Leo

Very nice coin Mick! I would be a bit nervous to go hunting anything better than EF- in eBay, you must trust the seller

Well it seems like your farthing has done extremely well Mick! I think 80 is generous though. It was also generous for Nonmortuus' specimen.

So according to the opinions written here, your farthing will score between 40 (VF) and 60 (EF) I am very curious to know the final result, please share Incidentally the LCGS web is horrendous, anybody has the official CGS table that I can print? I can only find one from eBay

I only looked at it last night...

Sure I don't doubt the coin is genuine, it's the whole story of the child playing pirates with it not knowing it was worth a fortune, nor his Grandpa who gave it to him...

They have 10 grades for 'mint state', where the lower ones are for coins with weak strikes, bag abrasions, hairlines etc. Sheldon scale However Mick's coin is circulated, not MS I think It looks like a worse coin in their photos, but you will know which one is more honest

You are absolutely right. That is what the Americans would call MS60, isn't it?

Hi all. I have a couple of pieces with an unusual look (and not in a good way) that I would like to share. I would love to have your opinion. First of all, this bun head penny that has a strange 'spotted' or marbled lustre. Is this normal? It appears to have a very weak strike too. Second, this halfpenny that has lustre covering one third (from 12 o'clock to 4:00) and the rest is dark. I was on the understanding that lustre fades out with wear, and logically this happens uniformly and first to the fields and exposed areas. However the pattern shown by this piece suggests some sort of partial dipping. Any ideas, apart from having been partially exposed to the elements?

Call me cynical, but I find very hard to believe that somebody would have given a child such a large gold coin to play with, regardless of its numismatic value and historical importance, as it's still a very valuable item. It's not a rare penny variety, it's a very large piece of gold! That has to be made up by the Daily Mail, who published the story in the first place, or by the auction house looking to draw attention to one of those coins that only pop in once every 5 years.

The pearls in the collar are only beginning to appear flat at the top. The garter is in quite detail, so are the jewels in the crown, the fold of veil is still in higher plane than the ear... Britannia's fingers on the trident are quite fine still... But yes other areas suggest weak strike like Britannia's helmet. It is only my interpretation of Mr. Perkins' manual is that this coin would be NEF and would make EF if it wasn't a common one, or if it had lustre or a stronger strike.

Thank you for your opinions, I wouldn't imagine that exposure to light could do such a thing. Not like the obverse! Uniformly lustrous, with a good few carbon spots

I think it's EF and sort of interesting in its deep blackness, nearly like jet. Slabbing... It's your choice, by the same reasoning of some people it wouldn't even be worth to spend a quadro capsule on it, but collecting is not ruled by common sense

I collect an easy series so there is not much thrill in the chase - this is like a financial exercise of setting the money aside and relentless crawling through auction catalogs and eBay listings looking for that sweet combination of grade and price. It's a mild degree of fun. However I enjoy much more with in-person purchases to dealers and shops. I certainly find more joy and satisfaction in the ownership, photographing and cataloging the new purchases, and reading about the historical periods these circulated in. When I've had a s*** day at work I look at my coins and really helps me to wind down. I should also note that learning the technical intricacies of coin collecting is fascinating, and this forum has played an important role in that. I take my hat off to the more experienced members who are always available to answer queries and give their opinion.

I went on Saturday, very nice stuff but, as it is normal, the prices are on the high side. Lots and lots of gold and proof sets!!!

I think the halfpenny looks great, it has that silky feel. Maybe it's because it's a bit out of focus, but it looks UNC while the penny does not. But again, I know nothing. CGS have the last word

That photo is actually good. Don't forget you also have the plastic slab refracting all the light. Like you said, and this happens particularly with bronze, in my pics the silky soft sheen of the lustre is totally killed and replaced by speckles and dark bits that pass unnoticeable when in hand.

I don't know if you do too, but I'm finding really hard to make decent photographs of bronze coins. They always look worse than in hand!

Quite the heart of Portugal! Lovely place. I am familiar with the north of Portugal (I was raised in Vigo) but not so much with the centre of the country. I do know Coimbra though, it's lovely. So you must know Brian Potter then?

What river is it Declan?

What grade was it given? Just for my learning.

Those instructions worked great for me. However photographing coins in holders or slabs is a different kettle of fish!

Very nice Mick... slabbed and everything!

I would like to study the evolution of prices of some coins over the last 10 years. Does anybody have the 2006 and 2011 editions, give or take a year?

It looks like the new one (the bottom) has a somewhat weaker strike. I like it better though.

That's a good one for catawiki! I've seen guys with P&P charges of £25, for one coin