My father's coin collection

[grace 0]

My dad has a fairly large collection of coins. Mostly they are George VI, George V, Edwardian and Victorian coins. I have very little experience wih coins. He has one George III penny from 1802 which is pretty flawless considering the age (circulated, but very clearly striked and very clean), a Victorian sixpence from 1840 with Victoria's head upside down when you flip the coin, and also various George V coins which included lettering to the left of the date, others without. All of these coins are in varying condition, there are hundreds and it would be impossible to list them all. I'm just wondering which coins i should look out for and if any ones i have mentioned specifically are of any significance. Thanks in advance for any help.

[Peter 615]

You can search on Ebay for identical coins to give you a feel for their values.

It would help if you put a few pictures up of the better coins.

The 1802 if copper it isn't.

[Peckris 579]

My dad has a fairly large collection of coins. Mostly they are George VI, George V, Edwardian and Victorian coins. I have very little experience wih coins. He has one George III penny from 1802 which is pretty flawless considering the age (circulated, but very clearly striked and very clean), a Victorian sixpence from 1840 with Victoria's head upside down when you flip the coin, and also various George V coins which included lettering to the left of the date, others without. All of these coins are in varying condition, there are hundreds and it would be impossible to list them all. I'm just wondering which coins i should look out for and if any ones i have mentioned specifically are of any significance. Thanks in advance for any help.

Your 1802 penny is a tiny silver coin, right? (Copper pennies, halfpennies and farthings exist but dated 1806 and 1807).

To be honest, apart from great rarities, condition is everything and we would need to see some pictures. Pretty much all coins before George VI in top grades are worth something - some quite a lot - but that 'top grades' means coins that have barely circulated and look pretty much in pristine condition. However, many coins that have circulated a little would be worth something too, though a lot less (I'm talking about the Very Fine "VF" grade here). The vast majoritiy of coins you encounter are even more worn - Fine "F" or less - and only worth a modest amount.

If you want to research most of your coins, your nearest reference library should have a copy of Spinks' "Coins Of England" which lists just about everything.

[grace 0]

I'm fairly sure the George III was copper, although i would need to look again, and could easily obtain images. I will take some pictures, and if there are any significant dates or errors i should look out for please let me know. I don't really intend to sell any of these coins, it's just pure curiousity that is my drive in the interest in value. When i was a child my father used to let me look through his coin collection, i used to think it was fascinating, I'd love to do this with my own children at some point. I'd rather pass them on to future generations. My main problem is i have a large amount of old coins with no way of knowing which are worth keeping seperate from the rest. I tried searching for 1802 george 3rd coins, and cant find any on ebay. I also searched for the 1840 Victorian sixpence. These two coins stood out to me most due to the age of the first and the oddness of the 2nd. I have never seen a coin struck so the back is at a 180 degree angle from the front, whether these coins are common in Victorian times i am unaware as i was born years after these coins were taken out of circulation.

[Peter 615]

There is not a 1802 copper coin.

The condition of the coins is everything..post a few pictures of the better condition ones and we can take it from there.

It is pointless listing key dates because if they are from circulation they will be worth diddly.

[Rob 3,152]

I'm fairly sure the George III was copper, although i would need to look again, and could easily obtain images. I will take some pictures, and if there are any significant dates or errors i should look out for please let me know. I don't really intend to sell any of these coins, it's just pure curiousity that is my drive in the interest in value. When i was a child my father used to let me look through his coin collection, i used to think it was fascinating, I'd love to do this with my own children at some point. I'd rather pass them on to future generations. My main problem is i have a large amount of old coins with no way of knowing which are worth keeping seperate from the rest. I tried searching for 1802 george 3rd coins, and cant find any on ebay. I also searched for the 1840 Victorian sixpence. These two coins stood out to me most due to the age of the first and the oddness of the 2nd. I have never seen a coin struck so the back is at a 180 degree angle from the front, whether these coins are common in Victorian times i am unaware as i was born years after these coins were taken out of circulation.

George III coins dated 1802 are a bit thin on the ground in base metal, so a picture would be useful. He was also ruler of Hannover in addition to this country which is one possibility. The 1840 sixpence should have an inverted die axis. The normal, or en-medaille (as a medal) die axis was only adopted as standard from 1887 onwards.

[RobJ 0]

Hi Grace,

Welcome to the Forum.

I must agree with the sound advice that has already been given to you so far.

It may be helpful for you with the identification of the coins for you to perhaps organise them by Monarch, or perhaps by Denomination (Those can be found on the back of nearly every coin, For example, Farthing, Sixpence, Florin, etc.) That would certainly help you to identify the coins more easily than just having a large pile of them and not knowing where to start.

It would indeed be extremely helpful for you if you were able to obtain a copy of 'Spinks - Coins Of England' as suggested by Peckris. That is arguably the most complete, yet readily available book available about coins and has a wealth of information and would be a very good place for you to start.

As already mentioned, rather than listing each and every rarity and variety, as the list would be very long indeed! A better idea may perhaps be to have a good look through the coins and select the ones that look to be in the best condition and Post some pictures here on the Forum. There are some very knowledgable Forum Members with ranging areas of expertise and I'm sure that someone would be able to assist you.

Again, as already mentioned, the condition.of the coin is primary to its value. I do understand that you may not have an interest in selling any of them, but I do believe it is worth reiterating the point.

Perhaps a small bit of information that may assist you. Silver Coins minted until 1920 (Including your 1840 Shilling) are composed of .925 Silver. Silver Coins after 1920 and up until 1946 are composed of .500 Silver. After that the 'Silver Coins' contain no Silver at all and unless in the very highest of Grades are usually of very little value.

I wish you luck with your endevour!

[grace 0]

Thanks for the assistance everyone. I will purchase a copy of that book and see if i can find any rare coins. I doubt i will find any extremely rare ones but it will be interesting to do some research. As yet, i have been unable to take any pictures as i've misplaced my camera, and my phone camera is pretty grainy but i will try and get some pictures of the better coins up as soon as i can.

[Peter 615]

Thanks for the assistance everyone. I will purchase a copy of that book and see if i can find any rare coins. I doubt i will find any extremely rare ones but it will be interesting to do some research. As yet, i have been unable to take any pictures as i've misplaced my camera, and my phone camera is pretty grainy but i will try and get some pictures of the better coins up as soon as i can.

Why not get it from the library?

[Red Riley 2]

Why not get it from the library?

Good idea. If the coins turn out to be worth zip then you won't have wasted any money.