jelida

I’ve had some nice presents from him in the past. Well not absolute presents, but very fair prices. Thank you Santa! Jerry

Thanks, Terry. I think the jury is out until a high grade example is found. But would I pay decent money for it.........? No. Jerry

Do you have some decent microscope close-ups of the A, Terry? Richards example does have a definite slight indentation on the left arm of the A where the crossbar should join, suggesting perhaps a slight bulge in the material impacted in the bar, though it is very difficult to be certain either way from these photos. I don’t think I’d be convinced except by examining a high grade coin. Even then it is suggested (see Gouby) that repairs to letters often used partial punches such as an L punch to repair the base of an E, are these varieties too? They may be interesting curiosities, but to me this is an example where we should be wary of conferring varietal status without clear evidence. Jerry

I was looking through Santa’s “heads ‘n tails” site earlier and the “ inverted V for A in Victoria “ obverse Freeman 10 caught my eye. As Santa asks, does it exist? As a true variety, I think not. Certainly F10 pennies with an absent bar to the A do exist, but I feel it is highly likely they simply represent die fill for the following reason. The working dies used to strike coins of a particular design can be used in their hundreds depending on die longevity and coin demand, and will themselves each be struck from the master die. The master die includes the lettering on the coin, though not necessarily all the digits. Master dies can last years preparing many hundreds of working dies depending on demand. Freeman obverse 2 exhibited mal-alignment of the letters in BRITT, a master die or hub issue transferred to many working dies. Look how long the Freeman obverse 6 master with the flawed colon after D:G: lasted- years! The point I am making is that an obverse 2 working die could not have been made with an absent A unless that featured on the master, which is unlikely. Therefore there would be no need to erroneously enter the A on the working die using an inverted V punch, the bar of the A can only disappear through die fill, and an absent bar cannot be taken as evidence of use of a V punch any more than the absent bar of the E in an ONF penny implies use of an F punch. Both these are spurious varieties. The majority of the true minor varieties that we see are are the result of something added rather than something absent, re-engraving of design or erroneous letter or number repair while trying to prolong die life. Or indeed sometimes deliberate overstrikes to the date for re-use in later years. Opinions please! Jerry

Stans, invest in a jewellers scales, sometimes they can provide a definitive answer, and are not expensive. It is true that the forgers dies may well have been made from a flawed genuine coin, but milled sixpence are not difficult to find and this coin will always be more difficult to sell on from photographs because of the doubts. Bring your money to a coin fair! Jerry

Just be happy to get your money back. Some of the coins illustrated above clearly have casting bubbles (and are underweight) and if those are fake then so most likely are the rest. There is no description of these flaws in the BNJ die variety article page shown to which the vendor refers .Sadly the vendor may have significant investment in this coin which he may be reluctant to write off. Jerry

While not every ‘private listing’ seller is of dubious character, those of poor character almost invariably make their listings private. As suggested I suspect this is to enable shill bidding. There is no need for it. Jerry

I’m afraid it’s a modern fake. http://www.predecimal.com/forum/topic/12367-light-1562-sixpence/ Jerry

Any chance you can accurately weigh it? As far as the pics go it looks OK to me, though I don’t consider myself expert on these. Jerry

I think it is worth some better pics here. I am not sure about the underlying ‘small’ letters and numbers we often see with overstrikes and repairs, I do wonder if the worn digits were closed in slightly by working the die prior to punching the repair to ensure the repair is sharp. Any evidence of this would likely subsequently be removed by polishing the die to restore the field. I think this example could simply be due fill. The vertical leg of the Y looks short compared to the V section. Jerry

Another Ebay purchase I am pleased with arrived yesterday, surprised there were not more bidders as got it for £70. Nice F18, not advertised as such and much better than most, fairly worn dies as usual but little wear and a nice tone. Jerry

I’m just going to hang on in the hope of finding one in change, just think how rare CIRCULATED examples will be! Jerry

Indeed! And free vendors fingerprint on the obverse from taking the photo! You can’t treat a proof like that! Jerry

I can’t tell without the reverse, that is different from F6; F1, F6 and F7 all use (Gouby) obverse C though F6 is much the commonest. Jerry

I am looking at photos of mine, may be clearer in the hand. But as the linear circle can be prone to die fill the proximity of beads to bust is probably a more definitive indicator. Jerry

Sadly the ‘photobucket’ logo appears over the vital area on your coin, from what I can see the linear circle does seem to fade out early but the beaded border does not touch the base of the bust as it should on C1 so could just be a C with die fill. Interestingly both my F7’s are probably the same as yours, but my F6’s have the longer linear circle on the left as per the obv C description. Jerry

Yes, Neil Paisley, he now works with Baldwins but I think is still a director of CC. Jerry

I have on occasion left the coin overnight with a pool of Verdicare over the verdigris, this helps it soften and does not affect lustre or toning. Prodding the verd with a sharpened cocktail stick periodically is essential to free up the softened verd. I occasionally use a needle under the binocular microscope. Jerry

Did anybody here spot this F32 at auction a week before Xmas? Sold as 1861 penny, but somebody else noticed it as it hammered at a grand, £1280 with costs, so not cheap but as nice an example as I've seen for sale in recent years despite a few marks. As usual the reverse F is weak, must have been a very worn die. Another for your list, Richard. Jerry

VICTOEIA? Looks good to me, though I know nothing about farthings. Jerry

Well done, the description has changed, now just “unresearched variety”. Jerry

It’s “Stab it with their steely knives, but they just can’t kill the beast”.........the “check out any time....’ quote above is correct, and very appropriate in that the EU will do everything it can to make leaving difficult, understandable self preservation but change will be driven from within over time due to both external and internal factors. Quite frankly we are better off in the long term ploughing our own furrow. I am amazed how the predominant political arguments seem to centre on wealth, income , future affluence or otherwise when the issues of democracy and self determination are so much more important. We are so lucky to be able to argue our case in a peaceful fashion, one has only to look around the globe where populations have lost tens or hundreds of thousands of lives often unsuccessfully fighting for basic democracy and freedom from tyranny and external control. They never seem to so willing to die for the pound in their pocket. Jerry

While we’re on books............🤫 https://www.amazon.co.uk/Story-Brexit-Ladybirds-Grown-Ups/dp/024138656X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1543924032&sr=8-1&keywords=Brexit Jerry

Reported, and vendor messaged. Coins are not their thing, they may just be in ignorance . Jerry

I agree, astounding! I have sent the vendor a further message , awaiting reply. I have reported it and would encourage others to do likewise. Jerry