bronze mad

i would grade it as good fine, its just started to loose all the finer detail, but it will still sit proudly in a collection, if you have date runs, the 1874 series has 12 different die types according to freeman, some are very rare! so if you dont have a reference book try to get one! it will give you a wealth of knowledge, and you will be able to identify coins that are rarer! books to consider for bronze is called. the bronze coinage of great britain, or michael goubys, the british bronze penny, but this only covers the penny! I would imagine british coins outside of the uk as being in a better condition than normal due to less circulation!

cheers for your help guys, as soon as i looked at it i knew it was rev 9, and with the Heaton rev i knew that is wasnt the common type. I think i will get it slabbed so it is recorded, also i think that there are more out there lying amongst bulk lots, this came from london coins last December! in bulk lot. in freemans book for the 103 he has a question mark after it, maybe he never came across one!

hi furryfrog02 it is a freeman Obv 7 Rev H, not bad for $0.50, it is one of the more common types but if you were to pay a dealer for it in london then you would be probably paying £15 - £20, on e-bay £8 - £13. British coins are fascinating, there is a vast area of unchartered waters to explore!

I got this along with a lot of other bulk coins,I know its well worn! It looks to be obv 9 with the younger portrait and larger legend lettering. But instead of rev J it has the heaton mintmark, which is on rev M, this is an extremely rare die pairing according to freeman, one thing that puzzles me is that Freeman states rev M as flat shield, but this in concave? as rev J? I have been studying a lot of 1881 - 1882 pennies just lately and to me it seems that the rev N pennies have a flat sheild, trying to identify some of the different die pairings of these years is hard if one refers to freeman, I don't have goubys reference book. would it be worth getting? does his books make life easier? or just confuse things even more!

if like me you dont have a good detailed reference book then they will go unnoticed, I think I need to get myself one!

Yes grading a coin is important work. I totally agree

The good thing about these minor die differencies is that one can grab a bargain if its rare and the seller isnt aware of it. And it makes the collecting more of a challenge! I spend hours comparing different coins under a magnifying glass, and sometimes i think am i off my rocker or what! Lol

Yep i agree. Like the 1897 dot after one on obv. Some people go crazy after these. I dont get too carried away with overdates either. The 1865 over 3 is a rediculous price on the penny.

The 1839 - 59 copper series is what i meant. Some of them are very scarce.

Ive still got many a gap in the vic copper penny series though. Its a life long process. Especially when im still drawn to silver coins as well!

Copper. Bronze pennies! Luv em. Especially looking for different die types! The penny has to be the most common denomination amongst collectors i would say.

Boot sales can be good for bargains. I recently bought three george 4 shillings for 2quid! They were in fine condition.

The decimal coinage in years to come will be what newcomers will collect. Especially when we get a new monarch on the throne. And this will raise prices through demand. And im sure then more people will study them and more rarities will arise.

I bet some lucky sod plucked it out the ground. And paid sod all for it. Sold it for 25 grand. Lovely jubbly

Hi Dan1 Try car boot sales, sellers have coins sometimes amongst their stuff. And you will get them cheap. Antique and collectors fairs, there may be dealers there who have a bargian bulk lots, modern pre decimal coins are plentiful. And of course not forgetting good old e-bay, there are thousands of coins on there. Brass thrupenny bits are a good place to start, or Farthings, cheap as well. i'm sure you will find an area of interest. Also as mentioned by previous posts, you will have to know how to grade a coin, if you are buying single coins you can easilly get ripped off, if it is overpriced and you dont realise.

yep they're slightly different, the first thing I noticed was the locks of hair at the neck, they are differently arranged, I've never studied ancients before, even after nearly forty years of collecting! but I'm quite facsinated by this coin I have, its worn, looks like it been 'dug', but is centrally struck, and still collectible I suppose. I would like to say thanks to everyone for spending time to answer my questions, much appreciated, Constantius II ruled for about 20yrs, so in that time many a coin was minted! and there would have been more than one moneyer producing coins, so there must be different die types,

Hi Peckris, it is about 22mm in diameter,

Theres nothing better than rummaging through a pile of old coins! thats part of the exitement. especially if they are unchecked by an experienced eye!

thanks JPK, it does look like it is Constantius II from the scan you have provided,, the rev looks the same, the Obv is slightly different, the locks of hair at the neck are laying away, I take it that there are different die varieties, Another question, what denomination is it?

Hi everyone. I can't seem to identify this coin, I'm new to the forum and have had difficulties uploading photos as well. It is about the size of a modern Farthing, and appears to be struck in copper, I don't have any experience in ancients at all, I think its roman, and on the rev there seems to be a figure standing on a boat, with a bird in its hand, I cannot read/ understand any legends on this coin either.