Chris Perkins

Looks like a William III sixpence (or shilling, depending on size...most probably a sixpence). The most common date is 1697. The coin is worn and mounted so it's just an old item of silver jewellery now, unless the coin is a much scarcer date/type.

A respectable dealer would be me for example! Where are you located? The 10kg of brass threepences will be scrap metal, except the 1946, 1949, 1951 and any that are absolutely as new with full lustre. I'd say, forget the dates as with average circulated coins the dates are not that important, especially when you factor in the time involved. Usually, the bulk of the value is in the silver, so concentrate on the pre 1947 silver coins. Then let me know how many of each denomination you have. Any that are pre 1920 contain more silver, so keep an eye out for those too (they are always much scarcer). Coppers are usually just worth scrap, but I do pay a little more for pre George VI coppers.

No I don't have anything on German commems. I've had some silver ones myself in the past. Graf von Zepellin seem to be the most popular, but von Hindenberg is also very popular (and historically more significant).

That's easy! The rarest coins in higher grades will be the most expensive ones.

It's too late to know. Any survey on percentages of coins in circulation would have to be done when they were still in circulation. I think Freeman's book (The Bronze Coinage of Great Britain) and rarity scales it features are based on a sample of many thousands of coins taken from circulation. And that would be the rarity of the dates/types, nothing to do with grade. The very best quality coins are rare things! People always fail to realise that even if something is valuable in UNC condition, that it has little baring on the same coin in average condition. You know that by now!

Yes, post a link, I'm sure it won't do any harm.

We can only make wild guesses now. I expect out of all the millions and millions of predecimal coins made there is probably 1-2% left at the most! This will obviously depend on the metal used as silver is valuable and very meltable but brass threepences are mostly junk and worth about 1p each. And of that tiny fraction (which will of course be different for each coin and even each date) an even smaller proportion will be high grade collectable coins. Make something up like 0.0001% or something silly for EF and above, which is why they are rare and collectable of course. For many coins there are probably less than 100 uncirculated examples or even less than 10, which as a percentage of the total mintage would be something to-the-power-of lots of noughts. There are exceptions, like 1960s coinage, which is nearly always high grade and probably exists in larger numbers that anything earlier. A good question Scott, that we'll never know the answer to.

There is also 'The Crown Pieces of Great Britain' 1962 by Howard Linecar. Hardback, and more difficult to come by that the modern Krause books. It includes all British crowns from hammered onwards (it pre dates 1965 so misses out the crap completely!) It also includes British commonwealth Crown or similar sized large silver coins. No values....just a list of types with pictures.

All commemorative coins since the 1965 Churchill crown are a load of rubbish. The only difference is that they now produce one or two crowns with all the collectability of the Churchill crown every year, instead of every 5/6 years! And of course they also tamper with the £2 coin and 50p. All toot, only the errors and the odd rarity are worth having (e.g. the gold £5 mule and the 2000 Crown with dome mint mark, perhaps). It's a shame, because the glut of toot devalues the odd coin with a nice design or one that marks an occassion worth commemorating. And I expect the sheer numbers of modern issues in recent years may actually put off some young collectors that may have eventually progressed to proper coins!

I don't think that's an error. It looks like a normal coin that someone has squashed a bit, perhaps by leaving it on a railway line or something.....or in some kind of machine.

Yes, around Fine is where it's at. Worth around £10.

It's a crown and is sterling (.925) silver.

Most modern albums are Polypropylene which is ok for long term storage of all coins as long as they are kept in a stable, dry environment. PP is relatively new though so the coins should still be checked regularly in case the PP starts breaking down after 25 years!

Practically incest Del!

As if I haven't got better things to do! I only did that for fun and run out of ideas. I've changed it now.

Can't really call that (or any £5 coin) a circulation coin though. I wonder how many of those they made with the dome mintmark. Good one for me too, as my family come from around there and I lived in the London Borough of Greenwich.

Is that the Millenium one minted at the Dome? I've got 2 of those in packs that i'm hanging on to because of the dome mintmark......Has to be scarce.

And the undated 20p's are not, and have bever been collected back by the Royal Mint. They were purchased by a private company that like to sound as if they have some affiliation with the Royal Mint!!! I have to tell people this a lot. The Royal mint confirmed that they had made the mistake, but they had no interest in calling them in.

What to sell? If so, I'll have it.

I don't think I pulled Steve apart, or anyone else. You're alright aren't you Steve? Actually, the other day I did seach on ebay for something and ordered it by highest price first. I was looking for a decorative (preferably original) London Street sign. Doing a normal search revealed tons of crud items, key rings, mugs and other junk for tourists. It was only when I ordered it by highest price first did I actually see some real street signs!

Oh, calm down....and welcome chocca. Chocca's on the block. I didn't tell him he was a fool....merely that he was making a fool of himself. No one can sue me for that! Even the most intelligent, smart and knowledgeable man can sometimes make a fool of himself. ;-) But what serious numismatist would bother contacting a man that has a green coin on ebay, uses not the very best pictures, has feedback of 43, has never sold anything for more than about £20 and starts it at a shade under £10m!? I certainly wouldn't, had I not got to know Steve a little in here first. I hope it was a free insertion day!

£10m!!!! Is he having a laugh? Are you having a laugh? Even if it is a '5', which is debatable, it could potentially be compared with the 1863 pennies with numbers below the dates, like the one with the '5' below the date, which sold for £18,000 and was properly verified etc. No British coin has ever been sold for that much and whoever looks at that listing will just laugh at you Steve and click on the back button straight away! In fact, if it is the real thing (which, again, is debatable) you may well of ruined your chances of ever selling it because people will think.....oh here comes the £10m joker, hide, quickly! Do the homework properly Steve, before you make a fool of yourself like that. Send it to Dr Kevin Clancy at the Royal Mint and see what he says. Or send it to this man http://www.coinauthentication.co.uk/ and tell him I sent you.

"The Provincial Token Coinage of the 18th Century" by Messrs Dalton and Hamer is the one to get. There are various imprints, many of them US publications. They show a rarity scale, no values, but it's pretty comprehensive. Or, "The Silver Token Coinage" for the rarer silver tokens, this one is by Dalton on his own. Or for something more up to date (as a rarity scale....again, no values) have a look here: http://www.unsogno.net/conders/bibliography.htm Search that page for 'Sriro'. That's Dr G Sriro, who is very up on those tokens! I used to sell his CD's before he paniced after one got put on ebay and then he pulled the plug. I don't know if that 2006 info is still current, or even if he's still selling it.

Please post pictures. And if selling, I'm buying!

Good points! I've checked and the 2009 edition still refers to the GEORGIUS being on the reverse! I'll check and see what was originally meant and will out that right for 2010.