Sword

Very nice old toning.

When I first started collecting coins as a teenager, I particularly liked my USA proof set. Out of sentiments, I have just brought a 1992 silver proof set on eBay. I am a little surprised that the older proof sets are so unloved and my cost me £14.50 + postage. Is the excessively high mintage (well over a million) the only reason for the lack of desirability? The designs are generally rather nice.

Nice story! Sentiments become stronger as one gets a bit older. I have just brought a USA silver proof set because I had enjoyed owing one as a teenager. I can imagine Spink being very strict with grading in those days and relegate any coin with a trace of wear to EF. Nowadays it would be AU or better. Just out of interest, I have noticed that the mane of the Scottish lion is often a bit flat even on high grade examples double florins. Could it be due to strike?

The sharpness of the letters is just amazing.

Did they actually take over Peter Nichol's business or just the name? If the later, I don't feel that strongly about it. It's a bit sad less and less people train to be craftsmen these days and opt for more lucrative jobs. Certain crafts will unfortunately die out with time. But I think the demand for coin cabinets will enable at least one or two to make a decent living? Surely there must still be quite a few cabinet makers around?

I wonder how many were actually made. If they discovered the error after a test, then surely only a few examples would exist and I find it hard to believe that any would have escaped. Maybe the RM should be sporting and allow unintentional errors to be released to generate a bit of excitement?

Very good photos! It's hard to capture hair details on these coins. Great obverse strike for the 1921.

I honestly think it looks rather nice. The face details are clear and the shield is well struck. Interesting N over I which you pointed out. It certainly wouldn't have been a freebie if it wasn't for the gash at the reverse! I wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

Mine also. Would look good on a penny or 5p. But the design needs a leek for Wales on a pillar and England somehow linking them.

The Independent, Guardian, local papers, BBC news etc. are free. That's enough for me.

I think they will ask you to subscribe if you have read a free article previously.

A good thing that Covid has done for me was to to stop me from eating breakfast and dinner out so often. I have saved a fortune eating at home now and have managed to lose a significant amount of weight.

On a different note, I hope that independent retailers will grow in any High Street revival. The give so much more character and soul to a town. I was sad to see Hanningtons, a very large independent departmental store in my home town of Brighton closed in 2001 after nearly 200 years of trading. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanningtons. Boswells of Oxford (first traded in 1738) sadly closed during the COVID pandemic.

His majesty might have a "spare". 😄 Great items to collect!

Absoultely! For earlier milled, this is already a highly desirable grade to collect and has excellent eye appeal. I can imagine the price would increase very sharply even for any improvement.

Quite. Technology is almost second nature to the young. I have thought about putting cards on my phone so that I don't need to worry about carrying a wallet when exercising but just don't feel comfortable enough to do that in the end. A relative has suggested that I get a smart watch which can do a great number of things like paying and health management but I don't want trade my (vintage look) classic watch (which I am proud of) for a bit of plastic. I imagine that cash transactions might not last beyond two more generations.

What a lovely coin! The portrait looks so much better when the eye is not worn. However, I might grade it a little lower myself but I am hardly an expert. Between GVF to NEF?

I visited a noodle house recently and they were cash only. Haven't had that experience for as long as I can remember. I am old fashioned and always carry some notes with me and so it wasn't a problem. It's unlikely that we will become completely cashless during our lifetimes. But I do think there are financial benefits to larger shops and supermarkets when people pay contactless. You need just one staff to look after a dozen self-checkouts (which are much more reliable with cards). People pay much faster and so queues are shorter. They don't need to count money at the end of the day and take cash to banks etc. True, banks do charge a fee and are making a lot of money that way. However, they can find other ways to keep up their profit margins if necessary like giving lower interest rates for savings, account fees etc. For departmental stores, the fees are priced in already and you don't get a discount if you pay cash. So people pay by the most convenient way. I reckon I now pay for more than 80% of the things I buy online as I have supermarket deliveries. Even if I buy a piece of electric in a shop (if I don't want to wait for delivery), paying by credit card gives extra protection, extended warranty, etc. Evolution will happen naturally in its own timescale and cash will hopefully still be around for a long time. According to the Bank of England, there is over £70 billion in notes in circulation. They are claiming that it is only relatively recently (2017) that "debit cards overtook cash as the most frequently used payment method in the UK." I think that includes credit cards as well. (Most frequently used payment method is also not the same as the actual amount spent). But buying on Ebay or Amazon when the seller is selling cheaper on their own site is a bit silly. It's a bit like paying an extra 3% commission to placing an absentee bid with a platform when you can do that directly without fee directly with the auctioneer.

When I was in holiday in Prague last year, I really liked the 50 Korun coin which is bimetallic (Copper and brass) with attractive obverse and reverse. The photos below are from Numista. Which designs of foreign coins do you like best?

Taken last winter along a canal.

How much did it sell in 1997? The prices for the proof or currency must be astronomical today I imagine.

I think it depends on how careful you are. People have been using cabinets for a long time before slabs, quadrums, capsules were available and so I assume they must be fine if you are not careless. Like Non, I use quadrums. There is the quadrum intercept claims to protect coins from tarnishing for up to 15 years.

Welcome back Paddy! Great to have you back.

What happened to the shield and trident? The little dolphin looks a bit strange too.

According to an NGC article "Though dated 1981, they were reportedly struck in the 1990s, as the United Kingdom considered whether to replace the pound with the euro." https://www.ngccoin.uk/news/article/9755/