1887jubilee

Good to see you are still active. I had two phone bids, the first the call couldn't get through and the second; est.£400 fetched £1,100! .So I lost both.I guess you would call that pretty boyant

There are about 30 lying in a potter's field near Jerusalem.

If you are interested in Edward I then probably the best place to start would be a copy of "The Galata Guide to The pennies of Edward I & II" . This will keep you occupied for hours with the 100+ varieties. If you have just a passing interest then just wait for the other replies and someone will try to identify it for you. There seems to be something wrong with the DNS part of the inscription which is interesting. Second choice of book would be Wren "The English Long-Cross Pennies 1279-1489. After a cursory look it appears to be an early class with open C and E and wedge S? I cannot go further but it might just be a stirling immitation. See what everyone else says.

I can confirm this is R/I but there are several varieties of the R/I sixpence and this is only one of them. About 40% of withdrawn 1887 sixpences are R/I so don't expect a lot for it. The books like Davies were written before recent research.

Who is writing the book? I am. Crowns are a pain because the one with the broken 1 and 8 are also available in proof! Yes the plumes are noted, yes the 3 different basic obverses and all the different sizes. but as Rob points out the only person interested in paying a bit over the odds is probably me. Any help would be appreciated then perhaps we can all learn something.

Yes of course it is not real but it is on ebay finishing in 20 mins and the bidding is only £2.10. The same seller and probably the same coin that sold for £398. It makes a suitable space filler.

I agree some "specimen" sets look almost better than than PR 61. I think the best advise would be:- examine the rims to make sure they are flat, broad and without raised surplus metal. check the milling which will be wonderfully crisp and sharp to the touch look at as many comparable, certified specimens as you can. Heritage photos are very helpful. The subject has been discussed before at length and the only safe rule is "if in doubt, it isn't proof"

If you are quick there is an A/2 at the auction in two days but you need to log in. http://negrini.bidinside.com/en/lot/3603/gran-bretagna-doppio-fiorino-1887-km-763-ag-/

I have sent 3 emails . Can you confirm receipt please.

I only collect 1887 now but have type sets and a tray of Ed I pennies. I could find a home for a George I halfcrown in the type sets. The missing 1887 stuff is getting rather rare or expensive. I will try your email.

I think I can help with your missing 1887 double florins but be prepared to find there are more varieties than you have listed. both missing proof Arabic and Roman I are in current auctions but be prepared to part with £1,000 Look on sixbid or The Saleroom.com. the currency 1+B I have duplicates. What condition did you want or roughly how much do you want to spend? There is of course the 2+A proof as well as the 2+B, 2+Bclose 7 and the 1+A proofs The 2+B is most common.

1887 YH Sovereign UK of which there are two types. Shield back or St. George.

Yes and we all know how many different 1887 sixpences there are!

I started like that. I only collect 1887 Victoria Uk. 10 years later and 200 different ones in the collection still over 100 to buy. When you think you have done it write the book. Yes over 340 to find

I have a recent one if it is of use.

I have bought lots of coins from them and the quality has been very high. I have no problems

I think you better do an actual count and see what you have. I know it is difficult but I did mine using my fingernail as a light clicker round the rim. I emphasise LIGHT. Gold is so soft.This will not work if you chew your fingernails.

I thought for a minute this might have been posted on April 1st. but I see it has not. So I have compared 10 x 1887 half sovereigns YH JH London, Melbourne & Sydney. Close JEB, spread JEB, no JEB and proof. A painstaking process which made me double check the date of posting again to make sure you were not having me on. I have not weighed them. The result is 109 lands and troughs + or - 2. you need a very steady hand eye coordination to do this. How many are on the 1889S?

.25p is 240% profit on face value. 240d to the £

I am sure there will be many helpful answers to this post. For myself if there is anything of 1887 I would be interested

Entirely agree. The broken tails problem on the rev. "Roman I" die is progressive and you can find specimens with lions 4,5 & 6 (counting from the date) most often damaged. Similarly the shield on the Scotish lion is damaged on the "Arabic" rev. This too is progresive and even seen on the proof Arabic. This is quite plausible as "proofs" were issued into 1888. If we could build a better data base of these coins we could eventually have a decision committee rather like that used to authenticate paintings. VickySilver for Chairman? Any votes?

I have been studying these and the other 1887 denominations for 20 years and it does not get any easier. As time goes on what was once obvious and, came in an original cased set to prove it, is no longer helpful as so many sets have been broken up. What I can say is the the cased curency set I have would, for the quality of coins, pass as proof for several of the pieces. Knowing this I have become VERY critical of proof status. Even the American piece I posted above though certified has rims with raised edges and, shine though it might, I would hesitate without having the coin in hand. I admit your coin is a cracker and if it were a curency piece at £100+ it would be fine. But when a proof is £1,000+ you have to be so careful. It has a lovely tone but given the knocks, wear on the lion and rims I would have to say it is probably not one of the 1084.recorded. The Royal Mint are very helpful and will tell you if you take or post it.

Don't forget there are several different 1887 double florins. Say about 25 but I don't want to make life too difficult for you early on. I had the impression there were 11+ maundy =15 coins in the 1887 series but now I know of over 300! I must admit this includes the patterns, proofs, specimens and toy money by Lauer but still it is daunting to build a collection.

Yes the Roman 1887 4/- is probably up around R4 There is a big question mark over the specimen set proof like coins.

I have been working with these double florins for about 10 years but only just spotted your post. Can you let me know if the 1887 is on an Arabic or Roman 1 reverse? At first the comparison with 1888 is rather pointless as the 1887 is clearly not even aligned to the same beads. The serifs are broken and worn so perhaps this is the thrust of what they are saying. In comparison with other 1887 double florins the example you give just seems from a rather worn die. Nothing could be more normal. given the minting problems of the large coins. Perhaps there is something that is clear to the eye but not to the camera? I have checked my collection but not knowing exactly what they are calling broken I have been unable to pinpoint the problem. The right serif has a small chip off the corner but that occurs mainly on the obv 2 Davies. Can you give me the CGS reference please and I will work further on it?