Still living in the past

[kuhli]

I have been living in the past, when it comes to reference material for UK coinage.

I have:

• 1976 Seaby (Spink) Coins of England and the United Kingdom
  
• 1999 Rotographic Collectors' Coins - Great Britain
  
• 2002 Krause Standard Catalog of World Coins
  

to help me get through.

Today I won a 1999 Coincraft Standard Catalog English and UK Coin, 1066 to Date. eBay auction, paid just over £9 (US$17.28) plus modest postage, total cost was under £13 (US$23.53). Before the end of this month, I am pretty sure I will be ordering a 2005 CCGB from Chris, then I will be in much better position.

[Sylvester]

The Coincraft will open your eyes to how much you didn't know...

...trust me nothing comes close with regards to the information available.

[Chris Perkins]

I am pretty sure I will be ordering a 2005 CCGB from Chris, then I will be in much better position.

PM your address and I'll send a free one. You should have got a free one long ago!

[Peter]

I use all reference books when tasked with something.Chris's Rotograhic was a real bonus this year (previous copies were 15+ years old and in the loft.) although my 2005 copy is falling to bits.

Without doubt I would recommend a 2004 + Spink(Victorian bun pennies detailed).

I also use Coin Yearbook as a quick reference for milled (it goes back a bit further than Chris's).

It is also cheap...(useless for hammered).

Krause catalogues I'm afraid are library jobs.

Lets hope there are a couple more books out there..I'm sure they are Chris ???????????

[krasnaya_vityaz]

I am still using some 1960's references for British coins. My most recent Coincrafts catalogs are only for Scotland and Ireland. I don't really need current references for British coins, after all they stopped making them in 1970!

[Peter]

Varieties are still being identified...and have yet to be written on....Its all part of the attraction of coins.

With the advent of digital photograpy,the internet and pooling of knowledge our Hobby will only develop.

Get left back in the 70's at your peril.

[krasnaya_vityaz]

With regards to updates.

In my 1968 reprint of the 1888 Coins of Scotland by Robertson, one of my Scottish Groats from David II is described as a unique example. Now there are approximately 5-6 of the 7 arc of the Tressure variety coins known. Still a nice rare coin, perhaps my rarest.

The coin is not even described in Seaby or Coincraft.

[kuhli]

Chris,

The CCGB-2005 arrived yesterday. Beautiful book, excellent work, but I cannot seem to locate your autograph anywhere on it. Did I overlook a page??

I was also surprised to see how much some of the prices have changed since my 1999 edition was printed. I think you have done a great service with the improvements you have implemented with this latest edition.

The Coincraft book arrived today. What a behemoth!!! I had no idea it was such an immense work!! I will be spending several days familiarizing myself with it.

I was outbid this morning on an ESC, but will continue looking for one. (this one was from the eBay seller that JMD recommended... or was it HPJ??) He seems to list them regularly, so I will watch for another one to come up, and hopefully I can get it without too much competition. Or maybe one will come up on this side of the pond, which will make for lower postal costs, so I can bid a little more for it. The wife has been keeping a tight leash on my spending at the present. She wants a new computer this summer, and is setting aside a little each week (most of which comes directly from my coin allowance).

[Sylvester]

The Coincraft book arrived today. What a behemoth!!! I had no idea it was such an immense work!! I will be spending several days familiarizing myself with it.

Huge ain't it! Don't drop it because that much knowledge hitting the table at once could have dire consequences...

Are you beginning to feel like you were lacking something? (I know it made me feel like a newbie again!)

[Master Jmd]

(this one was from the eBay seller that JMD recommended... or was it HPJ??)

I think that that was Oli.

[Chris Perkins]

Chris,

The CCGB-2005 arrived yesterday. Beautiful book, excellent work, but I cannot seem to locate your autograph anywhere on it. Did I overlook a page??

Pleased you liked it. The 2006 will have a better thicker cover, more information about designers weights and sizes, and I'll send you a signed one!

[Sylvester]

Pleased you liked it. The 2006 will have a better thicker cover, more information about designers weights and sizes, and I'll send you a signed one!

I asked for a signed one and i never got one!

You're popular Chris.

[krasnaya_vityaz]

I look forward to seeing the future titles that are in the works.

[Chris Perkins]

Pleased you liked it. The 2006 will have a better thicker cover, more information about designers weights and sizes, and I'll send you a signed one!

I asked for a signed one and i never got one!

You're popular Chris.

Sorry, I'm just too modest!

There will probably be a few 2005's left over when the 2006 is finished, so remind me then.

[Emperor Oli]

(this one was from the eBay seller that JMD recommended... or was it HPJ??)

I think that that was Oli.

Correct.

[Art]

I'm pretty much a newbie to coins of Great Britain, other than a bunch of pennies that I've had since the 70s just because I like them. I got some decent startup education over on CoinPeople through Sylvesters posts for the most part, and of course some posts from other CoinPeople as well.

I've been gathering 6d and 3d. Mostly circulated coins from the 20th Century. I have a few older coins that I've gotten. But I'm truly a newbie.

I ordered the CCGB from Chris, it's a terrific book. I then borrowed a Spink's and a Coincraft from the ANA. I liked both books. Shipping was the killer on them, so I went to ebay and amazon and looked for US based sales.

Here's what I've come up with.

CoinCraft 1997 - almost new condition

Spink's 2004 - almost new condition

Spink's 2003 - new

Seaby's 1993 - also new.

I think this is a pretty good start for my library on Great Britain. ESC is on my list, as is a 2000 CoinCraft, but I've got a few friends ahead of me when they come up for auction.

Thanks for all the good info that you all share here.

[Sylvester]

Art's more up to date than me!

Even i don't have a Spinks! (well i do have a 1985 one, or what's left of it), my most recent publication of the 'Spinks variety' is my 1993 Seaby Coins of the UK (Which Spinks bought out several years back and now publish as their own).

The 1985 Spinks is a different book altogether, much more like a concise version of what i'd call the 'blue pages', (Coin Yearbook, which previously was just 'Coin' was it not?), it's that long since i've seen one i can't remember!

[krasnaya_vityaz]

One good thing about earlier references is they sometimes note items which get left out of later editions because of space limitations etc.

One area which is always interesting to look at is Edward V coinage. There has always been debate as to ascertaining what if any coins were issued during that reign. Go through the last 25 years of Seaby catalogs and you will see they swing back and forth in opinion on Edw V.

Seeminly now the presumption is that if coins were issued during that reign they were only a continuation of the previous reigns coinage and no unique coins to that reign were issued.

[Sylvester]

Seeminly now the presumption is that if coins were issued during that reign they were only a continuation of the previous reigns coinage and no unique coins to that reign were issued.

I'm still of the old opinion on the Edward V issue... i'm sure there was a mintmark difference you know.

[krasnaya_vityaz]

At any rate the coins that purported to be of Edward V's reign are still scarcer than hen's teeth, so I would still take them at any rate.

Even Richard III's coins are inexpensive by comparison.

[Art]

Just picked up a CoinCraft 2000 on ebay. New. Pretty fair deal. Total delivered $34.00.

I wanted that because I've been told that it's the last of the CoinCrafts. Anyone know why?

[krasnaya_vityaz]

I wonder if it is like the Seaby catalog, they come out with a new one when they feel like it?

I like the CC catalog, but it is a bit large and cumbersome to take to shows, I like the Seaby because they were a bit more compact.

I have a slight preference for the CC, it had more useful information and collecting tips.

[Emperor Oli]

I wanted that because I've been told that it's the last of the CoinCrafts. Anyone know why?

I emailed CC a while ago and they said that they have no plans to make another in the near future, presumably because of all the work it entails.

[krasnaya_vityaz]

I wanted  that because I've been told that it's the last of the CoinCrafts. Anyone know why?

I emailed CC a while ago and they said that they have no plans to make another in the near future, presumably because of all the work it entails.

Presumably they are devoting more time to putting out the "Phoenix" than any other endeavour, which are not quite the money makers as the "Phoenix" is.

[Sylvester]

I know which i'd rather have!