Hussulo

Hi John, Not particularly, I was just wondering if anybody else collected them. Despite their low mintages they can be obtained relatively cheaply and the complete 1/3 farthing set (not including varieties and proofs) is quite an easy set to build as you only need 12 coins. It suits me as I'm not great when it comes to building sets, I am easily distracted by other nice coins. I've already visited Colin's site (many times ) which is great. Do you have a full collection? does it include 1/4 and 1/2 farthings? Hus

Congrats Chris!

Hi Robert, Your electronic booklet sounds very worthwhile and will certainly be off interest to many collectors. I must state that I am not a lawyer and know only bare minimum when it comes to legal issues, but I did found this: <a href="http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/copyright/p01_uk_copyright_law" target="_blank">http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/copyrigh...k_copyright_law</a> which you may find of interest. In particular section 4, and sections 6 i (that is if a picture of a coin is to be considered "artistic works"). If it is then it seems that the person taking the picture automatically owns the copyright for 70 years, regardless if they have left contact information or not. Therefore if a person who's picture you have used wishes to take the the matter to court, then I'm not sure if your statement of not knowing who it belongs to, and leaving a contact information would stand up. It may still be seen as copyright infringement.. That's just the way I see the rules and I may be wrong? Personally I wouldn't go by what sellers on online auctions are doing as to whether or not it is the right, or the legal thing to do. I am sure there are many breaking the copyright law everyday. I'm afraid we live in an era of lawsuits, I would rather feel safe then sorry and would leave out material if I wasn't sure about it. Perhaps someone else who knows more, or has more legal experience will add to the discussion Regards, Hus

Sorry Rob, My mistake. I checked back to his email and there is no mention of 22k, I guess I must of not remembered correctly. He just says its struck in solid gold. Its quite a small coin . 50 centimes - 19 mm & 2.75 g . Its usual composition is Bronze (Cu : 95 %, Sn : 3 %, Zn : 3 %) There is the French version - BELGIQUE and the Dutch version - BELGIE I'll weigh it and post the results when it arrives. Many thanks, Hus Arrived today. Its 19mm, I'm not sure if the thickness is the same. It has a plain edge and weighs 4.03 grams. Hus

Purchased this recently. Belgium Pattern, proof, 50 centimes 1953 FR (French) struck in gold. As far as I can tell its not listed in Krause and I can't find any details of any other ones sold online. Can anybody else shed any light on this gold proof version?

Sorry Rob, My mistake. I checked back to his email and there is no mention of 22k, I guess I must of not remembered correctly. He just says its struck in solid gold. Its quite a small coin . 50 centimes - 19 mm & 2.75 g . Its usual composition is Bronze (Cu : 95 %, Sn : 3 %, Zn : 3 %) There is the French version - BELGIQUE and the Dutch version - BELGIE I'll weigh it and post the results when it arrives. Many thanks, Hus

Thanks Bob, No it was advertised as gold by the dealer on VCoins. I emailed him to see if it was gilted, but he said it was struck in solid (22k) gold and not gilted. I'll have to weigh it when it arrives. I just liked the design and it seemed like a good price for what it is reported to be. If its gold it should obviously weigh more than the standard pieces. I'm just trying to find out more about it. I guess I should email the seller to see if he has any more background information on it. Regards, Hus

Top right seems to be an angel coin weight.

Thanks Bob

Thanks Chris. Nothing ventured nothing gained. I plan on making it for coins/numismatics only and I will advertise it in numismatic sites and magazines. I'm not going to give up my day job and I'm going to be realistic. I've had the logo,banners, advertising and business cards professionally designed but as you say I have seen auction sites come and go. I'm just hoping that many have reached the end of their tether and if it works it works, if not, so be it. I just want to offer collectors and dealers an alternative.

Funny you both say that. I have something in the pipeline. I don't want to spill the beans too soon, but watch this space. I have registered a Limited company, got a business bank account for it and I am at the stage of working to develop the program to run it on. Of course my site wont be the same size as ebay initially, but I don plan to advertise and offer sellers an added incentive. Who knows how it will do, but its worth a shot. Ebay have had it their own way for a bit to long.

Most likely a 1806 Irish farthing. Here's a link to one on ebay: Click Here

Hi Kel, I think Chris, Red Riley and BCC have covered all the points. I also agree, unfortunately due to the amount of wear it would be hard to prove that it is, or isn't a F169. I must make it known that I don't collect varieties. I am adding them to the site when time permits and when people are generous enough to donate pictures of varieties to the site. I was also fortunate in getting permission from Michael Freeman to use his F numbers etc. on the site which is helpful for people collecting Bronze coinage. I have a long way to go yet in adding more varieties to the site and if you are keen to collect Bronze coin varieties then I would definitely recommend Mr Freeman's book: <a href="http://www.abccoinsandtokens.com/Book.UK.0002.html" target="_blank">http://www.abccoinsandtokens.com/Book.UK.0002.html</a> As Chris stated the level of rarity is an educated estimate, but in the case of F169, I was told by the person donating the pictures (whom wishes to remain anonymous) and as far as I can ascertain there are less than 10 of this variety known, however there may be more awaiting discovery or undeclared. If anyone has a good indication as to the number known in existence, it would be a specialist like Mr Gouby. If Chris does get a chance to speak with him, it would be interesting to hear his verdict. Regards, Hus

I think you are a little unkind to the U.S. system Hus, here is a link to Chris' comparison chart on the predecimal site. <a href="http://www.predecimal.com/gradingchart.htm" target="_blank">http://www.predecimal.com/gradingchart.htm</a> However, as far as I can tell, it is only PCGS and NGC that can be relied upon (to some extent) to accurately grade British coins. CGS in the UK seem to be quite harsh in their grading - a good thing if it wasn't for the horror of .............. the slabbing! Perhaps, don't get me wrong I'm not having a go at slabbed coins, I've got many, but I'm only airing a word of caution to people whom don't know how to/ or aren't confident in their grading. That being, at this present time and in most cases, it is generally accepted that the US system isn't as strict at grading British coins as the UK grading standards. I should add, I don't know of any official US to UK grading comparison list. Chris's could very well be more accurate than mine. My before mentioned comparison is my own summary and what I usually go off when buying, unless I can see a very clear picture of the coin or I have it in hand. You may say I am playing it safe, perhaps I am, but I've also seen some coins which are IMO way off. I had a 1717 1/2d which was graded AU50 by a major grading company, to me the coin would grade UK VF. I won it for VF price on the bay, so that was fine. I recently sold it (two years after purchase) at auction on ebay and it only made UK VF price. So obviously I wasn't the only one that thought it looked VF. P.S. did you know there is a company that now grades the graders: <a href="http://www.usrarecoininvestments.com/coin_articles/cac_coin_grading.htm" target="_blank">http://www.usrarecoininvestments.com/coin_...oin_grading.htm</a> "Now there's an easy way to identify premium quality coins within any particular grade" I found this quite amusing. So you can now send your graded coin to be graded again to make sure the graders did it right the first time! They stick their sticker on the slab for you. Surely if there is a market for such a service, either some people don't trust some of the grades given, or the grading standards aren't the same across the board? I'm not saying don't buy slabbed coins, or that you shouldn't trust grading companies. What I am saying is be cautious, and buy coins you personally like the look of, and not just the number on the slab. Try to stick to reputable grading companies and dealers. Try and read up and do some research about the coins you are buying, mistakes are easily made. Learn to use your own judgement as well as others. I'm not pro slabbing or anti slabbing, I'm only being realistic. I can see the arguments both for and against slabbing. I believe if slabbing is done correctly it can be an affective asset for many collectors, but not one that will be used by all collectors. When slabbing is mentioned, it always draws a few gasps from some collectors, but you have to remember grading can be subjective and it can even differ from dealer to dealer. I'm sure we have all come across some dealers who grade stricter than others. In the ideal world everyone would have the same grading standards, but this isn't going to happen. I'm sure grading standards and slabbing will be a hot topic for years to come.

that's great.

Some of the slabbed coins like the one below: http://cgi.ebay.com/GREAT-BRITAIN-1953-1-S...1QQcmdZViewItem are slabbed by a dealer. It is very easy to buy slabs and print your own labels and grade the coins yourself. You could try and open a slab and swap the label but they are sonically sealed and the chances are there would be evidence of tampering. The latest is fake coins being slabbed in fake NGC/ PCGS slabs coming out of China. http://coins.about.com/b/2008/03/28/pcgs-w...-fake-slabs.htm The main TGP's (Third Party Grading Services) are PCGS, NGC, and to some extent ANACS and ICG. ANACS were the first to start it. ANACS began grading coins in 1972. ANACS was as part of the ANA, American Numismatic Association, until 1990. You are correct about the US grading standards. It is generally excepted that US grading is not as strict as UK grading. In most cases MS 60-63 which is unc. in US equated to EF to EF+ by UK standards, AU US equates to VF to VF+ UK (and in some cases not even). MS 64 and up, would usually would be a UK unc. As for the grading of hammered coins, they can be very suspect at the very least. There has also been a British coin company set up, which reputes to grade by the British standards. They are called CGS: http://www.cgs-uk.biz/cgs-uk/aboutUs they use a 100 point grading scale compared with the US (Sheldon) 70 point scale. At the end of the day you should always buy the coin and not the grade given by the TGP's.

A few Victorians did counterstamp their coins, to personalise them. Some used to carry the coins around with them as a sort of pocket piece. The number 30 does not light up any lights in my head with regards to it being a business countermark. If it had been say a die number, then the number would be small and raised as opposed to being stamped in. The only thing I can think of is that perhaps your relative stamped 30 or was given it on their 30th birthday as a present some kind of keepsake. If its dated 1936, perhaps they were born in 1906?

With a population of 1, its bound to be a limited mintage!

Good news my friend in the us (Don) has finally managed to submit a Churchill which graded PCGS MS65. 11834018 206560 1965 Crown Churchill Gr.Britain MS65

I know many of you will laugh, but it's not for me (honest ). What I am looking for is a Churchill crown in brilliant uncirculated condition. A friend over in the US wants one that is going to grade PCGS MS65. I guess for a type set or something. Anyway I am on the hunt to try and find him one, although it may not be as easy as it sounds. Due to the design of the coin with its large fields it is prone to scuffs and scratches, and the fact that many people don't handle them with any care and throw them about as they are deemed invaluable. Anyway can anyone help? (seriously) Hus

Good news my friend in the us (Don) has finally managed to submit a Churchill which graded PCGS MS65. 11834018 206560 1965 Crown Churchill Gr.Britain MS65

I've got an update on it: AE18 Syacuse time of Hieron Sear GVC1223. Obverse.Head of Posedon head left wearing taenie. Reverse.Elaborate trident flanked by dolphins. Thanks guys.

Can anyone help with this one? Thanks in advance.

Blimey! Very nice Hus............... are you a millionare? cos if so, I wonder if you could you see your way clear to lending me.............................................................................. ...................................................................! Lol . I wish. The rest of my coins aren't in that price range. I happened to have some spare cash when I was offered it at a reasonable price. I'm afraid I haven't any money left know though. Mind you I did get an email from someone in Africa saying something about claiming millions of £s. All I need to do is send them a cheque for a £1000.