The rarest coin you own?

[VickySilver]

Ah, a few might be reluctant to post.

[DrLarry]

9 hours ago, VickySilver said:

Ah, a few might be reluctant to post.

Lol yes 

[VickySilver]

I know about a set that might qualify which would be the 1922/1924 Satin Specimen Set. I have always wondered if the mintage is really 2, and why or how did the Pretoria Mint get hold of these two sets...

[Rob]

If you collect patterns as well as currency then virtually all these will be rare, and additionally it is difficult not to be spoilt for choice when it comes to unique coins. e.g. 12 years ago when I wrote my article on the Weyl patterns, I did so because I appeared to have around 15% of the total corpus, all of which seemed to be unique. i.e. nobody else was likely to be in a position to do the research given the dispersal of the 40+ items in Glens in 1993. I've whittled it down to around 10 pieces now, all of which are unique, but none can claim to be the rarest per se. Same goes for the half a dozen unique Saxon or Norman in the collection.

Close behind comes the list of 'only piece available' items, which are effectively unique, but strictly speaking, more common. I don't think it's a general reluctance to post, rather an impossible thing to assign. I'm not the only person collect patterns.

[VickySilver]

Indeed. The currency are possibly the hardest when rare, the "ordinary" proofs, and finally the patterns IMHO. So relatively perhaps patterns are rather less & this is something some of us have taken advantage of over the years.

[Mr T]

On 5/27/2023 at 8:12 AM, Peckris 2 said:

I think possibly that my rarest coin is an 1887 6d identified as one type among very many patterns that exist for that year (and none have more than subtle differences):

As you can see, the first 8 is struck over another 8; however the feature that first drew my attention to it (and why I bought it) is the big gap between the second 8 and the 7. The inner circles of the 8 point directly to a space, but on the normal example they are to the left of a bead. The tail of the 7 points exactly to a bead, rather than to the left of it.

Do you have pictures of the coin in its entirety?

[Peckris 2]

 

As you can see, the rest of the reverse is standard - pretty much what you'd expect. It was the date that drew my attention to it when I first saw it on sale (by a dealer who was just selling it as a bog standard 1887 JH).

[mrbadexample]

This horror I think. 

[Mr T]

On 6/12/2023 at 7:10 AM, Peckris 2 said:

 

As you can see, the rest of the reverse is standard - pretty much what you'd expect. It was the date that drew my attention to it when I first saw it on sale (by a dealer who was just selling it as a bog standard 1887 JH).

Ah thanks - and which obverse is it?

[Peckris 2]

11 hours ago, Mr T said:

Ah thanks - and which obverse is it?

Just the bog standard one as far as I can tell, nothing to see!

[Mr T]

Ah yes, just the one obverse for the wreath sixpence in 1887 which I guess will be I of BRITT to gap.

[Peckris 2]

9 hours ago, Mr T said:

Ah yes, just the one obverse for the wreath sixpence in 1887 which I guess will be I of BRITT to gap.

Indeed - though there are several scarce varieties, e.g. initials on truncation, and overstamped letters in VICTORIA, which mine isn't.

[Mr T]

Okay I finally got around to doing it and it looks like the 7 at denticle is a normal 1887 sixpence, besides the date difference. It has 119 rim denticles like Davies 1160 and the leaves and berries all appear the same to me.

[Peckris 2]

9 hours ago, Mr T said:

Okay I finally got around to doing it and it looks like the 7 at denticle is a normal 1887 sixpence, besides the date difference. It has 119 rim denticles like Davies 1160 and the leaves and berries all appear the same to me.

definitely NOT a normal 1887 6d!

[secret santa]

On 5/25/2023 at 7:47 PM, blakeyboy said:

I have some pennies that are not listed as 'varieties' yet, but more may exist, but for the moment, there are but one example.

Have you posted details of these in the past ?

[blakeyboy]

Hmmmm..trying to remember- yes- there is the 1880 with missing waves on the right,

another 1880 with a fragment of the '0' above the top of the '0',

an 1861 with a loop of a small '8' under the '8'

I think you've seen them before over the past 4 years....