Sylvester

Hmm well from 1909 onwards Maundy Money was no longer available from banks only to the ceremony participants... I can't actually find a reference that says which monarch started it... The 1932 set was distributed by the king himself so i'd say George V was the first. Edward VIII distributed the 1936 issue, but even up to 1953 it wasn't always the monarch that gave the out, sometimes a rep.

I wouldn't even know where to begin...

Ah well i usually put history before beauty... I guess that's why i love hammered and some ancients!

Yeah i've come across that attitude... I dunno why but some dealers seem to hate the catalogue and refuse to mention it to anyone. I even had one dealer say in reference to hammered coins that it was too complex to use? What!! Have you tried using Spinks with hammered coins? Worse than useless. I think the high prices in the catalogue is what alot of dealers are opposed to hence why they dislike it. But as a strict reference book i would say it's the best one around [as general coin guides go] , obviously Peck or Freeman are better for copper and cover it in far more depth than CoinCraft would, but they are specialist books. I mean does Spinks (the recommended one) go into the details on the engravers? Like Wyon, Pistrucci, the Roettier's, Tanner, Ochs, the Pingo's etc? The background to the coinage (and the history provided especially in the milled section) goes some way into describing and explaining why things happened the way they did. I love the bit about Rev. Vallavine and the Guinea filers. Which explains why the changed the lettering and the milling on the guineas. Likewise that section on touchpieces, talking about Edward Hall living to 110... and how ironic it was that he'd also been touched in a touching ceremony by Charles II. The history is arguably more interesting than the coins themselves. Who want's just a price guide?

And do you know what the biggest irony is? A return from Sheffield to Leicester (between a third to half of the distance to London) costs about £10. Go figure...

I hear flying is cheaper indded! There are cheaper options available on the train the price i quoted was for an open off peak standard return. You can half that if you buy a standard super saver advance return. But you see doing that they have to reserve you a seat (usually next to people you dan't want to be next to), you are allocated which train you will go on there and which train back... that's all very well and good, but last time we did it we got shoved on the slow train down (not the express) took over 3 hours, coming back we got allocated on the express took about 2 hours. The thing is if you miss your train you're stuffed cos the ticket isn't valied on any train but the one specified on the ticket. To hell with that! You'd have to fork out another £40 just to get another single then. It's a bit impractical, oh yeah i could get there but i'd have nothing left to spend!

Wow i only go like once every 5 years or so, it's just so expensive to get to. £113 on train fare just to get there and back in Second class i don't think so... Last time i went was 2003, time before that was about 1995 or maybe even 1994. Time before that was '80 something. I only think i've been three or four times max.

Ignoring the prices they are the bible of English coin collecting. The 2000 edition has lemme see... 13 sides of A4 on halfpennies Chas II - Liz II alone

I know some members on here that could do with one... Are they as informative as the 2000 edition?

I might as well be Oli... £800 is well out of my league now...

No sorry i was just looking at the catalogue on the link above, i really shouldn't have.

no no no no, i didn't see that, never saw it... that was NOT an EF 1687/6 sixpence you just imagined it... yeah imagined it... uhehehe.

Ah i'll have a look around! I forgot about Amazon!

Chris have you got any, particularly on Ancient Greek coins? You know Athenian Owls, Larissas, Alexander coins etc...

Well if you fancy disposing of it you could always pass it my way... I'm used to reading hard reading (the North Catalogue is about as clear as mud), and for anyone that's had to study the Iliad then i think it might be a shade clearer. (Not much perhaps, but a tad!)

The Empire grows strong it does. I thought Krause had some books published on Ancients (along with all those other titles they do?) I feel like reading up and looking into that field see if i can't spread my numismatic knowledge horizons a little further afield... the Greek coins have particularly grabbed my attention. I don't intend to collect them though (well i want an Athenian Owl) but i have no intentions (as yet) of going into a mad collecting frenzy.

Funny you should mention Coincraft cos that was where i got that from. I had no reason to doubt it because it's stated as 1950 and Coincraft wasn't around then.

I prefer silver toned, a nice blue or grey and nothing comes close. Although i actually really prefer gold over everything.

I don't know if my one is "dirty" as such but my 1931 halfpenny has mixed tones and speckles around the legends and making it very appealing. i don't like speckeled toning though. Infact i don't like copper toned, i like it freshly struck... or at least looking like it's only been struck for about 10 minutes.

I always thought so, although i imagine some are still in mint condition for other reasons. E.G - In 1950ish a bank (not sure which) was clearing out one of its vaults and it came across a whole bagful of mint state 1700 sixpences (in the original bag). I just wish i had found that.

Coincraft has them in both too. I thought it was pretty much the norm to have both numbers present?

Finally had a quick look not too bad!

Well look at it this way for each silver sixpence it'd be worth 2/- (10p). For halfcrown it would be 50p... so it just depends on the coins really.

You know i do believe that is a copy... Does it say WRL? (Or something like?)

i like coins with dirt on... Well toning is what i'd call it, dirt is what non collectors call it... something about toned coins (as long as it's not bright flourecent colours of course)!