Peckris

It could be a trial for a coronation medallion (it looks right for that). Either that, or it could be a trial for a Commonwealth coin. Certainly not a British coin, given he is wearing a crown.

I was only talking about the coinage - I estimate banknotes will be around for a good while yet. Though I doubt that the £5 coin will replace the paper fiver, given the comparative costs of production. (Having said that, the coins would outlast several generations of paper fivers, so maybe there's not all that much in it?) I agree absolutely about coin clubs.

I'm going to assume my point about the slabbing of 60s coin is unanswerable, as Bill hasn't taken the trouble to reply to either of two posts on the subject.

Oh I don't know - if you want me that bad Dave, I'll put myself on eBay with "VF Details" Go topless Peck in you auction picture, you might start a bidding war. Yes - to put a shirt ON

And killing a dragon the size of a Labrador Yes, it's a beaut of a crown. As for proofs, those crowns weren't issued for circulation I believe, so in a way they're ALL proofs. Kind of.

Oh I don't know - if you want me that bad Dave, I'll put myself on eBay with "VF Details"

Not only that, numismatics is one of the world's oldest hobbies I believe? Even royalty has got in on the act at various times. Very true - but it is really wrong to dismiss the recent output of the mint the 50p issues have been very good and will draw coin collectors in for many years to come - the kew gardens 50p for instance. we will need new blood to come into the hobby or it will die, just as surely as collectors lost interest in stamps in the seventies and early eighties The real question is - will collectors move from that market (which relates to proper coin collecting as 'limited edition plates' does to genuine antiques) to 'our' sort of coins? The worrying factor is one that affects both stamps and coins: Stamps have been affected by the fall-off in letter writing, and the vast increase of business franking in place of the traditional stamp. Now that so much is done on the internet, it looks even worse for stamps. The trouble is - the same argument applies to coins. Where circulating currency once represented a serious proportion of the money supply, now it is negligible. I fear we may even see the disappearance of coinage within a generation. One ray of hope : vinyl never quite died, but its recent return to favour still only represents a tiny % of records sold/downloaded. However, 'collectable' vinyl goes from strength to strength. Perhaps people will continue to collect coins as art/antiques even when they've gone out of use as money? Actually, that question has already been answered now I think of it - predecimal coins are as strong as ever but have not been used for decades.

Not quite "every" - I'm still waiting for a reply to mine, but I may have a long wait... Are you referring to what I think you are, Peck ~ namely the query about being able to remove a coin from a slab, and re-insert it at a later date, with the certification still intact and available, being capable of cross referencing a bar code to a central record and detailed photo ? That one ? If so, I too would be interested in Bill's views on that possibility, as I drew a blank when I mentioned it in an earlier post. No, it was my - I thought - very reasonable point about why anyone would slab 60s coins. And let us not be under any illusions - there are many many many 60s coins out there which are UNQUESTIONABLY BU. It doesn't take an expenditure of £11:99 to confirm that, and nor does it make the coin itself worth more than a nominal handling charge even in the raw state. I also made the point about what Stephen Lockett said to me when I bought a box of such stuff off him at the Midland Coin Fair in the 90s, when I was just starting out as a mail order dealer and wanted a bit of stock. I still maintain (and apologies to Bill for this) that you would have to be crazy to buy most 60s coins in a slab and pay for the privilege. Like I said, there are so many BU specimens out there, put aside by hopeful but ultimately deluded speculators at the time, that they will be a glut on the market for longer than even 1936 and 1937 coins, 1946 silver, and 1948 CuNi.

Not Debbie D Dallas? I've just had a horrible thought - what if "our" Debbie didn't realise I wasn't talking about her? She may not be familiar with that eponymous piece of porn...

Not quite "every" - I'm still waiting for a reply to mine, but I may have a long wait...

This is where your philosophy and mine appear to be situated on different planets Bill. As a schoolboy collector and regular reader of Coin Monthly in the late 60s, the ONLY way I would now want to own 'common or garden' Eliz II coins is if I picked them up for peanuts. You quote Stephen Lockett, but at the Midlands Fair in the late 90s, I bought a box of more or less BU 60s coins off him (purely for my mail order stock), and I remember well what he said. "It's really common stuff, you might find it hard to shift but go on then - I'll charge you two-and-a-half times face, which is a standard markup for this kind of stuff. Good luck with selling it." If his attitudes have changed because of CGS then it's simply a commercial volte-face. There's no way you are going to persuade me that Stephen genuinely believes that there is a serious market for 60s coins. Yes, he may not remember what he said to me, and yes, he has a strong interest in promoting CGS wares, but deep down he's a realistic dealer and knows the market very well. I don't quarrel with your desire to own the very best of what you collect, but I'm puzzled why you think that means CGS for really really common items like 60s coins? To slab and store a BU 1967 florin or penny, 1966 halfcrown or shilling, 1959 sixpence, 1964 3d or halfpenny, 1965 Churchill crown, and pay £11.99 for the privilege of owning each .. well, I just don't understand. I have several examples of all those and they are stored inside a screw top tin with a piece of lint. Well, each to their own. You enjoy your slabs, and I'll enjoy my mahogany cabinets. One thing I do applaud CGS for though - given the rabid overgrading that eBay has been party to, it's good to know that one organisation is erring in the opposite direction.

Not Debbie D Dallas?

I agree with your second sentence Peter. Caveat emptor as they say. And let the emptor do the necessary research if serious money is to be spent. Would anyone buy a house without doing a survey or the necessary searches? I hope you don't mind me saying, but the first sentence is a bit absurd. I've never spent £500 on a single coin in my life, yet I have a couple of dozen that would be well worth slabbing if I was so inclined (which to date, I'm not). For less than £500 you could pick up EF examples of most non-rare halfcrowns of the first half of the 19th Century, even some of the commoner early milled dates; you could get a very high grade cartwheel; much UNC George III, Victoria, and later; not to mention a near UNC 1930 halfcrown or 1918KN penny. I'd say - pulling a figure off the top of my head - that a coin ought to be worth more than £50 to merit slabbing, and even at that lower end, it should have something about it, e.g. a gem BU 1902 penny, or an AUNC 1952 sixpence, or EF 1949 threepence.

Certainly done after minting. Possibly in 1922!

Must change my name to Martin Platt - those puppies look like they could do with some cleaning.. by hand of course (oh, now I need a dip - in cold water )

3+C '75 Farthing (H below) and WHAT'S wrong with the ER '22 thrupence? Explain?

If my prayers were answered it would be slimmer and cheaper, but I bet they aren't. I've got a well-thumbed 2012 if you want it (no charge)? Would be a fair swap for all I've learned on here! That's a very kind offer! I would at least offer to pay the postage PM me your address, and I'll get it in the post to you! It is battered, though...you might even want to send it back! Let me do a John and say, no charge at all, but if you fancy dropping a couple of posty/postie quid in the Air-Ambulance kitty, that would make everyone a winner! Will do. Message sent. And thanks again.

GET IT WHILE YOU CAN --GREAT CONDITION --I HAVE MANY PANDAS As good as the two I see there?

I guess because its owner either had more money than sense, or more hope than expectation? Do CGS ever turn down a request except where it's counterfeit or cleaned or verd? As for the "lustre", I've seen any number of Eddy farthings which have been artificially lustred at some point, presumably to pass it off as a half sov? I can't see any wear on the reverse, but the hair looks somewhat weak. I'll guess at EF+ but with a lowish number for that grade.

As far back as the 1940s/50s, and with provenance like those have?

If my prayers were answered it would be slimmer and cheaper, but I bet they aren't. I've got a well-thumbed 2012 if you want it (no charge)? Would be a fair swap for all I've learned on here! That's a very kind offer! I would at least offer to pay the postage

Je vous en prie

If my prayers were answered it would be slimmer and cheaper, but I bet they aren't.

First, I have absolutely no reason to doubt the authenticity of these coins. They were obviously collected well before the current influx of Chinese forgeries. And you say he was also a dealer, which helps even more. So rest easy on that. Second, provenance is everything with good quality coins. If those tickets give the correct story, then the provenance is impeccable : Seaby, Baldwins, and "ex-Lockett" are the tops. Did your grandafther keep any of the original coin tickets, or receipts, invoices, auction results, anything like that? However, even without that, the age of the purchases and the provenance claimed, will be in the favour of the collection. Third, the values - are those the prices your g'father paid, and was it at the period stated, i.e. late 40s and early 50s? Or are those his selling prices at a much later date? You will need to research current values from a current leading dealer - I don't know where you live, but Spink, Baldwins, and the like, would give you a realistic estimate of what their current worth is. If you send them off, obey a few simple rules : don't handle the coins more than necessary, and under no circumstances clean them make an enquiry first, mentioning what the coins are, and if necessary reading off what it says on the tickets send photocopies of the tickets with the coins send them well insured, with a five-figure maximum just in case (it could be less, but it doesn't hurt to over-insure). However, please bear in mind that ancient coins don't appreciate in value the way that modern (post-1666) do. I would estimate that they haven't kept up with inflation unfortunately. However, do get expert advice and help. It looks a good collection with excellent provenance, and it's rare that we get a chance to say that when people come on here with their grandparent's collection. Is that the entire collection, or just a sample tray?