Varietalis

This just sold today - £700 for a worthless coin in a holder with PL66 on it. How it got this grade and how it achieved £700 beggars belief. https://auction.royalmint.com/lot-details/index/catalog/41/lot/3166

That is the standard dies 4K D of DEI to bead, I to a gap. On the 3K the I of DEI is to the right of a bead but not to a gap. Also, the rim on your 4K is visibly thicker than the 3K.

This £17.99 1970 set just arrived from ebay. Seller hadn't spotted that it contained the super scare halfpenny dies 3K (D of DEI to gap).

Just a heads up to anyone who's in the market for a coin cabinet, have a look at Baldwin's auction 112 (11 Oct 23) lot 1429.

After all those 1000s of coins it's strange to think that, other than commemoratives, there won't be a 2023 or any other new coin with the Queen's portrait on it.

From NGC's T&Cs 'An owner of an NGC-certified Coin (“Owner”) who believes the Coin is overgraded or not genuine shall submit it for evaluation under NGC’s free “Appearance Review” service. It is not necessary to be an NGC member to submit a Coin for Appearance Review.'

Agreed, which is a shame because the LCGS website could be a really good reference resource if only LC had the inclination to exploit its potential.

The site doesn't work with Chrome. I can only sign in using an Apple device.

I believe LCGS are no longer running a grading service. I had thought it was due to COVID but I don't think they have restarted. Unless anyone knows any different.

Good spot! Definitely worth a punt for £2.

My view is that they will stick to commision bids only. If the better lots don't get enough interest to meet reserve then they will just re-appear in the September, ie. post lockdown, auction.

Yours is definitely a light finish. It looks from the photo as though it did pass through some mint darkening, just to a much lesser extent. Good to know what to look out for.

Just looking through the Colin Cooke 'Staines Collection of Farthings' catalogue, which came out just yesterday. Interestingly there are no Edward VII 'light finish' examples even among this comprehensive collection built up over 30 years.

I'm okay with chess but prefer their earlier Abba stuff.

I've bought coins via live bidding that I didn't even know I wanted when I woke up that morning. It's these impulse bids that LC are surely missing out on.

I wonder what London Coins will do for their June auction as they currently don't offer the option of live internet bidding, or even the option of bidding directly via a 'my account' feature on their website. As it currently stands, assuming the June auction goes ahead with no room bidders, they will have to rely 100% on emailed commission bids.

Moreoever, I wonder if we'll ever find out where the specimen sold in 1970 went. Irrespective of your opinion on coin grading services, a slab would at least make a tiny coin like this more conspicuous and easier to research for someone who might eventually inherit it.

SOLD FOR £50,000. A record for a threepence surely.

Yes, good point. Also more people at home may mean more live bid activity on the day. I wonder where the coin sold in 1970 is. Maybe it will resurface if the recently found coin makes a big splash at auction. Assuming the buyer back then was at least 40 years old it makes you wonder if the original buyer is still current owner.

I see the current bid on this is already an impressive £20K. Nonetheless, I wonder if the current apprehension and economic uncertainty might just keep it around top estimate, or at least under £30k.

Does anyone have any vericare to sell? I probably only need 0.5ml as the spot I'm looking to improve is very small. Alternatively, is anyone able to look at verdicare treating the spot if I send them the coin? PM me and I will send you a photo of the area. Many thanks in anticipation.

A few years ago I sent some full lustre brass 3d to CGC in Florida. After something like 3 years I noticed that they'd noticeably darkened. I also bought a CGC slabbed brass 3d off ebay, which would have been submitted by someone else and at a different occasion. Interestingly this too subsequently darkened. The fact that they were from two separate submissions proved to me that it was caused by something independent of the coins themselves. Although it also seems likely that it is something peculiar to brass. I should also add that this darkening doesn't seem to be progressive, i.e. they darkened to an appreciable degree (enough to affect value) but have not got any darker since. I wonder whether this might have anything to do with the fact that CGC holders contain a larger volume of air compared with CGS/LCGS holders. I also wonder whether it might conceivably have something to do with the Floridian humidity.

In expect that part of the reason for the loyalty to LCGS is based on the 'started so I'll finish' imperative, the analogy being filling up your Panini stickers album.

On the Facebook page he simply states, 'As I no longer have an interest in this matter I have decided to suspend the group...'. It's a shame if by 'this matter' he means CGS graded coins. P.B. is/was certainly King of the Hill when it comes to CGS coins, it's a reflection of just how shabby the whole CGS thing has been if indeed they've alienated their No.1 customer.

This is a very good point. The real reasons behind CGS ceasing to trade may well lie in their desire to water down the contractual obligations they had as CGS. As for the £99, this is clearly a suicidal strategy for CGS/London Coins Grading. Just compare the success of Facebook, which has always been free, with the failure of Friends Reunited which charged a fee.