Sword

The raised edge proof is also known as the pattern proof. I remember reading somewhere that only the incuse edge versions were considered to be legal tender.

I guess "barista" is somewhat pretentious. But then charging £3 or more for a cup of coffee is also a little pretentious and some places use the term to "justify" their prices. It's easy to see why coffee lovers willing to pay higher prices would object to under-trained people giving themselves that title.

One thing this discussion highlights is that the predecimal crowns are more tasteful than the modern offerings. They at least don't need legends telling people "why" the coins were minted.

I am not certain if Ebay deserves any credit. The reason for the no sale might have something to do with all the bids looking suspiciously like shills.

What would be your interpretation then? I can't think of another meaning for "faulty striking" apart from "exceptionally weak strike for the series".

I would be very proud to own it! All six lions and the hair well struck and with really nice eye appeal.

I don’t think it matters very much as the grade alone is insufficient description of the coin. So I think GEF, no wear, weak strike means the same thing as UNC, weak strike. It might even be beneficial for a dealer to use the former as it gives an impression of a stricter standard. As has been pointed out previously, the Spink definition of “fine” is “a coin that exhibits considerable wear on the raised surfaces of the design, either through circulation, or damage perhaps due to faulty striking.” Hence, I assume that some would give a lower grade for a coin that is particularly weak strike. Another reason why I don’t think it matters is that most of the grading terms are, misnomers anyway. “Good” means the opposite of what it is reality. “Fine” isn’t fine. “Extremely” as in extremely fine is not extreme. The majority of coins described as “uncirculated” have probably been circulated for however brief periods of time. Even the term “mint state” doesn’t quite work as no one can be certain if the contact marks were in fact caused by circulation or not. TPG have no issues describing toned coins as “mint state” even though coins are of course not toned when there were just minted. In short the coin is the same regardless of the grade assigned by an individual. Personally, I think the phrases like “fully lustrous”, “particularly well struck”, “very few bagmarks”, “minor hairlines” etc are more helpful providing they are given in good faith.

That's super cool! It's easier to judge a coin when you can see it at different angles. It would be nice if they show you 360 degrees of the edge also.

I think it is a very presentable coin. If it were mine, I would ask myself the following questions when considering an upgrade: 1) How well does it sit with the rest of my collection? i.e. how does it compare to similar coins I have in term of grade and eye appeal. 2) If it sits well with other coins I have, then I would ask if I particularly like this coin type. If so, I am more likely to consider an upgrade. If not, then I probably won't, as even having a UNC example is not that satisfying in that case.

I think a circulated coin generally benefits from having a dark tone as details show up more clearly.

The seller was surprising honest to apply that particular proverb to his coin. Doesn't it mean that something which looks good on the surface is not necessarily valuable? Strange choice but honest.

Thank you very much. That's overly kind. Nobody think you are not intelligent. You generally say something very perceptive whenever you start off a comment with "I don't know anything but ..." My memory is obviously bad for things I do in the evenings when I am tired. Hence I do forget I have said something before and end up repeating it without noticing. Very sorry for the irritation caused. Enjoy the sunny Sunday. Sword

The incident is chilling especially since most of us can remember the story of him finding the error coin. Amazing he wasn't more badly hurt and escaped with just a bump on the head and bruises.

Very nice!

Having took a few deep breaths and making sure there were no coins in the vicinity, I hope this post is viewed as a genuine attempt at reconciliation. I know I should wait until Chris has open up the tread concerned. But I am keen to make a reconciliation attempt sooner rather than later. Although I do not feel that I have been unfair to CGS in any way by the comments I have made, I take PWA 1967’s point that I have forgotten that I have said similar things in the past. In other words, I was possibly being boring and I can apologise for that. The spat has made me air every problem I had with CGS slabs and I don’t think there is anything more I can add. Hence, I probably won’t be able to annoy PWA 1967 with any more CGS specific comments. However, I can promise him that I would not dream of annoying him or anyone else here deliberately. But I don’t think one should be annoyed at comments made towards TPG in general. Let’s be honest, enough people have been giving them all the time. Some people like TPGs, some don’t and that’s the way it is. I still don’t believe that the language in some of his posts was appropriate but I won’t say any more about that. One thing I would like to add and I think many people here would agree. When PWA 1967 said he tries to be a nice guy and wants to help people, he might not believe what was the first thing which came to my mind. He has indeed gained respect for being a real collector. Most people need to sell coins for profit (because they are running a business and have a living to make). Some slab sellers are after excessive profits. But over the years, he has sold coins on the forum with the intention of sharing his high quality spares with fellow collectors. I suspect that he has even occasionally sold coins at a loss simply to move them to good homes. Even though I am not a penny collector, I do appreciate what he is doing. Sword