , normal JH short serifs rev withdrawn, rev 3 , filled crown, broad ribbon , narrow ribbon.  How anm I doing, have you dozed off yet?  Pattern with SIX PENCE only R6 so available;   Of course you could include the Spink & Son pattern sixpences in tin, copper, brass, silver, gold, aluminium.....................with or without Spink & Son on the reverse.......................with or without MADE IN BAVARIA on the rim....................and a few that have S&S on the trunk or JEB or are blank...............some of these are easily found there were a couple last month in DNW.........fast asleep yet. Come to Plymouth and we will have a chat. There are some easy ones you still have missing.

    Rob  I am up over 350 counting all the repro stuff on the market

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    • Haha 1

  6. I have been studying 1887 sixpences for fifteen years and can confirm this as a recognized variety. You should see from the coin that the Rs all have both serifs left and right at the base of the upright so this coin is a variety of the R over I that is in most books. If you look at the R in BRITT: you should be able to see the R/I very clearly. This is a distinguishing feature of this die variety which has come to be called A over A but, as pointed out, it could be an inverted V. The specimens I have do not show a bar to the "A" but you will have noticed how weak the strike is from your own specimen. They turn up from time to time on ebay and fetch fairly normal prices but then most people don't know what they are looking at. In a survey of 1,518 sixpences I have found 5. I don't look for them any more. Extrapolating this would give a mintage figure of 12,107. Given You have one and Nick has one the sample then would indicate 17,000+. It is most likely this pair of dies had a normal use and so the actual figure would be more like 30,000. Well done on spotting it. There is a specimen in The Royal Mint collection RMM8457.

    1887 Sixpence A over A obv detail..jpg

    1887 Sixpence A over A obv R3 detail..jpg

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  7. I bought a BRESSER with 5 year warranty £48 on ebay. It works fine on the lowest 20X but the magnification is too high for a lot of coin work. I don't think we need anything over 25 X . I think it would be good if someone came up with a software package that would compare coins with a view to spotting differences. Anyone know of something like that?

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  8. If you are interested in Edward I then probably the best place to start would be a copy of "The Galata Guide to The pennies of Edward I & II" . This will keep you occupied for hours with the 100+ varieties. If you have just a passing interest then just wait for the other replies and someone will try to identify it for you. There seems to be something wrong with the DNS part of the inscription which is interesting. Second choice of book would be Wren "The English Long-Cross Pennies 1279-1489. After a cursory look it appears to be an early class with open C and E and wedge S? I cannot go further but it might just be a stirling immitation. See what everyone else says.

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  9. Who is writing the book?   I am. Crowns are a pain because the one with the broken 1 and 8 are also available in proof! Yes the plumes are noted, yes the 3 different basic obverses and all the different sizes. but as Rob points out the only person interested in paying a bit over the odds is probably me. Any help would be appreciated then perhaps we can all learn something.


  10. I agree some "specimen" sets look almost better than than PR 61. I think the best advise would be:-

    examine the rims to make sure they are flat, broad and without raised surplus metal.

    check the milling which will be wonderfully crisp and sharp to the touch

    look at as many comparable, certified specimens as you can. Heritage photos are very helpful.

    The subject has been discussed before at length and the only safe rule is "if in doubt, it isn't proof"

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