Rob

Interesting question and exactly the same topic that was discussed at lst night's meeting when Denis Martin gave a talk on the 'Enigmatic Varieties of the Episcopal Edward I pennies from York and Durham struck from Local Dies". Again, the first thing I questioned was have we sub-categorized to too great an extent. when you have early and late letters on both sides and based on current classification become mules when mixed, then maybe we need to rethink our strategy. Interesting topic and good fun A big problem with a lot of these 'mules' is the sample size. When only single digit numbers are the norm, can we really be so confident in our rigid classification? I don't think so.

There is nothing to say that a coin has to have any denomination indicated as far as I am aware. Coins are proclaimed legal tender on the basis of their description which will be the specification laid down, but to consider a coin without the denomination in the legend or any other component that is usually present to not be valid currency would also require the mint to recall any coins with errors - which they clearly do not.

Any tickets with it? Sazama had envelopes, but any North coin originally came with a ticket such as the attached.

Ask them to take one up to the Midland this weekend

What is the edge like?

That one seems the odd one out. Yes, it is obvious up to a point, but given the character size I don't believe it was the only legend variety he found when trawling through them. The penny and halfpenny legends have a larger font size, which should lead to errors being more readily identified. The 8/6s were quickly spotted and added to the list, despite not needing a glass to read the date.

quite ! what? Pictures would be appreciated.

I often wonder how many things would have been recorded earlier if Peck and Freeman had extended their published study to include legend varieties. ESC has recorded things like RE.X for REX since the first edition in 1949, so maybe silver collectors were more attuned to looking for legend varieties than copper collectors, though I find this hard to believe. They aren't a separate species.

Yes, but it is obvious to the naked eye, not just under a glass. Either people consciously avoid looking at the VICTORIA part of the legend, or .......... The serifs on the G make it obvously different to the two ends of the C being wider at the end instead of narrower. I don't believe that people are so unobservant. And they weren't all made yesterday.

I am not convinced it willl be any more common than the other one die rarities. It is more obvious to the eye than some of the more esoteric overcuts which have been known for years. Look at other denominations such as the BBBITANNIAR, RRITT varieties for example. People haven't only been looking at pennies in the last couple of years. Someone paying 20K for a marginally narrower 3 in the date is far more questionable in my opinion.

Well, the first one has six consecutively correct words - "polymer note with the serial number" and (the last) two out of six in the following. "AM32 910640. Number 32 represents money". The second one has to be genuine as it's Jesus doing the listing and he's converted a fiver into £75000.

She has a lot to learn. I haven't spoken to the missus in two decades, let alone two days

I said any estimate between 5p and 5 grand was reasonable. At least you have a non-ebay reference point now.

But he is open to sensible offers, so a £1 each on the Saxon copies and a fiver for a fiver would comply.

I would like these, but think the best price should be negotiated by bartering. I will offer one Oxford English dictionary, and a copy of the English language curriculum for pre-school years The fiver bears no resemblance to Jane Austen - neither Her Maj, nor the talking fat dog to her left.

I would go further. Sometimes the 5 is triple cut

No problem. If you want a real challenge, try to find an 1825 with cleanly punched and completely formed characters and the legend in alignment. It's a bit harder than you might imagine.

Reinforced legends seen on dies was a means of extending their life. Rubbish accumulates in the incuse parts leading to partly formed characters. Sometimes these are recut to give clear legend. It is also possible for the initial character to be sunk in the wrong place and a correction made to the position. Whatever the reason, this feature is frequently seen. Examination of the legends on first issue farthings will usually show partly formed letters implying the punches employed were not the best.

In that case, polish away. You aren't destroying a unique piece of history as the supply of these is never going to be an issue. It will however be an irreversable action and once demonetised, worthless as a collectable.

I would go for an example of each denomination, so that would essentially be a long proof set, together with a sovereign and half from each of the overseas mints. I would probably hope to find the 1902 pattern crown and 1908 satin proof penny, but without much conviction of ever getting the latter. The next break point in terms of an expanded list would be a date run of the above types but in current coins only because the long set would be proofs. Maundy would also be required. A low tide penny and halfpenny would be required as a distinct design change, but not the open 3 The third level would be a warts and all collection encompassing all the varieties known to mankind.

For what it's worth, I used to collect shillings and halfpennies including varieties, so basically date runs on steroids. I found after a while that although individually they were high grade (EF or better) and usually appealing to look at, there was a certain monotony in the rows and rows of mint state coins which collectively didn't provide the same satisfaction. This was particularly striking in the bronze as they tend not to tone with much difference in colour, so it was either full lustre or a watered down version. Silver was better due to the greater variation in colours, but at the end of the day the only real difference was a digit or two in the date, so it was this which finally turned me off date runs.

A variety that isn't 'in your face' so to speak, always has an uphill struggle against a generally undesirable attribute (such as application of the brillo pad). To check you have to use a glass, which makes the impairment 20x worse!

They weren't showing as links when I replied, just a couple of strings of random characters. Modern decimals - quite popular at the moment, though condition is important. If common and damaged in any way, spend them. If mint state and preferably in their original packaging then they seem likely to hold hold up well. Some decimals are more valuable than others, though very few are worth more than a tenner and most considerably less. Periodically the Daily Mail whips up public interest in an issue which means people overpay for common items. The pictures are too small to see what condition they are in, so giving a value is not possible.

What?

Thanks chaps. When you say commercial data is backed up a few times, does that apply to private/small business data too? That matters if security and backup are not deemed to be particularly important. Most businesses are small and do not have in house IT departments with significant infrastructure, but the loss of info would arguably have a much greater effect.