mint_mark

Basically you can tell by the type of coin and the date as to whether it contains silver. As Gary suggested, depending on the condition and particular coin it is possible that most of the value of a coin is in its scarcity value rather than its silver content. On the other hand, if these are a lot of worn coins collected from change then it may be that the silver does account for most of the value. It all depends on condition. Are they all British?

So the denomination, described as GR... is it actually ÖR?

Hello, The crossed arrows and the three crowns both suggest Sweden to me, but unfortunately I don't have a catalogue that goes back that far. Hopefully someone else can identify it more precisely.

Another option is to collect by type... you just try and get a nice example of each different design and don't worry so much about the dates. This way a reasonable sized collection can cover a huge span of history or geography. Think about what coins mean to you... are they works of art? Pieces of history? Technical accomplishments in engineering? Souvenirs from around the world? Once you work out what really interests you about them, then you'll find which ones interest you most.

Just to add a couple more metals... the light grey really light weight coins are aluminium and the very dark grey coins that go powdery are zinc. Sometimes iron is used, which you can tell because it is magnetic and goes rusty! All these have been used during wartime and other shortages. Don't give up on the whole world! For years my collection grew from holiday money that people gave me

In the 2001 Spinks it has a picture of the sovereign and the two pound entry refers to it, along with the five pound and half sovereign entries. These designs were only used for the four gold proof coins of that year.

Hi Chris, Gimp is basically a photoshop like application so you end up manually selecting the area and copying and pasting. When I used to sell a lot more on ebay I got it down to quite a quick procedure once I learned all the keyboard shortcuts. What you suggest is definitely possible and something I have been meaning to try and implement myself for a while... I have the background (research in image processing) but sadly not the time. Picking out nearly circular shapes from a different coloured background and then compositing them into obverse/reverse pairs (according to a pre-selected pattern) should be ripe for automation.

I just photograph a coin on black velvet... still use gimp to crop and combine obverse and reverse though. Nice 50 kopeks

So, are the commemorative five pound coins in or out? I've never had one in change, but other people here have. If the rule leans towards "could you have received..." then you have to let in all sorts stuff with nominal legal tender values, so maybe the rule should lean towards the other extreme... so, a coin collection consisting entirely of coins that I personally received in change and could have spent! ... which is probably how most collections start anyway

More frivolity from the royal mint... is it even worth trying to keep up? There are pictures on their web site. Still, the more designs they have the lower each mintage will be. They only seem to publish the combined figures for a denomination though. Maybe in the future they will have coins with names and dates on, then you can look out for one with your birthday

Just thought I'd stick up for Guernsey coins! I think they're great... yes the design stayed the same for years but you can say the same about plenty of places (Switzerland springs to mind). It just means you have to look closer... Guernsey coins turn up in lovely condition and you can collect good examples of all the different sizes and metals for each denomination. There are a few rarities too and they come in a mixture of coin and medal rotation. Besides, my local dealer once told me that Finland had the most boring coins... I disagreed and bought one of each he had!

All good advice, especially about not actually buying coins for a collector. However, people often give me coins that they have saved through the year... new coins from their change or left over currency from a holiday and I always appreciate this.... you never know what you might find! It only really works for "generalist" collectors though.

That sounds like a 10 Dieci coin from Naples and Sicily. They had their own coins up to about 1860 when Italy was formed. It's a big old copper coin and I imagine they often have digs and bumps on the edge (mine has!). A well used one would be worth a pound or two and if it's in really good condition then up to 40ish pounds. Some dates are worth more than others... (and my book is a few years old)

I put the smileys there because it was a ridiculous suggestion! Imagine such a book... it would weigh a ton and cost a fortune! Having said that, most of the pictures could certainly use some imprivement!

I saw the 2006 Krause in a bookshop today... thought I'd wait for a colour edition though :)

I found it In English Silver Coinage at the end of the chaper "History of Milled Coinage" it says "the reverse shows the head of Churchill by the sculptor Oscar Nemon and the inscription CHURCHILL; the edge is grained." Furthermore, Oscar Nemon appears in the list of designers at the start of the Elizabeth II chapter in Coins of England and the United Kingdom. If you try google you can find pictures of the sculpture...

A friend once gave me a tin of coins (saved up by his late father in law) to sell on ebay. He wanted the money, I got to keep what I wanted at the price I wanted to pay. The best things I remember were an 1841 penny (EF), some jubilee head crowns (F) and a couple of cartwheel twopences with nice rims (good F). The rest (about 300 coins) was pretty much rubbish, but some of it did well on ebay. An archaeologist... that must be a young person's profession. Watching them on Time Team, it must really do your knees and back in as you get older!

I haven't heard of this either... but I did check some others that I have. Guernsey has a similar edge to the UK saying "Bailiwick of Guernsey" Jersey also has a similar edge to the UK saying "Insula Caesarea" Those are the only two channel island examples I have... I expect there are different inscriptions for different issues. My Isle of Man examples are alternating grained and smooth areas, but these are made by Pobjoy mint, as are the Gibraltar ones I think. Not sure about Falkland Islands and St Helena... I know I have a couple, but they seem to be "tucked away" at the moment...

You have to see a lot of coins to get a feel for grading... and then it's still subjective. Until you've a really good example of a design then it's hard to appreciate what has worn away! Each design has tell tale areas that show the wear first...

A friend of mine is in the Royal Mint coin club (no, really) and gave me the latest "newsletter" to look at. In the accompanying letter is an offer from the Royal Mint to buy back examples of the 1998 four coin gold proof set. I don't know how the offer price compares to the original issue price. Why do you think they do that then?

I've just looked at some random coins from a bag of old change... the Elizabeth II florins seem to be as you describe... toothed reverse and beaded obverse. An Elizabeth II shilling was the same too. A George VI shilling was toothed both sides. I guess that's just the design then.

Aaahhh, I suppose we all think that doing our hobby full time would be wonderful, but don't you think coins could become just another rat race when you have to make a profit each month? And I'm sure getting hold of coins at the right price is a whole other job in itself!

...don't they? I've been looking at small 5p coins and I've noticed that in 1990 and 1991 the coins have a more rounded edge. That is, if you look from the side the corners are not as sharp. Looking at the rased ridges of the graining pattern, it looks like they have been shaped at 45 degrees across the edge of the coin. On coins 1992 and later the graining extends all the way across the edge and the corner is much more like a right angle, making the coins feel sharper around the edge. I don't know what they changed... it makes it look like the later coins are thicker, but I don't think they are. Similarly, I don't imagine they contain more metal either as that could change the weight. Perhaps they are struck with greater force? Does anybody know any more?

...in this story on BBC news website. I wonder why the US mint make such a big deal with these?

Hi, You can measure it with a ruler. A full sovereign is 22mm across and a half sovereign is 19mm.