Rob

Merry Christmas everyone.

Does anybody remember the 11-14th century medieval penny/denier/whatever with the large flat based crown, facing bust and hair which looks like a Christmas tree either side, ie triangular with a pot at the bottom representing curls - it is quite distinctive. Where was it issued and by whom? I can't find a picture of it to show. Thanks.

Quite a few differences there. The rims on the right look thicker. The beads on the right look smaller, but that might be an optical illusion. The left hand side of the 1 is in better agreement on the two reverses in relation to the border bead and central vertical of the portcullis than the right hand side of the 1 which appears to be aligned with the right hand side of the central portcullis vertical on the second coin, but nearly in the middle of the gap on the first coin. The position of the border beads to the design detail is different. Is there a difference in the number of beads? If you drop a vertical from the outside of the terminal ring, the relative position and possibly number count vary by a midge's. Is the right hand side a filled die given the somewhat uneven surfaces?

10 minutes ago it felt like we ought to be under 2 feet of water here too. Absolutely throwing it down with strong winds. Good job I went out early doors to get the shopping etc

I thought 1980 because I have never seen a 1979 frosted proof. Also, the reverse is less easily seen to be frosted whereas the bust is a nice big expanse of relief detail, so maybe the reverses were frosted and the obverses not before this time.

1980

That's because they have all been worn flat long ago. Rather worryingly, it appears to have been lovingly cared for during the past 70 or 80 years. I know a nice man with a large pot who would love to get his hands on that..................and he'd pay you for it.

It is just a natural progression in the life of the die. i.e quite normal.

Some errors attach a premium, but they usually ahve to be spectacular. This shouldn't make any difference, though eBay sellers might disagree

There are a lot of silver patterns with mintages in single figures or low double figures

It's also good for the balance of payments. HMG doing their bit to reduce the rediculous size of our trade deficit. If people stopped wasting insane amounts of money on imported expensive depreciating liabilities such as cars, it would go a long way to sorting our deficit.

I've got one I don't want which I am prepared to offload - for a fee.

You're not the only one.

Double punched D from what I can see,

Yep. If it is the lowest grade possible, it will command a premium. From a personal point of view, I would be interested in how the TPG determines it is due to genuine wear and not tampered with/environmentally damaged/excessively scratched etc. I suspect the with the exception of corrosion, they will be unable to differentiate, so, for those washers capable of commanding a premium to the cost of slabbing and the intrinsic value of the scrap metal - use human stupidity to your advantage and fill yer boots.

Thanks Peter, I'll PM you.

Talking of cabinets, I have a spare here, a Nichols Pheon, lockable with space for 504 coins on 14 trays if anyone is interested. All the trays have been pierced to facilitate coin removal. 6 off 34 dia x 30 2 off 32 dia x 36 6 off 28 dia x 42 Some minor surface hairs that would easily touch up, otherwise in good condition. I would guess at about 25 years old based on former owner. £120.00 delivered.

A quick look at a few dozen listings showed every one to be either over 3 or 5. Bearing in mind the prolific Lima output, it is probable that relatively few 1745 halfcrowns were struck. Dies were reused wherever possible making the 5/3 almost inevitable. The 5/5 just means that the digit was punched in at least twice and not in the same place. The question to be asked is whether a cleanly punched 5 exists with a roses reverse given what I have seen.

I find their logic a little difficult. Why a Kew Gardens 50p should be difficult to spot on the grounds that 950 million 50ps have been printed (sic) is beyond me. Nobody could be in a position to examine more than a handful at any one time, not 950 million.

I'm not sure it matters. Maybe he had two.

Good old Daily Mail, always on the ball. Shouldn't be too long before they ask people to check for 1933 pennies in the biscuit tin of pennies inherited from Granny.

Don't know without seeing in hand, but the amount of toning removed at the high points such as the right hand and knee doesn't indicate much wear, if any. The obvious loss of metal due to friction is best seen on the hair and ear. The high points for the reverse are perm any three from fingers, helmet, knee or right hand. Or if the rim is high then one of these once it has worn down.

Just plough through past listings on LC. Some are obviously early strikes, others not. Mine has filled fingers and was previously in a CGS80 slab. No wear to the hair though.

This? It's only £3. https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=dictionaries+for+sale+£3&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-b&gfe_rd=cr&ei=kktPWLzOMcfv8Af8y5bADw#q=dictionaries+for+sale+£3&tbm=shop&spd=4487374099716405

I'd give it better than EF based on the wear to the hair. The fingers are a red herring on these as the die became filled. You see as many with rounded (but not flattened) fingers as you do struck up ones.