deelcee

hi folks! i am interested in collecting coin weights are there any books on the subject? cheers dave

£300pm is more than enough to get the small denominations, though if you want the larger pieces it will cost more. It all depends on what grade is acceptable to you. Small hammered pieces are notoriously difficult to pick up in high grade (for this and other periods) because they were used for everyday transactions, whereas the larger pieces did not circulate so freely and so are easier to find in higher grades, but with a price tag to match because of the demand from collectors. As a rule, the larger pieces have a greater number of people collecting. Shillings, half crowns and crowns are all quite popular and gold is always in demand. Shillings and half crowns to a lesser degree would be well within the budget, but you would be unlikely to get a good crown for £300. On denominations of 6d and below it will be easy to acquire examples up to good fine. Very fine or better and you will have to look a bit harder and pay a bit more. If you are new to collecting I would avoid ebay except for small value items. Instead I would seek out dealers who offer a good selection of hammered coins in your chosen area and have a chat with them. As you are interested in Stuart coinage, a good book to acquire would be the Brooker sylloge which can be picked up for £25 or less. He had the best collection ever of Charles I and it covered all denominations, so you would be able to see what looks attractive to you. There is no real comparable collection of James I and hammered coinage production ceased in 1662 after the first three issues of Charles II coins. Also get a copy of the annual Spink tome - Coins of England and the United Kingsom. 42nd edition, the current one, costs £25. This would give an indication of prices, but bear in mind that these are fairly volatile depending on the piece offered. I don't know how active the Nottingham area numismatic society is, but details on the BANS website are given as follows. Nottingham Society. As you are going to collect hammered and if you become a serious collector, then a wooden cabinet would eventually appeal. Otherwise you may wish to consider stackable trays, available in various sizes. Albums, coin envelopes or plastic holders are also possibilities. The beauty of hammered is that you can handle them and so storage is not such a serious issue as with proofs or copper. thanks rob! very helpful

hi all i am a total beginner to numismatics after reading a few books i find i am drawn to hammered coins...especially the stuart period is it possible to go down this line of collecting on a budget of say £300 per month? or should i look at another area to collect! any advice please on where to buy,what books to read,whether or not to join a club/s,how to store a collection etc would be greatly appreciated thanks deelcee