Sword

That's a truly wonderful example. High grade and beautiful tone. And almost no contact marks! Can look at this all day!

I understand what you are saying and rarity is a matter of opinions and guesstimates. However, it was somewhat disappointing that the 6th "Fully Revised" Edition (published 23 years after the 5th edition) has not made any (?) attempt to update the rarity values given in the Fifth. One would imagine that a token effort involving several experts could have been made. E.g. if a couple of experts say that several examples of a coin is known, the R7 shouldn't be given. I do take your point that one has to know your area by experience and auction archive searches. The ESC is a bit like a tabloid newspaper. It makes an entertaining read but just don't trust it too much.

I have checked my 1992 edition and it has got the same information. I am also disappointed that the rarities have not been updated going from the fifth to the sixth edition.

I rather liked the Scottish Shilling until you said that! Now I need to tell myself that the lion is doing squat exercises.

I took these photos in a museum. It is really difficult to see how they can be identical busts. The hair detail is so much finer on the later bust. But it is not easy to discard information which came from the Mint.

It's from the latest 2015 edition of ESC.

The extract from ESC is shown below. Like I say, I am not really convinced by it. I do think you are right in that there was a new bust.

Why do I get the feeling that this tread will not be quite as long as the other one? :D On a more serious note, it is nice that "best buys" can mean things we really want rather than items that can generate large profits.

I have read in ESC that the obverse wasn't recut then. The mint according to ESC, said that the new (and harder) alloy resulted in a shawllower portrait. The pressure of strike might have also been reduced so that the dies won't wear out more quickly. I must admit I am still not totally convinced.

The easiest way to learn is to compare a suspect coin with a genuine one. This type of fakes is not convincing as the the design is crude and is formed from sharp and deep cut lines. "Cartoon-like" as Paddy has put it. Paddy has also listed the things to look out for.

I wasn't just thinking about George V. I think 1887 and 1902 are also generally very well struck. First year of design use new dies. The mint would probably have shown more care. Neither do I. Will hopefully get one at some point. I love the first George V portrait and none of my current currency specimens has a fully struck observe.

I think coins in the first year of a design tend to be better struck than later years. The reverse of all four 1911 halfcrowns above do not show weakness at the top of the shield.

Yes, I was wondering if it was a photoshop job or a genuine plaque.

I am probably in the small minority of people never to have brought from eBay or or whatever. I probably wasn't being clear earlier. I was just laughing at the common occurrences of blatant misrepresentation by some sellers on that platform.

Ebay

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamie_Maslin#:~:text=Internet memes,Bucklesby – a misanthropic failed author.

"Bright" is a suspicious word in auction descriptions. I think it often implies an unspecified "cleaning" issue. The problem-free word is probably "lustrous".

It was pasted from Wikipedia. Source of free information.

Those hairlines (particularly behind the veil) would suggest cleaning or at least wiped by something inappropriate. But not too bad. I don't like the rim by the horse's tail either.

The story behind the plaque: The Roger Bucklesby Bench Plaque – In the middle of August 2013, Jamie Maslin, (a British author, adventurer and bushcraft survival instructor) reportedly installed this plaque in a London park to his fictional character Roger Bucklesby – a misanthropic failed author. The bench plaque reads, "In memory of Roger Bucklesby who hated this park, and everyone in it." The image was originally posted on a Twitter account under the description "I was walking through London and came across this bench" and within hours its image went viral, receiving over 2 million views on image sharing website Imgur, thousands of retweets and over half a million likes on Facebook with ten thousand corresponding comments. "We had no plans for this to turn into an internet hit" said Maslin, "we just hoped the occasional passerby would see it and have a giggle. It seems we've done plenty of that."

That's a relief at least. A proof, even in this grade will worth several times that.

To be fair, most dealers don't consider dipping as cleaning either. You are one of very few that mention dipping in the description.

I can't see how that's a proof. The rims are not remotely sharp. There is no frosting to the portrait. The strike is not great. Those hairlines on the obverse would suggest cleaning. I hope you didn't pay very much for it. However, more experienced members will soon give their opinions.

The coin already looks very appealing in the photo and and it has a particularly well struck obverse. The numerical grade does not often taken sufficient account of the strike or toning. I think it is a more desirable piece than what the grade would suggest, as everyone is after well struck examples.

It's just as well he didn't see the infamous Bull Head portrait then.