Coinery

Now THAT's a proper unrecorded variety! It went to a guy in our club who collects only Elizabeth 1st. As his conventional wants list is the size of a postage stamp, he appreciates the oddball things,Lucky chap...one for Chris Comber, that one!

You get quite a few lis shillings cropping up on ebay. 8 or 9 years I picked up a 1B wireline which was essentially unworn though did have a crease from the spade - £130 on a midweek lunchtime was a no brainer. Absolutely, you don't see those on the bay too often! In fact, I haven't seen one yet...top spot! I'm guessing he didn't list it as such?

Now THAT's a proper unrecorded variety!

Was just taking a look at groundy's other offerings and saw this 111172797832 It IS a known variety (maybe not in Spink's I grant you) but, more importantly, he's got so carried away with the rare UNlisted spiel, that he's forgotten to mention it's a LIS shilling, which could quite possibly be on a few 'saved searches'!

There are so many non-overdates being sold as overdates! Almost makes it look rarer to get a standard 77 or 78. I think you're right!

Thanks for the alert, Clive, but this appears to be a straight 1578 according to BCW! I can't really tell from the image, but all the 1578 overdates should have the overmark too (Cross over Eglantine), which it doesn't look to have. Also, the lions and leaves on this reverse are from 1578+ punches, and the lions (67) especially, are only known on straight '78's (the 1578 overdates all sharing lions 62, which this coin definitely doesn't have). Sadly, I believe this is reverse CR-d3 myself!

Why would a contemporary forgery be struck in silver?

It'll be interesting to watch the prices on eBay over the next few months, and how much new stock appears, as I have a little theory?

The danger of purchasing bread and butter is that it might not sell, then you get depressed just looking at it. It isn't only the top end where people are selective. Some of the real dross is unmarketable to anybody, such as a fine or a bit better 20th century piece or a common date bun head which is well nigh impossible to dispose of other than at the scrapyard. It is often more cost effective to melt silver that is post 1816 in low grade than it is to try to sell it - rare pieces excepted, but also very difficult to pick up things at less than scrap value in order to make a profit.Bread and butter coins for me are the coins which DO sell, mostly because they have a wider audience, and are sought after by the mainstream of collectors, rather than a high-end piece at the very top of its price range. Of course, Rob's right when he says that you have to be selective! I'd say that's true whether you are spending a fiver on a 1930 penny, or buying a York HC. It is really hard to purchase saleable/popular coins for resale, but few could afford the luxury pieces without getting this formula right! Fortunately, it's still possible to do! Happy days!

I struggle a bit with this 111166284413 one from a seller who has endless feedbacks from coin related sales! Was he really innocent re the replica status of this pewter disc? 9 bids already!

Your buying and selling tactics are the same as mine, which is not (mostly) condusive to the cash-flow principle, as you always, ALWAYS, end up crippling your funds by punching above your weight, just like that iconic 'child in a candy shop' comparison!Man, it's SO difficult Declan being an addict and Pub Landlord, all at the same time! I don't think there's a seller/dealer on here who'd confess otherwise! I think the secret is to 'bread and butter' so you can indulgently participate in these amazing auctions unfettered'ish' and, somewhere along the way, you target an occasional piece that someone hasn't, because either he's skint, on holiday, or spent out on an earlier lot, and then it's Christmas!

Really depends on your motive, to be honest!It's really, REALLY, hard to buy stock for resale at venues like these...it's pretty hard even at the peripheral auctions such as Stroud, Bristol, and Clevedon! I'm going to be cast from the corridors of respectability for saying this but, being as you know what I'm going to say, I need not burn any bridges! Did I say eB...no I didn't! From my observations I've noted, and experienced, that it's possible to cream away specialist pieces within your field of knowledge, but nigh impossible to buy bread and butter stock outside of the bulk lots, which you need to be in attendance to take advantage of! Oh, dear, I've probably said enough already!

Does that mean we now have dibs, Stuart? Would certainly be interesting to see the other side, as the obverse doesn't look too bad? I'm skint!

I'm only guessing the Tudors must have known the Stuarts were coming! Leaves me dumbstruck!

Someone just isn't concentrating...wrong monarch, and has taken two different photos of the obverse, and then described it 'tudor rose on the obverse AND reverse'! Different! It did take me an age to be certain in wasn't a double-obverse J1 halfpenny though, I would've surely bought it first, if it was! Could of course be Charles, if it IS a different image, but I think it's the same! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1577-A-D-Queen-Elizabeth-I-England-Tudor-Period-Hammered-Silver-Half-Penny-Coin/350877017105?_trksid=p2047675.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222002%26algo%3DSIC.FIT%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D11%26meid%3D1358177517531278611%26pid%3D100011%26prg%3D1005%26rk%3D2%26rkt%3D5%26sd%3D130989863417%26 edit: could be a start to your small denomination C1 collection, TG, if there's another rose on the back?

There was lots of bidding from Japan in the Mellors and Kirk as well. The Japanese are even buying English hammered, which always surprises me!

What part of the country are you in numisma_what, there's a pretty good spread of members on here who might be happy to take a look for you? Great username, by the way!

'Stylised A' mintmark on this fine detailed VF obverse! Saxby's has always been a byword for things to avoid IMHO. Thankfully the listings always used to be obvious and so easily avoided. Not looked recently though. I'll have a few Matildas if you don't mind. Well, maybe not. They always list continental hammered coins as "British found" which was fine, until their eBay feedback showed bulk purchases of coins from the continent... Might've helped if I remembered to put the item number in... 350869441820Never seen a stylised A before! Inverted too! Yes, Rob, not one to bookmark, that's for certain!

'Stylised A' mintmark on this fine detailed VF obverse!

I do wish I'd done something similar, I never even titled my images in the beginning, which means I sometimes have to manually trawl thousands of images to find what I'm looking for! Not very intelligent at all! Edit: what's access?

I thought this was a reasonable example of a small denomination C1, which went to the US as usual! What's interesting, is that the US collectors seem to hold the smaller denominations in the same regard as the bigger stuff. With the smaller E1 pieces, pretty much all the good stuff goes over the atlantic. I personally like the smaller coins but, as has already been said, it's not popular here. I'd say the halfgroats are the halfpennies (modern milled) of hammered. The E1 halfpennies and threefarthings are VERY popular, and command good money but, after that, it all goes flat until you hit the groats!

What's its spink price?

About as useful as chocolate for welding sticks!

Without looking in books to ID it, I'd guess, unless it's mega rare, that it would go for 25% over Spink's book price! I'm basing this on my experience of watching E1 halfgroats going through with quality busts, which they seldom have! As an example, I saw a E1 HG with bust 6D on it, last week, which is up there as one of most elegant busts on an Elizabeth coin I reckon, and it had a staggering quality bust on it. It books at £85 in VF, and has some clipping...I won it at £121 in a snipe, but had two other last-minute snipers who were prepared to pay over £110. So, my guess, 25% over book!

I'd certainly give that 'verd' a seeing to if it was mine! I'd take a gamble on the green and pay £125 any day of the week on eBay! Nice rare find, Hoody!