Rob

Probably having difficulty understanding the numbers, so he's used copy and paste from somewhere. He can't spell Leicester, so a lack of numeracy would merely be an extension of this.

The Circular was online in the archive section until about 2011-12 when the previously very dysfunctional site was taken down and replaced by something a little less unpredictable. 15/6d for an 1857 penny was a lot in 1895 when the regular pieces were going for 9d up to 2/-. I see it was priced at about the same level as a Fine 1860

I acquired mine for 350 when Stone sold up, which was ok given he paid 500 for it in Nicholson. Happy days

It purports to be a Carlisle short cross penny, but is obviously a modern copy as the mint signature is CARL which doesn't exist, the valid readings being CAR, CARD, CARDI or CARDV. Alain or Alein strikes in classes 1b, 1c, 3 & 4b at Carlisle, but exactly which class it is trying to be is impossible to say with so much being wrong. A class 1c is attached to give an idea what it is imitating.

It's a difficult one. We all know the market is a bit hot at the moment, but it wasn't always the same, and there are always some pieces that slip under the radar. We also have our own view on what a particular coin is worth - is the estimate low, high or just right? Say you are Spink and have to put an estimate on the lot. You have an annual tome with prices which should provide a good guide to the expected outcome at auction and DNW etc will almost certainly be in the same ballpark, but that can never account for two individuals determined to buy the coin and we've all been there. The recent monopoly of on-line auctions has also ensured that buying is now relatively concentrated on a small number of outlets, with a larger number of buyers taking part. This has to partly responsible for the uplift in prices. But is not always the case, as conversely, many lots in the Bates sale for example went for peanuts and a lot less than he paid. Estimates will also reflect the reserve required by the vendor. If a vendor insists on a high reserve, the estimate must reflect that. If there is no reserve then it can be set at any level and will almost certainly be at one which is guaranteed to sell, the admin of dealing with unsold lots not having great appeal to the auction house. Spink used to buy in unsold lots at a percentage of estimate and list them in the Circular, but that obviously no longer happens. Unsolds therefore have to be returned to the vendor, or included in a subsequent sale. The anarchy penny from Tutbury that was the subject of a thread on this forum was listed a few times with DNW and eventually sold for about 60% of the original estimate. i.e. the vendor wanted too much. I suppose the only thing that matters is the price you would be willing to pay, because the estimate is irrelevant to the final outcome, whatever the level. And that means doing your homework if you want to pay something in line with the current market.

Holed, corroded and split/cracked makes 165 a tad optimistic. £50-60 maybe.

Blue is a popular colour. I always assumed the light blue dot on the back of this slab was the colour they ordered.

No they're not - they're as variable as they ever were. We just highlight the obvious outliers as we encounter them. There's plenty more where that came from.

If someone is stupid enough to pay them to do so, then yes. They would only be satifying a demand in the market to confirm that what you have is genuine tat of the highest quality. Nothing finer - or so they say..... I reckon, if you looked around, you could find an even bigger load of b*****ks somewhere. Edit to say - found some. I wonder if they will grade as premium quality? https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fupload.wikimedia.org%2Fwikipedia%2Fcommons%2F3%2F37%2FCriadillas_de_Choto-_Madrid.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FTesticles_as_food&tbnid=NSrnzvae4TXETM&vet=12ahUKEwi596OP_tfuAhUJ-4UKHRr7A8cQMygAegUIARCYAQ..i&docid=fieVeu65fqJ6RM&w=2592&h=3888&q=bulls testicles images&client=firefox-b-d&ved=2ahUKEwi596OP_tfuAhUJ-4UKHRr7A8cQMygAegUIARCYAQ

How does that sit with the requirement that slabs should be sealed to stop access to the coin? Is it an MS70 vending machine? Put some money in the slot and you get a graded drink? I'm going for them being 'Poor'. Not sure about 'Have a Coke' - LSD may be more appropriate...................

Looking at Heritage, the new owner is now actively seeking offers of $1287 or more - so only 30% more than a price that was already 4 or 5 times higher than you'd expect to pay. I can appreciate conditional rarity for type and this is the only 65 etc, but silly old me always assumed it compared the coins and not the labels.

I wonder why it's a 69? Maybe there's a trace of bottleopener on the rim? If so, the TPG was definitely on the ball to notice that.

S1905, 1699, 2356.

There's nothing wrong with it. Die clashes happened all the time.

S1785, Class 4e(pellet before LON), 10cf5 and S1356C

It's not a cud as far as I can see because there's no extra metal. The shape of the curl coming out of her forehead matches the profile of the gap between the bottom left stalk end and the lowest leaves on the left side. The stalk end is visible under the first A of GRATIA and the left hand branch detail can be seen to a point under her chin. Absolutely nothing to do with her hair.

Clashed dies.

Gut feeling is no because there is no evidence of the top and bottom left points of an E

That bit I understand. It is seen as a ring of weakness at the same radius as the legend. I'm of the opinion that it is due to metal dust produced when the lettering is impressed on the blank as the relatively steep sides of the letter will have some cutting action even if the letter is formed by metal flow. The die will then rotate slightly as it withdraws (there must be some play in the mechanism, however small) and so cause the dust to migrate along the arc of the radius. Get enough dust built up and you will eventually block the die - which is what you see. There will always be a trace of oil/grease around to help it stick at the correct radius. In the case of the above coin, it is an area rather than the arc I'm describing in the previous paragraph.

It's interesting because the flat areas are at the same point both sides which would tend to eliminate blocked dies from wear and tear, unless from grease. It's quite a big area with weakness showing from the trident to the rim and the front of the bust to the rim.

I haven't used them so can't comment, but given your question which is pertinent to a well known Australian saleroom, I can understand your concern.

Samuel was in Spink sale 109 (1995) which pre-dates any internet archives. Nicholson bought a few lots there.

I didn't have one and neither did Nicholson or Samuel. The only one I have noted was Freeman's (lot 91A), which was practically mint state with much lustre. It was bought by Peek according to my catalogue, but that sale had a number of fictitious buyers, so isn't guaranteed to be genuine. They're certainly very rare, but it's also fair to say that at no point was I interested in filling the gap at any cost, so tended not to look at lower grade material. I never encountered one in my travels.

That's ok. I have trouble remembering that I need to eat breakfast sometimes. Last week I didn't get round to it until half three.

To answer MBE, the answer is obviously no. The number of penny collectors who routinely use Gouby references would imply that they mostly have the info at their fingertips. In the case of the penny book, I acquired it when I bought Colin Adams' library in 2005. I hadn't used it in 10 years and in the interim had bought the useful volume which is the detailed 19th century varieties (not available when he stopped collecting), with the 20th being fairly superfluous as it didn't contain the recent discoveries. The 20th century effectively duplicated Freeman. I regularly help people with missing items if it is no loss to myself or my collection. On occasion I have rejigged the coins around a few criteria in order to help someone out whilst still maintaining the integrity of the collection and library. This was one such instance.