Rob

In the days when mental arithmetic was part of daily life, the changeover wasn't that difficult. A florin was still a tenth of a pound, 120+ years after it was first introduced and the continued use of existing 'silver' coins made things quite easy. With the old penny demonetised, there wasn't even the need to use your 2.4 times table. For small change, all you needed was an approximation to know you were in the right ballpark - an ability which people appear to be sadly lacking today, cf. D Abbott MP.

Try dug up and crud removed.

Definitely not. People on ebay want to get everything for a quid, so the market obliges and provides them with s**t. Pay more and you would expect to receive, and in many instances would receive, better quality.

I would have had them - I've virtually run out of stock for BU sets. Didn't see them as it was the Midland today.

The amount of Cheddar consumed in this country must dwarf all the other types put together. As prevalent as other British or foreign cheeses are, there is no way they are consumed on a regular basis by most people who will have Cheddar in most instances, whether a block or grated. It's cheap and cheerful, and crucially, affordable by all. We bought some Mrs Kirkham's Lancashire recently from the farm, and they make as much cheese as their cows produce milk for - a couple hundred kg a day. There are fewer than 10 farms making Lancashire cheese. That's b****r all.

The design is quite intricate and a fair amount of work has gone into it implying a relatively upmarket source, so what does HME stand for? Her Majesty's Exchequer? Harrod's Money Exchange? Any magazines in 1971 with the initials? Thoughts anyone?

Penny

The Elizabeth I Irish copper penny and halfpenny of 1601 which was the first attempt to introduce the metal, followed by the Harington issues in mainland Britain.

I have 3 hard bound early volumes of the Numismatic Circular up for grabs if anyone is interested. Vol. IV Dec 1895-Nov 1896. Good condition with slight fraying at the top and bottom of the spine. £35 Vol. VIII Dec 1899-Nov 1900. Internally ok and nothing loose, but some damage to the spine. £28 Vol.IX Dec 1900-Nov 1901. Good condition, some slight fraying to the top of the spine. £32. Free delivery to a UK address.

If the 1952 halfcrown is identical to prior years in all but the date, then I can't see how it be considered a pattern. It would have to sit alongside other rarities such as the 1945 threepence, virtually all of which were melted down. I would hazard a guess and say that yearly dies were cut in advance for all denominations in all bar a few instances in anticipation of future requirements. 1952 would be a year where halfcrowns were expected to be struck, as doubtless there was still a high number of 500 silver coins theoretically in circulation, even if many were hoarded. The unexpected event of the year was George VI dying

If you aren't sure and can't see it, in the absence of a positive die match, it isn't.

I'm not convinced the government falling would mean an automatic win for Corbyn. I would give the population, who are coming to realise that he wants Brexit as much as Johnson, more credit than that. As a lifelong opponent of Brussels, I suspect a lot of converts to him over the past 3 years might not be so happy once they realise he doesn't share their goals. Many older voters without party allegiances to consider will not support him due to his and much of the left's opposition to the creation of private wealth in the first place. As always, it is easy to be in opposition but much harder to be in power.

Can't tell. The resolution isn't good enough when blown up, but there doesn't appear to be much, if any wear to the stippled area between ear and collar, and that is the first to go.

It's one of those coins where the book is irrelevant. Barring a hoard find, there will always be more buyers than coins extant, let alone available.

I was wondering if that was from their own collection, as the world isn't exactly overrun with these.

Lighting has a huge effect on your perception. If you are accustomed to lighting from the top, then if done from the bottom, the relief detail often appears incuse until your brain has adjusted. Needless to say, that shifts the teeth half a position.

I think it is down to photographic quality. Spink's images are too saturated for my taste. As for the ebay listing, I too can produce lifeless images which don't bring out the finer detail. However, the surfaces in closeup look as they did on the original as far as I recall. The listed item still has a spot of red wax on the reverse at 5pm between the V and inner circle. This is visible on the original images. The piece of crud at the edge of the rays was also present on the original. I'm happy it is the same coin.

The only one I have had in recent times is this, which I think came from LCA. I had one 15 years ago, but wasn't good enough grade to keep the picture.

Looking at Gouby's site, the only obvious things to me at first glance is the top bar of the 5 which is thicker on the end, and the 8 is sharper, from a different punch. The 8/6 looks to be using the same 5.

Is it absolutely clear whether small/large date refers specifically to date with or numeral size, as the definition appears to vary from issue to issue? i.e small date might imply the numerals are used on a smaller denomination, but you also have situations where the date width determines the attribution. A third possibility would be a slightly different font resulting in numeral height/width differences.

The problem is yours and yours alone. As we all accept, there is no right or wrong way to collect because we are collecting for pleasure. If you can't live with it then get rid and upgrade as funds allow. If you bought it because you were happy at the time, then it is your decision if you are no longer happy, but you have to decide why it is no longer satisfactory. It wouldn't be a problem to upgrade as the coin is hardly rare, so it boils down to your priorities - and on that, the ball is firmly in your court.

Why do you think it is a fake? Looks ok to me.

Just found this. Breakfast at Zurich Hbf a few years ago.

Free postage. Offer a quid. Fair value.

Gone