VickySilver

Ah thanks for the input! Yea, don't care for those 50 P coins as IMO they are overhyped and not ordinary currency coins generally (although there are some marginal coins to be sure). The 2008 "no date" I agree is entirely overrated and have seen auctions with up to and greater than THIRTY STRAIGHT LOTS! I have heard some rumours, likely not proven that some of the reported 1981 10p mintage were actually 1980 coins. I saw Gouby's coins and had a bit of a laugh as I just got two for 21 USD including tax, shipping, etc. - or about 8 pounds per coin & mine are nice uncirculated coins with decent lustre. I have had a look at some other smaller denomination coins in the decimal currency series and have not been impressed although for some reason I like the large modulus 2p coins... I got one of the Martini 1983 sets featuring the 2 New Pence coin and have kept it in original packaging although the red lustre is beginning to fade a bit despite my best preservation efforts.

Over the years I have looked sporadically at some of the decimal issues and one that keeps coming up as rather scarce is the uncirculated 1981 10 pence. Mintage was about 3.5 million coins, so a fair number struck. Evidently they were largely paid out into circulating channels because recently they seem rather unusual to find, and particularly if an uncirculated currency issue and not one of the more common proofs.This is from the year just prior to the release of yearly uncirculated sets by the Royal Mint. I have seen that there is near zero interest in the decimal series but that on occasion they will sell for 50-75 pounds. How common or rare is this coin in your opinion, and are there other such coins of similar scarcity?

They were printing those off as fast as they could to fund an abysmal cause & rapidly turned almost worthless to be made good on conclusion of the war (well thank God it didn't go their way). To me, I always felt like holding any confederate anything was akin to holding items from Nazi Germany, or possibly worse. Anyway, I suppose these things serve an educational purpose....

Go team! Well, some of these coins are likely so rare that it is luck now but knowledge has a way of enhancing luck!

Thanks Richard. LOL. I even have trouble getting the obverse here but will try again.

Hopefully these posts keep interests of the readers but one of the few areas I have bought in on occasion: The Royal Mint from about 1980 for about 25 years and more struck some scarcities as far as sets and individual coins that some may be aware of. The Bahamas had struck for them souvenir sets in several years (1989, 1991, 1992, 1996) and the year 2000. These came in the 5 coin format and then a very few in the 7 coin format. For the year 2000, the former 5 coin sets were struck in reasonable numbers but although the coins in these cardboard and plastic sets were of excellent prooflike quality, were of normal 1c through 25c denominations that were struck for, and served as circulation coins. BUT, the 7 coin sets were struck in much fewer numbers and included examples of the nicely designed and somewhat famous 50 cents Marlin coin, and the more well-known One Dollar conch coin - both of these had been struck since the inaugural 1966 coins and sets. For year 2000 these were not struck for circulation so the only way to get them is in the 7 coin sets. The 5 coin sets usually sell on ebay for about 8-20 pounds plus shipping, but had not seen a 7 coin set for nearly a decade, and so despite constant searching there and other venues had not found one until just a couple of weeks ago when one popped up at a starting price of USD 9.95. I watched it for 9 days and it stayed at that price so I put out a "nuclear" bid of multiples of that, and low and behold, got it at USD 10.50 plus another 6 in shipping and taxes. Very thrilled with this, and have been informed that the 7 coin set mintage may be about 50 in all with there being some attractive coins included and all basically at the price of a nice Starbucks coffee! I will see if Richard may post pictures of the dollar coin from the set and others if readers are interested. BTW, some other RM rarities include the 1996 Bahamas 7 coin specimen set and the 2004 Falklands specimen set (and proof set which also seems to have a 50 set mintage and coins of copper nickel). The RAM Australian Mint has made some scarcities during these years as well but some of the rarities remain a bit obscure - Mister T knows far more than I about these .....

Gaaak!!!! Well, I collect this type of coin but NOT at this price and glad mine came from a saner time. Nowadays I am most careful with my purchases and only splurge on particular items that I know are especially scarce or have other attributes. I would imagine there are others that have somewhat retreated in this market as well...

I don't know just not the Spink of the past says one who is reluctantly becoming an old-timer... It's just that I used to get so many quality pieces from them, although admittedly many from the SNC when notified early....

I just saw this posted and was appalled (surprise, surprise!) at the quality or lack thereof and the grades obtained. For specifics, check the 1935 Specimen Rocking Horse Crown in SP66 (?!?!) - marks on the cheek are absolutely unacceptable IMO for that grade. And then there is the poor 1965 Churchill crown somehow graded MS65 but given what appears to be a "GVF" or thereabouts in the description. I simply can not believe that grade. As some may know, I am actually a fan of this crown in higher grades - which this certainly is NOT - but this one won't do. I have gradually over the years been filling out the Old Head Regnal years but even with those I'm lacking feel I must pass on this lot for sale. What say our readers?

I suppose the dies were not necessarily even produced at the same time. Who knows, so much controversy. IMO, I do not things always ticked as smoothly as a good clock at the Royal Mint in the good ole days and I never understood how it was that only one reverse might be used for the 1882 (London) coins when it seems at least to me that 2 or three different reverses made at different times could have been made. Always curious to me what gets accepted as dogma, even on occasion without concrete evidence. I was referring to 1882 of course....

I thought that was the 1875 Heaton penny? Regardless, I like the 1864s even without micro-varietals......

Wow, nice then did you happen to notice the date? Many are the Royal Mint 1970 version which is decidedly common. If another date like 1977 or 1979 Franklin Mint uncirculated I would really want to know. There is an ebay seller in I think Washington state that has a 1976 in unc. for over 700 USD which is just far too high (and I have two of that date in any case as it is the most common).

Here is the packing with Kyiv postmarks, etc. I am still amazed this got out...

For those that have not lost interest: please look carefully at the obverse of the 10 Dollar coin with the subject CUFFY. The engraving of this piece really IMO well executed and the RM or USA mint might do well to find some sculptors that can manage portraits as well...

Ah thanks Richard. Didn't know you visited this part of the forum....

As some are perhaps aware, I collect circulating/currency coins of the Franklin Mint and of the Caribbean especially - although I make exceptions for Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands to some extent, and mainly because it is a rare day that I find a decent Vicky or late pre-decimal silver at a real world price. Anyway, some 6 or so months ago right on ebay appear TWO Guyana coins of exceeding rarity & these are the Uncirculated (U) 1978 Guyana $5 and $10 pieces. These had an original mintage of 100 each and were NOT sold to collectors. As best as I have been able to make out, they were struck by the Franklin Mint as were other such coins to "legitimize" their offerings of silver (and gold) proof coins and sets to be sold to collectors; most of these NEVER made it to their country of origin at all. From what I have been able to gather over the years, and this dates back to the 1970s when I could not afford much of anything besides maybe my next meal at University, the putative currency issues were struck by the Franklin Mint at a truly marvelous private minting facility in Pennsylvania and then sacked up into bags and sent to the issuing authority in whichever country & usually the Central Bank. A few uncirculated sets were occasionally and erratically struck for the non-focal countries, which I will presently explain, but most of even these sets were sold to collectors in wealthier countries such as the USA, Britain, Germany and the formerly titled Benelux with only a few going to host countries. In any case, and back to the story. These currency coins were then sent to the Central Banks as stated and faced varied fates: some were dumped out into circulating channels through the banks & this generally applied to the smaller denominations, usually one cent through one dollar or equivalents. This has been disputed by some but then debunked on the evidence that circulated examples ARE indeed found from the time. The larger coins, and by such I really mean that, ofter up to 45 mm diameters and on occasion even LARGER were after 1973 nearly always struck in copper nickel which meant they had essentially no melt or intrinsic value (until the recent meteoric rise of nickel prices!). They were struck in quite small numbers, often only 50 to 250 or so examples and evidently for the most part languished in bags or other storage with a few possibly being pulled out by curious or maybe in cases knowing bank personnel or their friends. There is very scant to poor to minimal direct evidence of any of this and comes from stories that I and others have gathered. Point being that few were made, those made were NOT treated specially & often received rather poor treatment with bagmarks and handling/storage hairlines, etc. Because some are so very scarce, many either are still lost in the bowels of Central Banks or possibly melted or even THROWN OUT as appears the case with mates to the two subject coins. Bottomline: abyssmal survival and coins that are likely extremely rare. In the case of Guyana, the poor Guyanese dollar has suffered severe damage in exchange ratios which is important as shall be pointed out. In 1978, it took roughly 10 Guyanese dollars to equal one USA dollar and gradually this has eroded to over 200 Guyanese dollars to one USA dollar now in 2022. So at time of issue, and according to records 100 each of the 5 Dollar and 10 Dollar coins were sent there to the Central Bank in Georgetown, Guyana. Allegedly, also an unknown number of specimen uncirculated (but NOT including proofs) in the prooflike or (U) quality were made - in 44 years since issues I have NEVER seen one of these sets. So until 6 months ago, I had not seen any of the uncirculated specimens of these two larger denominations when all of the sudden one of each appeared on ebay but the seller wanted an atrocious amount of money that even I was unwilling to pay. I tried to bargain and (s)he came down only marginally and so decided to see what they might sell for; they did not sell and so some time later I offered a bit higher price which was refused and the seller then offered a HIGHER price. ERGGGGGHHHHHH! I then waited even longer and the coins languished unsold & so made another offer and thankfully he dropped the price just a bit more so I agreed and sent my payment. The next day I thought back and vaguely recalled that the seller was in Eastern Europe. A cursory check then showed he lived in Kyiv, Ukraine of all places! Four weeks went by and no coins, and so I then figured I was out of my money even though a good seller (seller responded that he had moved - evidently Westward - and that he had posted them). But then I came into work, and tah dah!!!!!, there sat on my desk an envelope from UKRAINE. Only one likelihood and that was that these coins were included. Indeed they were and undamaged at that with a Kyiv postmark which appears to be either 22 or 24 February, and so after a bit of restoration now have my two coins!!! If anyone can volunteer through email to post these pictures please let me know. I am on my laptop now, but will try my old method of using cell phone again which is a method that recently has failed......

Yes, I to am appalled by their prices on "classic" and often worn coins of no real substance or value (excluding that 1819 sovereign which didn't look like diddly to me), but the profit margin is also IMHO to high on the current offerings.

Ah, Rolling Stones! Very nice job and a collector's work there to be proud of. Maybe you could fill a video with these treasures.....

Thanks Richard!

Non-techy is good to me. Not to digress but for some reason I have never been able to post off my old iMac but used to be able to post one picture at a time from my iPhone 11S but now I can not use it on the latest pictures. I like good and simple that works. Meanwhile, I will weigh out the 10 New Pence pattern with the George and the dragon reverse and post that as well with help (ed. weight was 13.06 gms. on that one and feels much denser than CuNi in hand & suspect may be silver as well despite published reports of CuNi composition). Thanks all!

Good science there and what my thoughts obviously are as well. An XRF machine would settle composition issue but these are very hard to find locally. Some jewelry stores have them but they are rather costly and have found none locally. I am also questioning the 10 pence pattern from the same set although have not weighed it. I just want someone to post pictures as I cannot reduce the size on either laptop or iPhone ....PM me if you might be able to.

I had to edit this as I may need a bit of help posting pictures of a pattern decimal 20 pence reverse struck in 1963 and that came with a set in a DNW 2005 auction . Also is a pattern Machin obverse for the 20 pence from 1963 The latter was supposedly struck in silver and I just weighed it at 26.30 gms. The former is supposedly struck in copper nickel and the specimen in the Royal Mint collection weighs in at 22.50 gms; internet sources, probably based on that specimen also say copper nickel and 22.50 gms. Mine weighs in at 26.56 gms and looks like silver. Besides helping me post photos can any readers venture thoughts or opinions? notum: for some reason I can not compress files today

I appreciate your enthusiasm but would not be generous to give this a type as a simple pit in the die will give this "stop". Carry on, this noted from an olde farte here.....