cathrine

Good luck to everyone that participate (or those that would like to do so) in tomorrow's auction of my collection by Heritage Galleries. I'm certain that I've thoroughly enjoyed being a collector of British copper and bronze, and I hope that the high bidders for my coins will feel privileged to own the best that I could find in the marketplace during my search for perfection. Salvador Dali said: "Have no fear of perfection, you'll never reach it." I've always tried to find the "best of the best"; when I've failed to do so. it wasn't available!

Garrett, Thank you for your expression of appreciation for my collection. Cathrine

I've been in contact with Heritage about the 20% VAT charge by FedEx on their shipments to the UK, and I've received the following information from Win Callender at Heritage: Quote I have been in contact with our shipping department and am informed that the general VAT rate in the UK is 20%. If coins are shipped into the UK without proper documentation, the carrier (in this case Fedex) would charge the regular rate. If the coins are classified properly they do qualify for the reduced rate of 5% and in cases where the coins can be classified as investment gold they are actually VAT exempt. How the items are classified determines what VAT rate would be applied. We classify our coins correctly and will provide the proper documentation, and so the VAT should be 5%. Unquote

I’ve received confirmation from Heritage that all of the coins in the auction are in Dallas and will be shipped to the winning bidders from there.

It’s my understanding that the coins are in Dallas and will be shipped from there to the winning bidders. However, to be absolutely certain, I will call the consignment manager and inquire about this matter.

Unfortunately, advancing age and the lack of a suitable heir compels me to divest myself of my copper and bronze coin collection. I’ve selected Heritage Galleries as my selling agent, and they have put together a “monthly auction” that cherry picks the collection’s farthings, halfpennies, and pennies. If you’re interested in high quality, certified specimens of numerous dates and die varieties, have a look at the Heritage website presentation of my collection.

Hello Colin88, Why don't you have a look at: "Survey of CGS vs PCGS/NGC Grades", which was started by Sword in this forum section on 20 Septe4mber 2015? I think the info you're seeking to find is presented in that posting for Victorian halfpennies. My contribution to that discussion uses actual graded results of the three TPG services of interest to derive the equivalences for that series of coins that were graded by CGS, PCGS, and NGC. Such a comparison can be made for any other series of coins by a similar treatment of the three service's population census data. It must be emphasized that the equivalences made only apply to the Victorian halfpenny data that was published at the time of comparison AND apply to the overall results, which are NOT necessarily applicable to a coin-to-coin comparison for equivalence! This topic (and TPG results, in general) is a thorny issue, but coin grading will never be an exact science with a fixed set or rules to follow because the preferences of the graders determine the results. (The degree of preservation (the definition of "grade") will always depend upon the grader's personal preferences for such elements as depth of strike, edge conditions, coloration, surface blemishes, toning spots, degree of wear, etc.). Only gross comparisons can be applied with any degree of confidence! Cathrine

Loose54, To find better photos for various obverse and reverse dies for Victorian halfpennies, have a look at the images that can be found in the catalog archives on the Goldberg Coins website for Auction 31. Here you will see the sale photos for the Cheshire Collection halfpennies. Unfortunately, a photo of obverse 16 is not included; however, I'm attaching an obverse photo of Freeman 344 (1881-H) from my collection for your reference.

I would say that this 1841 halfpenny, which is currently listed for sale on the Colin Cooke website, is an ex-hoard coin.

Hello Copper123, I agree with your opinion that very high grade, young head copper halfpennies (with the exceptions you mention) are difficult to acquire. Your mention of the 1841 hoard makes me recall my experience with that group of coins: I acquired three choice specimens with very good color via the seller's eBay listings. When I sent them to NGC for certification, they were returned as "UNC Details - Altered Color". To get a second opinion, I took the three coins to Michael Gouby for his examination at his London place of business in April 2014, shortly before he closed up his shop. As anticipated, Mr. Gouby disagreed with the NGC verdict; I felt really good that my judgement about those halfpennies had been confirmed. Have you heard of any experience by other collectors with attempts to have TPG grading for 1841 hoard halfpennies? (I've seen a couple of CGS graded coins that look to be hoard coins offered for sale, but the origin of those specimens is unstated in the listings.)

Hi Loose54, I've heard it said that one picture is worth a thousand words, and when it comes to coin die varieties, no truer words have ever been spoken. To see the subtle differences between Freeman obverses 15, 16 , and 19, have a look at the photos of the Nicholson collection on the Colin Cooke website: Go to: colincooke.com Select: "Other", "Collections", "Dr. Basil Nicholson Collection of Halfpennies", "Part 5" Then: Items 455 & 457 = Freeman 340 & 342 = Obverse 15 Item 459 = Freeman 344 = Obverse 16 Items 460, 461, & 462 = Freeman 347 & 351 = Obverse 19 Let me know how this solution works for you. I can provide high resolution photos of those Obverse dies, if necessary.

Sometimes the TPG services of interest may grade a specific coin quite differently. Perhaps the graders at "this service" have a different standard of excellence from the graders at "that service"? As we know, for all graded specimens, the grade assigned has a substantial impact on the coin's sale price even though buyers buy the coin and not the plastic holder! Consequently, while we might think that we have a preference for a particular service because of their standards for evaluation of the true preservation condition for coins that we are knowledgeable about, large grading inconsistencies do exist within the same grading service. A prime example of a grading service's inconsistency comes to my mind when I see a PCGS graded MS 65 BN 1869 Penny being offered in an upcoming auction. An 1869 PCGS graded MS 65 RB penny was purchased by me in an auction several years ago. The difference on the state of preservation of these two coins is remarkable, yet both have been assigned the same numerical grade, aside from the color! Low quality photos of the two coins are attached for reference purposes.

Here's a scarce 1848 halfpenny that I recently acquired from an eBay seller. It's graded PCGS MS 63 BN, and in my opinion, this is a much nicer specimen than the 1848 that I posted at the beginning of this thread. That coin was also graded MS 63 BN, but the grader was NGC. Personally, I feel that NGC is a "tougher" grader than PCGS, BUT that wasn't the case in this instance! Perhaps this specimen should have been a 64 instead of a 63; it is noticeably devoid of marks in the fields and on the design. Note that the reverse lettering is quite different; this coin has an abundance of re-punched letters and the second "D" has a missing upper serif.

I've recently acquired a high grade specimen of an 1852 halfpenny. This coin is a the Reverse A die variety (Peck 1536). Does anyone know why the mint introduced the Reverse B die in 1851, which was subsequently discontinued in 1858?

Yes, of course. If the coin planchet was undersize, then the entire reverse side would be lacking in definition. Since that's not the case, a die imperfection or die obstruction must have been the cause of the local striking imperfection.