Sword

Due to a lack of knowledge, I eventually decided to look up the answers to most of the questions. It was fun and I did learn a few things.There are a few I can't do even with the help of Google and books. Rob, can I have the answers to the questions I have got wrong or can't find please. Quiz Questions 1. How much was an angel current for in 1613? Eleven shillings 2. Which was the last of the provincial mints to close following the recoinage of William III and when did it close? 3. Everybody loves them, so who designed the reverse of the Churchill crown? Oscar Nemon 4. Who succeeded J P Droz at the Soho Mint? 5. Which coin struck as currency in the reign of George VI was not struck in the name of Edward VIII? Half sovereign 6. The first dated coins in this country were patterns struck in the reign of Edward VI. There were two different patterns. How was the date written on each piece? 1547 7. If you see a coin reference Hks. xxx, what does this refer to? Author & Title required. Hawkins, The Silver Coins of England 8. How many Spanish American mints are found on the countermarked 8R coinage of George III? 7? 9. The Anne pattern halfpennies and farthings were the work of which engraver? 10. What element was used to enhance the ‘mint fresh’ appearance of hammered silver? 11. If you see the mint signature GRA on Saxon coinage, where does this refer to? GRANTEBRJC, Cambridge Mint 12. For any student of the Anglo-Saxon coinage, the roundabout at Podimore in Somerset is a dream come true. On the various signs leading onto and off the roundabout are the names of approx. 10% of the attested Anglo-Saxon mints. For the geographically challenged, Podimore is 4 ½ miles north of Yeovil at the junction of the A37 – the Fosse Way and the A303 which is the link road connecting the A30 near Chard with the M3 at Basingstoke. Name them. 13. What does the latin inscription “DECVS ET TVTAMEN” translate to in English? An ornament and a safeguard 14. What material is the current 2p manufactured from? Copper plated steel 15. What did W J Taylor set up in Melbourne in 1854? Kangaroo Office Mint. It has been argued that W.J. Taylor came to Melbourne and established the Kangaroo Office, because his signature is to be found on the tokens minted there (eg. McDonald 1992). However there is no evidence that he came to Australia. Taylor's name is on tokens and medals attributed to the Kangaroo Office because either they were struck in his mint in London, or Scaife was using dies that Taylor had made for him. 16. An aureus depicting a triumphal arch with the inscription DE BRITANN was struck in whose name? Claudius 17. Who are the so called three emperors shown on the antoninianus struck in this country towards the end of the 3rd century AD? Maximian, Diocletian and Carausius 18. Prior to the act of Union, what was the last year coins were struck in Scotland as an independent country? 19. In what year was the first George V crown struck and who was the engraver? 1927, Kruger Gray 20. How many British monarchs have their bust facing both left and right on currency coins? Name them. Right 13, Left; 12 Right: Henry VII, Henry VIII, Edward VI, Philip (Jure uxoris), James I, Charles II, William & Mary, George I, George III, William VI, Edward VII, Elizabeth II Left: Mary, Elizabeth I, Charles I, Charles II, James II, Anne, George II, George IV, Victoria, George V, Edward VIII, George VI

If that's not a sarcastic response, then good for you!

I am not certain if there is anything "live" to show if there is no phone or online bidding.

Did you manage to arrange any phone bidding? Let me guess: no it didn't happen.

I am not commenting on any specific sellers. But what is ebay's official policy on reporting shill bidding? Please don't bother! "How do I report shill bidding? If you think that another member is shill bidding, you don't need to report it to us. eBay has a number of systems in place to detect and monitor bidding patterns and practices. If we identify any malicious behaviour, we'll take steps to prevent it." https://www.ebay.co.uk/help/policies/selling-policies/selling-practices-policy/shill-bidding-policy?id=4353

They are not exactly telling many people about this. I suspect the phone lines will be rather quiet.

The foam stretches a bit and so I think it is best to round down to the nearest mm. 38.61mm diameter £5 would go in 38mm. Then it would be a nice tight fit with no possible movement. However, it can be a tricky to get the coin in until you have some practice with using quadrums. My method is to put the crown on a flat surface such as a book. Position the foam so that the the bottom of the coin is in the hole.Then hold down two corners of the foam and stretch the top to get the whole coin in. You should be able to do this without touching the coin. You can then carefully flip the foam over with the coin still in. (Take care so that the coin does not drop out!) Then push the coin in position using a clean micro fibre cloth. Have a blower ready to blow away dust on the inside surfaces of the quad before closing it. (The inside of quads often needs a quick wipe with a mirco fibre cloth follow by dust removal with a blower). It's easier to get a crown into a 39mm quad of course but it won't be such a tight fitting.

Might be it is quickest just to ask him since his e-mail address is on his website. http://www.wolfsheadgallery.com/

It does appear that LCA is not keen to "advertise" the potential live bidding. We have received 3 e-mails from them and the latest one arrived just half an hour ago. Not a word of mention about the Easylive platform.

The foam product is unbranded and so one can't be totally certain if they are "safe". The branded equivalent is "airtite" and they are £1.99 for five including the plastic capsules. Coin gallery states "The genuine Airtite rings are made from Volara and are completely free from PVC and other harmful chemicals ensuring your coins can be safely stored." If the coins are VF, then I think they can just go into the capsules without the foam in many cases. E.g. if a VF penny has diameter 30.86 mm, then a 31mm is fine.

Davies gives some details on the alloys. From 1920 - 1922, the "dull alloy" was used which has copper with either 10% nickel (from old shell casings) or 5% manganese. Both readily tone to a darkish grey. The "bright alloy" (just 50% copper) was used from 1922 onward and was also heavily blanched. I am not certain I can agree that the shallow portrait makes it harder to have coins in UNC. Any wear will make the coin lose lustre at high points and hence its UNC status, whether it is the shallow or deep-cut portrait. It's just less obvious with the sterling coins which are often less well struck to begin with. I think the 1923 is the easiest to find in UNC. It is surprisingly difficult to find a 1911-1919 in true UNC grade if one is very strict.

It is probably referring to the fact that there is no VAT charged in Hong Kong.

Not according to their website: https://www.ngccoin.uk/join/ "NGC and PMG Remain Open and fully Operational" whatever that means. I called my bank four times recently and couldn't get through either...

It's not clearly written but I think it does not apply to photos of approved companies. "Activity that doesn't follow eBay policy could result in a range of actions including for example: administratively ending,..." Maybe it would be good sport if Ebay add this emoji 😉 after the statement.

I don't use them myself but I am sure they are safe if Colin Cooke is selling them. You can e-mail to check if they are acid-free and I have no doubt they will say yes. Here is an alternative (from Rob): https://www.rpcoins.co.uk/collections/accessories/products/00099999 I think they are a good choice for circulated coins. You probably want to keep EF or better in quadrums or 2x2.

My choice would be standard. Intercepts are designed to protect the lustre of BU / aBU coins and prevent toning. I don't think there is any advantage for using them with VF+. I buy quadrums from coin gallery myself but they don't do "pick 'n' mix". Highly recommend them. Good prices and always prompt delivery.

Perhaps someone did/do sell mixed size quadrums on Ebay. The only one I can see now is this seller in Australia. But his postage is too expensive for the UK and so is not an option. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lighthouse-Quadrum-2-x-2-Square-Coin-Capsules-MIXED-PACK-OF-10-YOU-CHOOSE/133183530325?hash=item1f025b6555:g:UpcAAOSwKQ9aJedv

Don't think you can buy Quadrums in pick 'n' mix sizes unfortunately. Boxes of 10 should be fine if you have favorite denominations.

Very occasionally, the washer can rotate within the CGS slab. Those are not fibres but marks on the coin surface. The coin was struck on an existing coin and I think the marks were made in the minting process. This is a photo of the coin before it was encapsulated showing that at least some of the marks are raised.

I think having a divot is preferable to the horrid green colour of verd. The coin already looks considerably more appealing to my eyes after the cleaning attempt with toothpick.

It does look like they are very reluctant to start offering live online bidding. Otherwise they might at least have said that they are looking into this option. My guess is that they will be doing it by advance bidding only and hope that future sales will be back to normal.

LCA is just burying its head in the sand. Might be they will announce their decision regarding live bidding when they publish their catalogue.

I can't wait that long. Have been using clippers already. When the lockdown is partially lifted, which of the following two methods would you prefer your hairdresser to use?

CGS hasn't changed their numerical system. It is still 1-100. But they have removed the prefix grades from their numbers. E.g. they used to give grades such as CGS AU78. Now it is simply CGS 78. (Their reason being that there could be grade inflation over time but claim their numerical standards do not change. Hence, they are saying that their 78 (AU, 10 years ago) is now what market would now consider UNC). Of course CGS is now called LCGS.

I didn't mean to sound undiplomatic with regard to its "value". Although it might not be worth much in monetary terms, it is certainly an interesting item to "rediscover". Simply speculating how it got there and who it might have belonged to is a lot of fun.