Just for fun, what are some of your favorite words or phrases used to describe coins?
MFeld
Posts: 11,070 ✭✭✭✭✭
Here are a couple that come to mind for me, each of which pertains to toning and is very rarely used:
jewel tones
melted crayons
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
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Comments
black beauty
boner toner
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
I like very few but "hammered" resonates with me.
Iridescent
Cartwheel
Crusty
Chocolate Brown
Iridescent is a word I love to use to describe a certain kind of toning. "For the discerning collector" is a phrase that I see certain dealers use , and it catches my attention and makes me look again usually.
One phrase that entertains me is when a certain e-bay seller uses "razor sharp" to describe their well worn, almost slick Barber quarters.
Perhaps they meant that they are so thin you can shave with them.
RIP Mom- 1932-2012
The invented terminology tickles me. “Reverse horse sneeze” is my latest fav. That would be a horse fart, maybe?
I like "luster bomb", "warmly patinated", and "wispy handling marks that are easily overlooked"
Or a phrase that resonates but isn't so Laura-esque, "The coin is all there"
Fun thread, Mark 😅
Type Collector of U.S. Pre-33 Gold https://instagram.com/deplorable_dan Successful transactions with- @drfish, @Cladiator, @johnny010, @Pedzola, @PerryHall, @2windy2fish, @Ike1964, @JohnThePainter, @rpmsrpms, @REALGATOR
Among friends privately “ugly”.
dog
"coruscating"
Battleship Gray for perfect original circulated silver coins.
"Opalescent"
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Had to look that up in a dictionary. Lol.
Leave it to MFeld to start a thread where we all have to get our dictionaries out
Type Collector of U.S. Pre-33 Gold https://instagram.com/deplorable_dan Successful transactions with- @drfish, @Cladiator, @johnny010, @Pedzola, @PerryHall, @2windy2fish, @Ike1964, @JohnThePainter, @rpmsrpms, @REALGATOR
Pearlescent.
I always take that to mean - "Most people think this is ugly"
@DeplorableDan, your perspicuousness is on display.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
David Bowers once described a scarce classic coin that had a pit or a dig in it. He was able to add a positive spin by stating the mark made it possible to identify this example from all others. I forget the exact wording yet do recall it was precise and purposeful. I admired him for many reasons and that was certainly one of them.
Specific to this topic's question:
"Problem-free"
"Pocket-piece"
"Hard Dove Gray Surfaces"
peacockcoins
Hammered.
Choice
11.5$ Southern Dollars, The little “Big Easy” set
"Blast White" and "Hammered".
Donato
Donato's Complete US Type Set ---- Donato's Dansco 7070 Modified Type Set ---- Donato's Basic U.S. Coin Design Set
Successful transactions: Shrub68 (Jim), MWallace (Mike)
I've seen a negative attribute such as a copper spot on a gold coin or a carbon spot on a copper coin described as giving the coin "character".
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
I'm guessing it was something to the effect of "This mark/flaw serves to identify this example."
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
A bit off topic, but all the same, I enjoy it when they show me the size of the quarter that I want to buy:
fugly
post mint damage
Recently used another thread, the word “pedestrian” is a softer, more delicate term in lieu of “widget”
Type Collector of U.S. Pre-33 Gold https://instagram.com/deplorable_dan Successful transactions with- @drfish, @Cladiator, @johnny010, @Pedzola, @PerryHall, @2windy2fish, @Ike1964, @JohnThePainter, @rpmsrpms, @REALGATOR
My coin Monster your coin crap, if you’re trying to sell it to me.🤪
"This is a fun piece." Generates interest almost every time I use it.
Custom album maker and numismatic photographer, see my portfolio here: (http://www.donahuenumismatics.com/).
Gem, that is my favorite when applied correctly.
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
Top pop
"pedigree marker"
As long as frosty devices look like they were freshly carved from a block of ice and contrast BOLDY against the incredibly DEEP MIRRORS, I am a buyer. It doesn't hurt if no ticks are visible, even with the aid of a STRONG GLASS.
“Scrumptious” usually seen with chocolate brown copper. 😳😂
I like “slider” since I collect slabbed AU coins that give the impression of being MS at first glance
Mr_Spud
I also appreciate "gem AU"
PCGS Certified CAC Approved Problem Free usually catches my eye when looking on EBAY
Ohhh I forgot about one of my favorites for eac, which was imparted upon me by @Walkerguy21D
"Scudzy"
Type Collector of U.S. Pre-33 Gold https://instagram.com/deplorable_dan Successful transactions with- @drfish, @Cladiator, @johnny010, @Pedzola, @PerryHall, @2windy2fish, @Ike1964, @JohnThePainter, @rpmsrpms, @REALGATOR
My favorite I’ve seen to date is:
“Very foolishly cleaned.”
The combination of honesty and the seller’s almost palpable exasperation with one of the coin’s former owners made me chuckle.
Describing Color:
Fluorescent
Cornucopia
Kaleidoscope
Jewel
Basal state
Burnt
Plate coin
Contrasted
Deeply mirrored
Young Numismatist, Coin Photography: https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/1090140/flyingal-coin-photography-10-photos#latest
"Watery Mirrors"
"Temperamental Surfaces"
"Ballistic Fields"
"Military Grade"
Okay. . . a couple of these I might of just made up...
peacockcoins
What a great thread idea - love it.
A few of my favorites:
"dripping with luster"
"crusty"
"frosty"
"circ cam"
And a few that I could do without hearing for a bit but know it's 100% coin-related:
"absolute monster"
"needs a sticker"
"lightly cleaned"
A coin for the "connie sewer" collector.
Since I'm not a fan of "toning," I like "blast white" when it's correctly applied.
"Cool" comes to mind for coins with actual historic significance (not necessarily rare; e.g., Athens owls, not rare at all but amazingly cool).
Things I like to see:
"delicate"
"patina" (as opposed to toning)
"sharp"/"crisp"
IG: DeCourcyCoinsEbay: neilrobertson
"Numismatic categorizations, if left unconstrained, will increase spontaneously over time." -me
Finest Known
Needle-sharp
Uncompromised
Natural
Unblemished
One of the funniest descriptions that I ever read YEARS ago was:
"The Lone Ranger's silver bullet could not have been shinier!"
Don't remember what company used it but it always makes me laugh!! LOL
“I may not believe in myself but I believe in what I’m doing” ~Jimmy Page~
My Full Walker Registry Set:
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/