Paddy

I have to say I don't like the unevenness of the rim on the reverse. Are there any other signs to indicate fakery?

I think it is only $500 - still seems a lot!

Hi Richard - I will PM you.

Interesting! I have not seen that before. The R looks almost as if someone has selectively flattened that section with a punch post mint? I can't quite see how it could come out of the press like that, but I may be wrong.

Thanks for all that. On the subject of farthings, best just to start a new thread. I too collect farthings and I would enjoy seeing what you have.

I am not particularly good at telling varieties apart, but by comparison with Terry's selection above I would say @The Bee's is the 13 tooth version. Whilst on 1877s - many years ago when I was just getting into coins and really only interested in getting each date, I bought an album of decent pennies at a market. Many were very nice indeed and are still part of my collection. Amongst them were two 1877s. I kept the better looking one and sold on the other. The dealer that bought seemed stunned to buy it for only £1 and I have worried ever since that it might have been a narrow date that I missed!

Not sure if @Martinminerva's last post fulfilled the challenge, but this one today in change from my butcher's in North Devon:

This from the BBC website this morning. Interesting and very rare Viking penny from Athelstan II, formerly Guthrum, as King in East Anglia. Also discussion of the implementation of the new detectorist rules regarding items of National Significance. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg79e45341po Oh, and PS: For once the pictures of the coin are quite good!

Generally the best place to find decent hammered is online with the better coin auctioneers and specialist dealers. Ebay tends to have them over-priced or over graded - when they are not fake. Henry II is more difficult to find in decent grade, but Noonan's have some nice ones at auction on the 6th September. (noonans.co.uk).

I don't have the book to see the details of the coins you are looking at. (I gave up on decimal last year!) What year are you looking at? I know there is a privy mark on some of the 2019 Britannia 50ps, but that is clearly too early for a coin to record her death.

I have spotted a job lot at a local auction including a set of Model coins featuring Queen Victoria's children. They are white metal and have some biographical details for each child. Apparently in a tortoiseshell box, though this not pictured. These are not for me, but if anyone here is interested, PM me and I will send you a link. Current estimate is only £20 to £30.

I have never used them, but I understand your views on Ebay! Have you tried emailing them - or messaging them via Ebay?

I don't know about anyone else, but I have to have music on when I am working with my coins. Pink Floyd is my absolute favourite but quite a few other groups and artists figure frequently in my (randomised) playlist. Here are my top twenty, in no particular order (after Pink Floyd): Pink Floyd Tangerine Dream Led Zeppelin Muse Adele Gorillaz King Crimson Mike Oldfield Moody Blues Fleetwood Mac Emerson Lake and Palmer Dire Straits Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel Suzanne Vega The Strawbs The Beautiful South Thin Lizzy Chris Rea Pentangle David Bowie What does everyone else listen to? Modern or Classical?

Spotted this sign at auction. Can't believe they ever got away with this!

... and finally the 1863 Shilling - substantial upgrade for me, but not the 1863/1 mentioned above:

... 1725 Shilling - another upgrade for me:

... 1672 Shilling - a new date for me:

So here are my pickups from the auction - arrived today. One per post. 1663 Shilling - an upgrade for me:

I didn't get all the ones I was interested in - the bidding went too high - but like you I pout in late bids on a couple that seemed to be going very cheap. I am also very pleased with my wins and should have them in hand very soon.

Well spotted! A great buy for anyone into the variations. I have just checked back and you are correct - Irish and Scottish shields switched across. I don't go looking for that sort of thing, so probably miss some bargains. I am content with a decent example of each date.

Devon to Mayfair is not much easier! I didn't view in person either - just trusted to their photography. (Noonans are reasonably reliable, unlike some of the others.) In fact I nearly missed the auction entirely. It was only an article on the BBC website on the morning of the sale that alerted me to it. The others I got were: the 1663 Shilling lot 14 as an upgrade; the 1672 Shilling lot 23, filling a gap; and the 1725 Shilling lot 163 as an upgrade.

I was bidding online too. I picked up 4 lots, which must mean the prices were not as strong as usual. I got the 1863 as an upgrade, but not the 1863/1. I will post pics once I have them in hand.

... not even with someone else's bargepole...

I can't help you with that specific version, but there do seem to have been a huge number of different versions produced. I had this one, with the same bust but a slightly different reverse quite a few years ago: Are you sure yours is silver? Many of these were struck in a pewter-like alloy. I assume you have checked the edge for any inscription that might relate it to a particular place?

I don't know if anyone has definitive figures, but I have one, so it can't be that rare! 🙂 The rarest pennies site shows two examples, neither of them mine.