kuhli

Since Latvia was a part of the USSR until 1991, and issued no coinage prior to that time, I assume these are probably Soviet issues. There were 6 coins in the series: 1977 - Olympic emblem 1978 - Kremlin 1979 - Moscow University 1979 - Sputnik, Soyuz, and Space Monument 1980 - Dolgorukij Monument (rider on horse) 1980 - Olympic torch In VF they are worth US$0.50 each In XF they are worth US$1.00 each In UNC they are worth US$2.50 each These are catalog prices, and usually you can sell them for about 50% of this price, and buy them for about 75%. As a matter of fact, I just did a deal for a group of Soviet commem. 1 rubles, including a few of these, paying 75% of the above mentioned prices for all.

Chris, Since you are in Germany, and you are active in the numismatic field, I was wondering. Do you ever run across Gunter Schön catalogs?? Especially the world coin catalogs. I have been told that they are much more informative than the Krause catalogs. If you ever find one at a reasonable price, I may be interested. Can always use more reference materials.

WARNING: These are only generalizations, and there are exceptions to these. The British use very nice trays and exquisite wooden cabinets to display their coin collections as heirlooms. They are proud of the beauty and quality of the coins they have amassed. They will leave a hole in their collection for years waiting for the right coin (the right grade, with the right luster and eye appeal). They restrict their collections, focusing on a specific denomination, monarch, time period, etc. (even here, we have young collectors already focusing on a single denomination over a specific time period). The Americans use inexpensive flips, mylars and air-tites, to minimize their investment and increase the profit margin. They are proud of their coins, but the bargains and bottom lines are the highlights of their collections. They are concerned about resale value and marketability. They will buy a lower grade coin at a bargain price until they can upgrade to a better coin, selling the older one to help finance the new acquisition. Slabbing has provided an assurance blanket for them. They suffer from "alphabet soup fever" (PCGS PF68 DCAM F/B ).

I agree with Edward that the inclusion of Rotographic into this forum would be a good idea. We all have the option whether or not to venture into those forum categories as we choose, the same as we do with the current forum categories. Also, as Edward said, the incorporation of Rotographic should bring more members into the fold, not only on the catalog forums, but also into the collecting forums. After all, who would be involved in coin catalog forums, other than coin collectors. As far as the 2004 v. 2005 issues. Consider putting a "discount coupon" (say £2 off) in the '04 edition, valid only on the '05 edition. By doing this, you encourage people to update their catalog annually. For those that don't use the coupon for the '05 edition, you haven't lost anything, and you may well have earned a few marks of merit for at least offering it. I am not sure, but I imagine that a fair percentage of the people who buy the CCGB catalog do not update it every year. If you promote that you are re-vamping things, and bringing the prices up to date, that should also encourage more people to up-date.

Good luck amulets for fisherman, produced throughout the last 200+ years, based on the design of Hungarian ducats from Kremnitz. The reverse legend translates to "safety in the storm", to protect the sailors from the perils of the sea. http://www.nmm.ac.uk/collections/unicorn/c...et&sortBy=title The National Maritime Museum has 3 specimens of these amulets in their on-line gallery. (fishermans' charms, #2-4)

Happy birthday, Geoff!!

A partially filled die?? The only option is the B, so if yours is an E, then it is an error of some sort. Probably a filled die or a strike thru error. Don't know if there is much demand for them, so I doubt there would be much of a premium for it. But it may warrant further research.

It is Switzerland, the mintmark is a B for Bern, and according to Krause, there should be 23 stars. Catalog value for UNC=US$2.00, BU=US$3.00. As I stated in an earlier post, unless you find someone who is a specialist in this country, then it is doubtful you will get anywhere near the BU catalog value for the coin.

It is a circulating commemorative, much like some of the 50p coins you find in the UK, issued to celebrate the 180th Anniversary of Carabinieri. Krause gives it an UNC value of US$1.35, but don't expect to get that much for it.

Are you sure about the Netherlands coin? From your description, it should be a 1 "G" not "C". The 1 gulden piece is nickel, with the shield on the reverse. The 1 cent piece is small bronze coin with "1" and "cent" written below it. There are 2 varieties of the 1969 1 gulden, with different privy marks for the mintmaster. To the lower right of the shield, is there a fish, or a rooster?? The fish has a higher mintage, but they are both worth the same amount. About US$2-3 (or about £1-2) in Krause, but dealers sell these for US$1. France 1 franc, nickel, Krause lists them at US$0.40 in UNC. Unless you can find an advanced collector of French coins who wants strictly UNC coins, the best you can get would probably be US$0.25 for it.

Since he is a doctor, I am sure he has at his disposal some distilled, or otherwise purified water that will not contain any harsh chemicals that may react with the metals of the coins. Otherwise, I am interested in hearing the results. Makes me wonder about my wife's untrasonic jewelry cleaner. Might have to convince her to let me give it a try. hmmmm.

This is cyclical. Even coinpeople and PCGS boards are a little slower right now. With the spring and summer time, there are more activities and obligations that need to be tended to, and therefore, less time for allocated for coin collecting and visiting the message boards. In the past 2 months, I have had to mow the yard several times, help the wife tend to her flower gardens, a family outing to the Zoological Park, several family member birthday parties, extended hours at work to cover a few vacations, and a trip to the hospital. All of these events have cut into my time available to "surf the boards". Once the first good frost (probably in mid-October or so) then all the outdoor stuff ends, and I will be hibernating in the house, in front of the computer. Then, we can talk alot!!

I once received a US$10 gold eagle as payment for gas at the station I worked at a few summers ago. Bought it out of the drawer (for $10) and sold it on eBay for $232.00.

I have to agree with you on this one JMD. This is what my interpretation of the photo is, too. One good blow from a grown man swinging a 12# hammer is more than sufficient to make the markings of the penny transfer to the 5 pence piece. I would suggest, tho, that the penny was placed on the flat surface, and the obverse of the 5p was struck with the hammer (or perhaps something was used like a "punch"), which would explain the total obliteration of the obverse of the 5p. This would also support the fact the the force of the strike "spread" the 5p, making it larger (but thinner) than a normal 5p. These are just my opinions. I personally wouldn't waste my time with this, as there is no proof to support it being anything other than a purposely damaged coin.

look on the reverse, under the eagle, to see what the mintmark is. could be A, B, BB, D, K, MA, or W. In fine condition, the value will run around US$2.00-5.00, unless it is the MA, which is US$15.00. in lower grades than fine, most are common in bargain boxes, and can be easily found for under US$1.

Favorite artist would be a toss-up between ->Iron Maiden ->Jimmy Buffett also like Metallica and Mercyful Fate (King Diamond) Favorite song would be a split between ->Iron Maiden-Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner ->Jimmy Buffett-He Went to Paris Honorable mentions go to Iron Maiden-Hallowed Be Thy Name, Jimmy Buffett-Jolly Mon, Metallica-Wherever I May Roam, and King Diamond-The Candle. Sylvester, most of your lists look like some of my MP3 playlists.

I would like to learn to grade British coins, and would like some advise on the finer points of them. To get a better idea, I think it would be best to discuss a single type of coin at a time, to get a more accurate feel of what to look for/at. What I am interested in is: what details do I need to see for a coin to be what grade?? for example, how much of the shield needs to be descernable to be considered F? how much of Edward VII's ear should be there to be VG?? I know that external factors like scratches, rim dings, bends, holes, etc will affect the grade, but what I want to know is how to grade based on wear (or lack thereof). Most of my British coins are not damaged, but I am somewhat clueless of how they would grade. It is easy for you guys, because you know these coins, but for someone who isn't as familiar with the wear/weak points of them, what should I look for? BTW, is there a book that may have this information? I have an old Charlton catalog of Canadian coins from the 1960's that gives excellent information on grading Canadian coins, and it has been an invaluable asset to me for many years.

Thanks Oli!! As many times as I have visited Wybrits' site over the last couple of years, I never noticed the grading page.

Not Australian. They didn't begin issuing coins until 1910. i said austrailian ect... meaning austrailia, south africa, and so on I was just eliminating Australia from your list of possibilities, because it is not possible. Neither is South Africa, which did not issue any coins under British rule until 1923. Nor can it be New Zealand, which didn't issue coins until 1933.

Closing in less than 24 hours, and still less than £1 each. Wonder if the buyer plans on selling a few quickly to recoup his original investment?? Would love to have one, but can't afford to buy the whole lot.

I can vouch for Wybrit, also. I have had several very pleasant transactions with him over the last couple years, and I have found his site very helpful and useful to me. I have it bookmarked, along with this one, and check by regularly. Right now, my budget has severely limited my purchases recently, but I hope to pick up a few new items here in the next few weeks. I will be looking at all 3 sites listed in this thread (Chris, Wybrit and Colin Cooke), and deciding which holes to fill first.

Not Australian. They didn't begin issuing coins until 1910.

Okay, now I feel really stupid. I have read this thread several times, even replied to it, and got a response to my reply. Now, I finally figure out that the thread is talking about medals. doh!! For some reason, I was thinking about tokens, not medals. Geoff, I don't have any Canadian medals, what I have are the tokens given out for the coronation of EII in 1953, vist of GeoVI in 1939, and 50th anniversary of Confederation in 1927. Now I must go hide my head in the sand for a little while.

These are the exact questions we should welcome. Yes, we know that a 1967 penny has virtually no value, but if someone unfamiliar with coins finds one, and is curious enough to ask about it, there are 2 possibilities: #1, he is only interested in the money, and therefore, a quick but polite answer will send him on his way, never to be seen again. #2, he has an interest in coins, but may feel insecure about joining a forum that is full of (in his opinion) advanced collectors who know a lot more than him. these are the ones we want to post, even if anonymously. we need to encourage them. they are already hooked, we just need to reel them in. they may be the ones with jars of pennies in the attic that grandmother put up there back in the 30's, full of widow-head pennies in XF and aUNC.

Geoff, (and anyone else who can help) I have a couple of Canadian coronation medals that I have added to my collection. I am thinking that I would like to see about adding a few British coronation medals to my British coin collection, also. Is there anywhere on-line that has information about these? I see that you mention that there are both official and commercial varieties. I think I would prefer to start with the official ones, but may also consider the commercial types. Any information would be appreciated. Thanks, Scott