Hello, New here !

[Paulmanta 0]

Hi, I have just found this Forum after doing a bit of Googling, I am trying to find out a little more information about my coin collection.

I have been having a big sort out in my loft and re-discovered the coin collection I had when I was quite young. I had no idea what I was collecting at the time but if it looked different or was not spendable I would put it in a box.

Most of it is Foreign, some Maltese coins, Swiss, French (Pre-euro) Australian, American and some other oddments, I do however have some British coins, I believe I have a Half Sovereign, which I recall my Grandmother gave me and told me to keep it safe !

I think I am mostly asking for advice, and values for what I have here, Its a small collection, they are not utterly spotless, far from it, they are old coins that a small version of me found and kept in a box.

I may well be inclined to post up a list of coins, possibly some pictures of the ones I cannot identify because the tarnish is too thick or the coin is worn smooth, where would be the best place to ask advice ? I am in Cornwall, Penzance to be precise, Are there any reputable valuers/dealers near me ?

I am not just looking to sell sell sell, but I might part with the whole lot if someone would find them interesting or they were going to help out someone who was a more serious collector.

[Rob 2,998]

The chances are that most will have no value above scrap prices, but you can always get a nice surprise. Gold and silver will be worth bullion as a minimum, bronze in general needs to be in reasonable condition to have value, though there are a few exceptions to this. Most 20th century British coinage needs to be in high grade to have much value. You will have to post a few pictures if you want specifics. Before you see anyone for a valuation, there are enough people on this forum to give you some ballpark figures.

Living in Penzance, you might find your nearest dealer is in New York. - just kidding.

[Accumulator 52]

It's very unlikely that you will find much of value amongst random foreign coins (often collected from holidays abroad). Charities tend to collect or be given these and sell them by the kilo for little more than scrap metal value. Most people have a tin of such coins knocking around in a drawer somewhere. I may be doing yours a gross injustice, but the balance of probability is very much against them being worth much.

Similarly for the British coins, as Rob says. The half sovereign (depending upon date) will be worth around £140. Very much its bullion value. For the rest it would be worth posting a few pics of the best examples.

[Peckris 579]

Glenn Ogden is the biggest dealer in the SW. I think he has a website if you google, but is also a presence at one of the travelling group of fairs (PHoenix? Not sure - his website probably gives details).

Just Googled for you : http://www.glennogdencoins.com/ and yes, he has a list of fairs in the region on the home page.

Edited October 11, 2012 by Peckris

[Peter 615]

OH I wish I was in Cornwall...I love it down there.Trevone bay in May :) we have eaten of the beach many times.....with a pastie.

[Paulmanta 0]

Thanks for the replies, I am under no illusion as to value, I exepct they are mostly curiosities. I will pop a list/pics up when Iget a chance just in case I have some rare treasure.

I must just say i have no luck with lotteries, am unlucky at gambling and never win at raffles so the chance of finding treasure in my juvenile collection is very very slim, good job i am a realist as well really.

I knew the Half Sovereign was worth a bit, its actually the nicest coin of the whole lot having been kept in a little tin wrapped in cotton wool for many many years.

[Peckris 579]

Thanks for the replies, I am under no illusion as to value, I exepct they are mostly curiosities. I will pop a list/pics up when Iget a chance just in case I have some rare treasure.

I must just say i have no luck with lotteries, am unlucky at gambling and never win at raffles so the chance of finding treasure in my juvenile collection is very very slim, good job i am a realist as well really.

I knew the Half Sovereign was worth a bit, its actually the nicest coin of the whole lot having been kept in a little tin wrapped in cotton wool for many many years.

A breath of fresh air compared to some members here who think they've beaten odds of millions to one and found extremely rare varieties

[TomGoodheart 373]

Welcome Paul! You'll find that although you can just upload photos from your computer the size limit is small (150KB) Best to put them on a photohosting site like flickr or photobucket. You can then link to the full sized photos using the little 'Insert image' icon at the top of the reply box. The site resizes everything to screen size for you.

[Paulmanta 0]

Good evening folks, I have got the collection laid out on my dining table (much to the consternation of wifey) and I am surprised to find I have 18 different categories of coin. There are 84 coins in total.

I think I might list them all here and if anyone thinks any are worth a pic then I will pop one up, I think 168 pics might be a little excessive especially if you bear in mind most if not all will be uninteresting coins with no value.

American Coins:

United States Proof Set, 1974. coins in case, never touched.

US 1 Dollar Coin, 1978. Circulated.

Australian Coins:

1984 Dollar.

1985 Dollar.

1968 20 Cent.

1978 10 Cent.

1988 5 Cent.

1989 1 Cent.

1 Dollar note.

French Coins.

1960 1 Franc.

1964 1 Franc.

1976 1 Franc.

1984 half Franc.

1983 20 centimes.

1989 20 centimes.

1963 10 Centimes.

1986 5 Centimes.

New Zealand:

1975 50 Cents. Endeavour on rear.

1980 50 Cents. Endeavour on rear.

1987 20 Cents. Kiwi on rear.

Malta:

9 small denomination coins, lets face it, no-one is going to be interested in them ! I was pushing it listing the Francs !

Greece.

4 Greek coins, again, not worth listing.

Israel:

3 small denomination coins.

Geurnsey

1947 8 Doubles coin.

Spain:

1975 5 Pesetas Coin.

Switzerland:

1931 2 centimes.

1945 2 centimes.

1981 5 centimes.

1946 1 centime.

Canada:

1981 1 Cent.

Germany:

1970 1 pfennig

Great Britain:

I saved this one for last as it is the biggest.

1971 halfpenny.

1981 halfpenny.

1997 50 pence Isle of man, TT bike.

2006 50 pence soldier carrying soldier.

2008. Set, unboxed. 1p,2p,5p,10p,20p,50p and pound. Makes Shield. Used but clean.

1913 Half Sovereign, nice clean and kept in a tin.

Unknown, May say Georgivs on it, copper, slightly larger than a 2p, very worn. Dirty where someones pocket has not touched it. Cannot make out a date but it has Brittania on the rear.

Also Unknown, Says Georgivs on it, may say 1775, 6 or 8 on it, cannot tell as it is dirty and worn, Brittania on rear, again, clean where somthing/someone rubbed it.

---------------

so, there you have it, probably the most dull post ever made in terms of lost treasure. Still, its been a nice evening looking at them and listing some of them, especially the ones that were replaced with the Euro.

Thanks for looking if you made it this far.

Paul.

[Peckris 579]

Good evening folks, I have got the collection laid out on my dining table (much to the consternation of wifey) and I am surprised to find I have 18 different categories of coin. There are 84 coins in total.

I think I might list them all here and if anyone thinks any are worth a pic then I will pop one up, I think 168 pics might be a little excessive especially if you bear in mind most if not all will be uninteresting coins with no value.

American Coins:

United States Proof Set, 1974. coins in case, never touched.

US 1 Dollar Coin, 1978. Circulated.

Australian Coins:

1984 Dollar.

1985 Dollar.

1968 20 Cent.

1978 10 Cent.

1988 5 Cent.

1989 1 Cent.

1 Dollar note.

French Coins.

1960 1 Franc.

1964 1 Franc.

1976 1 Franc.

1984 half Franc.

1983 20 centimes.

1989 20 centimes.

1963 10 Centimes.

1986 5 Centimes.

New Zealand:

1975 50 Cents. Endeavour on rear.

1980 50 Cents. Endeavour on rear.

1987 20 Cents. Kiwi on rear.

Malta:

9 small denomination coins, lets face it, no-one is going to be interested in them ! I was pushing it listing the Francs !

Greece.

4 Greek coins, again, not worth listing.

Israel:

3 small denomination coins.

Geurnsey

1947 8 Doubles coin.

Spain:

1975 5 Pesetas Coin.

Switzerland:

1931 2 centimes.

1945 2 centimes.

1981 5 centimes.

1946 1 centime.

Canada:

1981 1 Cent.

Germany:

1970 1 pfennig

Great Britain:

I saved this one for last as it is the biggest.

1971 halfpenny.

1981 halfpenny.

1997 50 pence Isle of man, TT bike.

2006 50 pence soldier carrying soldier.

2008. Set, unboxed. 1p,2p,5p,10p,20p,50p and pound. Makes Shield. Used but clean.

1913 Half Sovereign, nice clean and kept in a tin.

Unknown, May say Georgivs on it, copper, slightly larger than a 2p, very worn. Dirty where someones pocket has not touched it. Cannot make out a date but it has Brittania on the rear.

Also Unknown, Says Georgivs on it, may say 1775, 6 or 8 on it, cannot tell as it is dirty and worn, Brittania on rear, again, clean where somthing/someone rubbed it.

---------------

so, there you have it, probably the most dull post ever made in terms of lost treasure. Still, its been a nice evening looking at them and listing some of them, especially the ones that were replaced with the Euro.

Thanks for looking if you made it this far.

Paul.

One of our members, scott, is interested in foreign coins of all types, so he may run his eye over those, though they may be too modern for him. (I know little or nothing about them). The UK coins are not worth anything except face value really. The 2008 20p MAY (but probably not) be the undated 'mule' type - but if you already see it's 2008, then it isn't (if that doesn't sound Irish). Your worn coppers are most likely to be George III halfpennies - the date on the second will be 1775, the last year of mintage of that particular series. Of no value but historically interesting. If the first one that you can't read the date on, has the bust facing in the opposite direction to the second, then it's George II.

Hope you rekindle an interest in coins. You will see from all the discussions here, it's a fascinating hobby

Oh I almost forgot - gold prices are quite high now. Depending on grade, your 1913 half sov is worth AT LEAST bullion value, maybe more.

Edited October 12, 2012 by Peckris

[Rob 2,998]

With the exception of the half sovereign there is nothing of value. As to collectability, that is up to you. If you want to start collecting in depth, you first have to decide on what you like. Your focus will change over time, and there is no right or wrong. For obvious reasons it will be easier to find British material than foreign, but the latter tends to be much cheaper reflecting the lower demand. Junk bins such as you find on market stall would be a major source of foreign coins. At the end of the day it is up to you.

[TomGoodheart 373]

Pretty much as might be expected for a small collection picked up from change. But while there's maybe not a lot of financial value there, it's a nice little selection.

To be honest, only you can decide what you want to do with them (yeah, stating the obvious here!!)

But a bit of background. I started with a similar mix, which my Dad hoarded. Yes, that's the right word, he just accumulated stuff rather than actively collecting. Except for the 50p design with hands on the back celebrating the EU, which he for some reason had nearly £50 worth of. I guess he just liked that one!

What I did was pop into my local library and pick up a few books on coins. The 50ps although demonetised I managed to get the bank to accept at face value. The silver coins/ part silver (1920-1947) I sold to a local dealer and bought a few pieces I preferred. In time I found a denomination (the shilling) that I liked, helped by the fact that I found a book about the coins in the library and concentrated on those.

I still have trays of old (Cu/Ni) shillings, a few bags of battered farthings, a tray with shilling sized coins from overseas and two more with various Euro values that I've picked up on holiday. Finally on Wifey's return from the US I have a selection of State Quarters. Plus of course my main collection.

Coin collecting is one of those hobbies you can spend what you want, from a few pence in junk or charity shops/ car boot fairs to many thousands of pounds at an auction house or dealer.

If you want / need to raise a few quid then things like the Swiss coins and US proof set could go on ebay. I succesfully sold a few mixed lots, one of odd shaped coins and one of mixed sizes from a 'cartwheel' 2d down to a Swiss cent. I stuck them on as 'interesting' suggested they would make a 'starter kit' for any kids who might be interested in coins. I think I got about £6-£8 each, which I thought was fair!

The half sov I'd check the grade here to see if it has 'numismatic' value. If not and you wanted to sell, use one of the online bullion services. I can suggest two that seem to pay the best rates. Don't try the high street gold stalls, they don't give nearly as much.

[Peter 615]

A half sov is worth £140 minimum.

cash for gold are a rip off.

[Paulmanta 0]

Hi Folks,

All in all pretty much as I thought, I am not really interested in turning the collection into cash just for the sake of it, when I found this forum I joined up with a mixture of curiosity and a tiny bit of hope tha tI might have something a bit unusual. The US proof Set is from the year of my birth so i think I will keep that as well, I did look on Ebay at those and found that they sell for around £12 to £15 so at least i know that that has a value.

Thanks for the warm welcome and advice, one of the things that struck me while I was going through the old coins is how much nicer our old 50p and 5p were. The new coins are too small and don't feel as "real" if you know what I mean.

P.

[TomGoodheart 373]

Thanks for the warm welcome and advice, one of the things that struck me while I was going through the old coins is how much nicer our old 50p and 5p were. The new coins are too small and don't feel as "real" if you know what I mean.

P.

Yes, I think the old shilling (5p), halfpennies and earlier farthings (Victorian and earlier) at 22-31mm are a nice size. In my youth, if you had a half-crown or florin (2 shillings) you felt that you had a big enough coin to be worth something. Provided you could avoid the dinosaurs long enough to spend it!!

Nowadays, even £1 coins seem tiddly. But then I guess £2 is only worth the equivalent of pennies. I used to be able to buy a paperback book for 2/6. You'd be hard pressed to get a new one for under £5 now ....

[Generic Lad 25]

Not much for the US coins, your Ike dollar is worth $1 and the proof set might be worth $5-6 (perhaps up to $10 if they are deep, ultra, cameo proofs with frosted designs and mirror like fields) but US proof sets have next to no demand, even over here in the US. I've heard stories of dealers paying less than face value for some of them!