British Honduras 5 Cents 1942-1945 Rarities in Uncirculated

7Jaguars

An unloved and not widely known series are the World War II era British Honduras minors, especially the nickel brass five cent coins. Not many were issued and evidently most of these Royal mint produced coins were paid out and actually used in commerce.
As most probably know British Honduras is now the British Commonwealth country of Belize and is located on the Caribbean coast of Central America next to Guatemala so naturally has a steamy tropical climate that is not kind to the original surfaces of these nickel brass coins, and this surface is rapidly degraded of colour and with corrosive changes endemic on these coins and making nice uncirculated coins very difficult to locate.

After some years of challenge I was able to assemble a set of one each of the coins 1942-1945. A famed recent collector Richard Stuart did not manage this and the complete set not in the Arielle collections sold at the London auctions of the Arielle collection.

Well here they are with the usual apologies of iPhone 11 photography that does not do the coins credit:

krueger

Correct me here . I was once told by a top dealer in Latin America that the 1950 date was quite rare?
Was he correct?

7Jaguars

No, a bit scarce but not anything like the above. Interestingly, a few BH came up on ebay last month and I got the 1945 (MS65) as well as the unheralded 1959 5c in MS63 (was that the one you were thinking of?)

krueger

No I don't think so. I think he may have been looking for the 1950 for a collector and was putting out the word so it would come to him without him wearing out his shoe leather. . I found him one in Unc and he was no longer interested so I sold it.
As I remember the dealer was Randy Weir. probably 10 years ago or so. I think he just published a book on India coins??

7Jaguars

Hmm, yes that seems to be his interest & I got some very nice bits from him years ago though prices much higher these days.
Well sorry that collector did not buy the coin he asked you for, not good form.
None of these nickels from the 50s and earlier are easy to find but demand quite low. The 1958 and 1959 are a good deal scarcer in mint unc. than the earlier. Some dates are so scarce in such grade that is actually easier to find the proofs!