brg5658

Super token @Paulus. I have her sister -- the other design of this lottery advertisement token.

Absolutely LOVE this 1911.

Scarce variety and all, I was surprised to see that PCGS graded this coin problem free. The rim damage at 10 o'clock on the obverse would likely preclude a straight grade most of the time.

In my opinions only, here are what I would have graded the coins (based on the photos only): Coin Obv Rev CGS grade [BRG]grade 1817 HC GVF GVF CGS 50 (AU55) AU53 1911 HC EF gEF CGS 65 (MS 60-61) AU58 1912 HC aEF EF CGS 75 (MS 62-63) MS64 1913 HC aEF aEF CGS 75 (MS 62-63) MS63 1916 HC gEF gEF CGS 78 (MS 63-64) MS64 1918 HC EF EF CGS 70 (MS 60-61) AU58 1919 HC gEF gEF CGS 65 (MS 60-61) MS63

My favorite coin of the bunch (even before looking further at the assigned grades) is the 1912 HC. The upper left quadrant of the reverse shield may be a bit mushy (incomplete strike), but it has loads of eye appeal and original surfaces.

The new images are far superior. Look at the increase in the detail in the hair, beard, and the shield on the reverse. The color and focus are also better in the 2nd set of images. Your images do show up on my screen as blue-shifted. Are you setting a custom white balance using a bright white sheet of paper or an 18% gray card? You're getting there!

You will need to diffuse them a bit. You can't use them "out of the box" as the point sources of the LED phosphors are too severe/small. A simple white paper wrap, or tissue/cloth should do fine. They don't get as hot as Halogens so starting a fire should be less likely -- but never leave unattended! Good luck! -Brandon

The axial lighting method is a nightmare to control. It is not so bad if you are primarily photographing raw coins, but it doesn't represent the coins as they look in hand, and completely wipes out the appearance of luster. If you're trying to photograph coins behind plastic (slabs), then this method is almost impossible and not worth the fuss.

By "at the source" I mean as close to the light source as you can get without setting your home ablaze. Be careful if you are using halogens, they get VERY hot, and will melt certain types of plastic diffusers, and start a fire with paper and cloth ones. Bring your lights in to around 80 degrees angle from the table surface - this will bring out the luster and more color. Using 2 lights will greatly improve the evenness of your lighting (fewer shadows). I have already written up in detail in another post some other hints. Please give those a read. Best, Brandon

I use the little LED Jansjo lamps from IKEA. They are consistently between 3500 and 3600K. I reset my white balance manually with an 18% gray card before each photo session. Knowing the exact temperature is not necessary if you are using a camera with custom white balance that can be set dynamically to your surroundings real time.

The lightbox is killing your chance at capturing luster. You cannot capture cartwheel luster when using fully diffused ambient (all surrounding) light sources. Diffused light sources will also wash out colors/toning, as is the case on your lovely toned 1915 George V. Lights need to be at a high angle and well above the coin. If you are going to diffuse your light sources a little bit, do so at the lamp source itself. By that I mean, diffuse each of the lamps with a sheet of paper or cloth, so that they are still reflecting off of your coin as two separate point sources of light. When one uses a diffusion mechanism around the coin (e.g., a light box or milk jug) instead of at the lights themselves, light no longer reflects off of the coin from multiple point sources. The surfaces of the coin will look flat and a bit lifeless, and luster will not show much as the few photons that happen to reflect up into your camera's detector are not enough to create the banded appearance of luster. As example, Heritage Auctions uses a method to photograph coins in their auctions that diffuses the light at the coin, not at the point light sources. Here is a Heritage Auctions image of a coin I own. I use diffusion at the point source of the lights, and place the lights very high and close to my camera and lens. This method brings out color, luster, and the life of a coin. Below are my images of the same coin (yes, even through the plastic).

Here is a composite image from the two posted images on tinypic: It's a 25 year (Silver Jubilee) medal commemorating the reign of George V (1910-1935). Never seen this particular reverse before. I like it.

It sounds like a medal, not a coin. Care to offer any information on what color metal it is (e.g., brass, copper, bronze, nickel/silver). Diameter? Any text on it? Given the lack of photos, you're not giving us much to go on here... You can also use an online service like this one to downsize your pictures to a size that is suitable for posting here. Best, Brandon

I just picked up this copper 1 Franc Essai piece from a member on the PCGS forums. It arrived today and blew my socks off! Just the look I adore in copper. -Brandon

I'm confused. I always thought @VickySilver here was Jags7 on CoinTalk, and 7Jaguars on the PCGS forums. Given that VickySilver is talking about the poster in the CoinTalk thread in the 3rd person I guess that's not the case? What is the screen-name here for the person who is Jags7 on CoinTalk? And, why don't they speak up here?

Picked up this medal. Will take my own photos when I receive it in hand. Below are the PCGS photos. BHM-3241, diameter 39mm (PCGS SP63)

It is DH-296 (common), I agree with you @Nordle11. I believe all of the halfpennies dated 1788 have edge lettering of "PAYABLE IN ANGLESEY LONDON OR LIVERPOOL". Both of the halfpennies I posted above have this edge inscription (DH-275 and DH-282), though neither is explicitly noted in Dalton and Hamer. The 298a is noted as being different because it has a non-standard edge inscription of "PAYABLE IN LANCASTER LONDON OR BRISTOL". Truly a superb token @Nordle11, still can't believe the price you got it for. Looks lustrous and wonderful in your pictures!

I'll try to get out my D&H and figure this one out. @Nordle11, can you post your pictures of the token and give us the exact edge lettering of the token? -Brandon

After much patience, I found a nice example of the Oxfordshire DH-1 Halfpenny token for my collection. I admire the die work on the obverse detail, and I'm fond of the lovely sun shield on the reverse. Despite what the NGC label says, this is a halfpenny size token, not a penny size token. The diesinker was Arnold, and the manufacturer was Lutwyche. This is a very common token, and the edge reads PAYABLE AT BANBURY OXFORD OR READING. c. 1795 (undated) Oxfordshire halfpenny token, NGC MS64BN And a close-up of some of the die cutting work on the obverse:

A copper proof fantasy 48 pence of Ireland, struck around 2001 as part of the INA Retro issues. I thought this one was mellowing out nicely.

My point was that even though you are a prolific hater of plastic, you seem to be profiting quite nicely from your plastic-entombed coins. Nothing else really. Just noticed that you sold that 1854 for a tidy sum, and was more congratulatory than fault-placing. IMO it was a very nice coin!!

For $45 you got a screaming good deal...if you wish to share your honey-pot source shoot me a PM.

It appears you recently sold this coin for £3,800 on 30 May via eBay? So, it's not exactly "yours" anymore is it? Is that VF guide for this coin?

@Nordle11, lovely token! It looks to have a great strike, great color with some original red, and great luster. I'd say I think it would graded MS64 or MS65 RB on this side of the pond, but I had a token I bought raw and submitted that came back MS63RB, and I was sure it was better than that. So, it's MS -- and gorgeous, and IMO would fetch $200 quite easily. Below are my two similar examples to yours (I'm horrible at attribution of these Druid tokens -- I always have to sit down with my book open, and a magnifying glass -- the differences are often VERY small). Each of my examples were purchased for $225, some 3 and 2 year ago (respectively). Congrats on the new purchase! Purchased raw, now NGC MS63RB Purchased already graded, NGC MS64BN