1949threepence

Well he didn't with the bronzed ones mentioned. Are we to assume they were bronzed post mint as well?

At page 408 he mentioned the gilded coins, alongside the bronzed versions, as though they were official Royal Mint issue. If you'd missed the earlier point on page 391 (not difficult in a book that size), regarding no officially gilded copper or bronze, post George III, you could be forgiven for thinking he meant they were from the Royal Mint. It's the way it reads anyway.

Should have noticed that the footnote in question continues over the page into 408, to include the 1858/7, the small date 1858, the 1858 no ww (and the 1859 copper proof, which isn't a currency penny). In the same footnote, Peck also goes onto say that there are gilded specimens of the 1841 no colon after reg and the 1853 OT. Although that somewhat contradicts his comments on page 391 where he says: "Gilt specimens of the copper and bronze coins of George IV to Victoria are occasionally met with, but these are only current pieces which have been gilded after leaving the Mint: no gilt specimens have ever been issued by the Mint".

Was it flagged up as a bronzed piece, Richard, or just sold as date only?

I'm going to keep a look out for anything which might be a potential specimen. Like so much of the pre 1860 copper series, it's been somewhat overlooked.

Keep us posted.

Richard - if all else fails you could also perhaps try ppm@dnw.co.uk - which I received in March 2022, when Peter Preston-Morley, Associate Director at "DNW" replied to an e mail of mine on a totally unrelated issue. Organisations tend to be much slower altering personal e mail addresses, so it's probably still valid.

@alfnail Ian, In a footnote at page 407, Peck states that bronzed currency pieces exist for 1841 (no colon), 1853 (OT), 1855 (PT) and 1857 (OT). This is something that I've ever noticed, or seen referred to anywhere . May I respectfully ask whether you have ever come across any in your extensive experience? If so, should we regard them as scarce? I'd imagine they would only be noticeable as such, in very high states of preservation. Thanks in advance.

Thanks for the tip. Appreciated.

I often do Richard - but I need to master the art of getting the two cropped pics the same size. Something I've failed miserably at so far. ETA: the 1831 now cropped using photoscape. Note the difference in size:-

Yes, a meaningless, self imposed, arbitrary deadline. We get those at work, labelled as "imperative". But guess what? If they're broken, the Sun still rises and life carries on as normal the following day. Sorry Sword, not your fault. I'm afraid my recent experiences of ludicrously tight deadlines has annoyed me somewhat.

Yes, this is the one that's at the top of their home page. Not nearly as effective as the old one IMO.

The special collections aren't working. Just tried clicking on the Laurie Bamford sale - as you say, nothing. They should check every last function before going live, using a staff member working at home from their own personal device(s) if possible. But clearly haven't.

Agreed. They were changing the name. They didn't actually need to alter the site functionality at all. Bit of a dog's dinner now.

Managed to get an 1831 proof penny (the commoner type with the reverse inverted). It is true to say there is a small but visible edge knock on the obverse side, but that apart the coin is immaculate.

Imagine if they'd gone with Dix....

Well indeed, as the vast majority of enquirers will have no idea about the change, and still be searching for DNW. They'll also have to alter their logo, which is a pity as the one they have now is neat and effective.

Many times. I've even had coins with writing on them, as have others. I don't know why, but it often seems as though very rare coins seem more than usually afflicted with such graffiti and also signs of cleaning. Here, for example, is my Freeman 30, 6 over 8 penny, where it looks as though Britannia has a club at her side. I assume, the result of deliberate action:-

To cut directly to the chase, there would be far more negative than positive, probably in the proportion 80:20. It was ever thus, and ever will be thus, whatever happens.

Can't see the point personally, as we've all got used to the conveniently abbreviated "DNW". Not many would actually say "I bought my coin at the recent Dix, Noonan & Webb auction". If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

According to an article in April's Coin News, DNW will henceforth - from April - be known as "Noonans". Although it's now 28th April and I've seen no evidence of it yet. Small screenshot from article. Can't do anymore as it uses up too many kilobytes:-

A choice piece of a coin which is rare anyway, but in that high grade, very rare. Really nice, well done. The PT 1853 is even rarer still with an italic date. You might be interested in Ian's post from January 2021 regarding stats for 1853 pennies - here

what makes it even worse is that they've adulterated the coin itself.

Good for you. I've often thought how much I'd like a camper van...motor home, or whatever they're called. The perfect leisure travel solution for those who appreciate the countryside. i thought about it a lot during covid, as it would have meant the freedom to travel without having to mix with anyone else. I could even have taken the cat with me. The idea seems just as viable as we start to enter a post covid world.

I wish I chased that 1859 proof myself now - I very nearly did at the time. Just one or two uncertainties stopped me.