Anyone interested in Japanese coins?

hamiltonjh

I'm stationed in Japan, USAF, and know someone (an American) who sells slabbed Japanese coins. I can get the link to his site later, I'm at work right now.
If you're interested in raw Japanese coins...let me know. We can work something out and I can send you some.


EDITED for the link. Here it is: Link to slabbed Japanese coins

shirohniichan

Youkoso!

I'm interested in finishing my Meiji type collection, though I only buy slabbed coins if necessary. I like the big silver yen coins, but I don't think I'll ever be able to complete a date run.

I'm also putting together a pre-modern Japanese coin set including a Bunkyuu mon, Bunkyuu 4 mon, Tempoh Tsuuho 100 mon, ichibu gin, nibun gin, isshu kin, and nishu kin. When I get the time I'm going to frame them around an antique map of Japan.

You're way up there, aren't you? I've only been past Misawa a couple of times when visiting Morikoka, Hirosaki, and Ichinohe. I spent most of my time in Hiroshima.

hamiltonjh

Ikaga desuka? daijobu?

well, you know a HECK of alot more about Japanese coins than I do. Your map surrounded by coins sounds very interesting. I'd love to see a picture of it when you're done...or even a work in progress.

Yeah, Misawa is pretty far north. We're about 45 minutes driving time from Aomori, which is north west of us and about 20 minutes south is Hachinohe. I've never been to Morioka except when riding the bullet train from Hachinohe to Tokyo. Hirosaki is a few hours drive west of here...probably 2 1/2 to 3 hours. I drive all over the place here. I love it, it's so beautiful. And, since my wife is Japanese, I'm not afraid to get lost anymore

I dont know if I can do anything to help with your collection, but dont hesitate to ask. I can always pass it on to the owner of the website link in my first message up above. Or, email him. HE's a good guy and might be able to help.

shirohniichan

Is your wife from Tohoku?

When I rode the train from Ichinohe to Aomori I listened to two local grannies talking and thought they sounded Korean! I don't get the dialect at all, but I'm sure those ladies would have had a hard time understanding my Aki-ben. I used to write a monthly column for the town newsletter called "Washi no omounya" (what I think). I love learning dialects.

I couldn't find any listings for coin stores in Hiroshima. People told me to try antique stores, but I didn't have any luck there, either. I've found Japanese coins much easier to get here in the States.

hamiltonjh

My wife is from Nagano Prefecture which is WNW of Tokyo, about 1 1/2 hr by bullet train. We met in Tokyo though. I would go down there to get out of Misawa from time to time. We met while I was down there and the rest they say is history.
Naoko says she has a hard time with the dialect up here. That it's way different than down in Tokyo. I can hear a bit of a difference, but my Japanese is nowhere good enough to pick dialects.

There arent any coin shops here in Misawa either. It's too small a city. I dont know about Hachinohe or Aomori. Might be some in those cities as they're the two biggest in Tohoku. But, I would imagine the prices on coins are astrinomical as everything else is so dam expensive in this country. You know how it is, you spent time here.

Oh yeah...I enjoy reading the Hiragana times. Think they have a website...I'll have to look. It's bilingual.

sumnom

Hiragana Times? Tha sounds like tough reading.

hamiltonjh

It's not tough reading. It's bilingual. When you actually buy the magazine, each page is written in both Japanese and English. On the HIRAGANA TIMES WEBSITE it is English, but you can chose to read it in Hiragana/Katakana. But, you have to either have the language pack installed or set your puter to recognize Japanese unter the VIEW/ENCODING toolbar.
Sometimes it's got boring articles, but overall, it's fun to read.

sumnom

I mean, isn't it tough without the Kanji?

sumnom

I just went and checked out the site. I see that in does indeed have kanji.

hamiltonjh

when you said "tough to read" i thought you meant WITH the Kana or Hiragana. ASSumed you meant the other way around. gomennasai.

satootoko

Welcome to the forum John.

As you probably know, the EBay name of your friend who runs that site is Ralefave. I've done business with him (very satisfactorily) a few times, but not too much, since I prefer raw coins. My primary interest is modern Japanese coinage (Meiji to Heisei), but I dabble in the Tokugawa era stuff-nothing older.

There are at least three other forum members residing in Japan, two of them Americans. The one Japanese member I have met is heavily into US coins, and admits he isn't very knowledgeable about the Japanese material.

BTW the 2004 JNDA catalog was released last week. I should have mine within the next few days. On my recent trip to Japan I found the dealers relying heavily on the JNDA published prices, which are frequently much higher than Krause, especially in the higher grades.

OT - My wife is from Koriyama in Fukushima-ken, which is toward the southern end of the Tohoku region, and the dialect there is perfectly understandable to folks from Tokyo, but as you move north it does get much thicker. She and her sisters had no dialect-related problems when they visited Nagano, but during one trip to the south end of Kyushu a few years ago we were the first tourists to board a sightseeing bus, and my wife couldn't even follow the conversation between the guide and the driver!

Last month I visited World Coins in the Hammatsucho section of Tokyo, and also attended the Osaka Coin Show, where I picked up a few goodies. (A report on that trip, with pictures, is being completed, probably for the public forum with a link here.)

hamiltonjh

Hi satootoko.
OT: My wife has commented that sometimes she cant keep up with conversations when we're in Aomori-shi or smaller communities when we're out and about exploring. I certaintly cant. I can understand her (if she doenst talk to fast) most of the time, but I'm still learning, and I guess will ALWAYS be.

You guys know alot more about Japanese coins than I do. I asked Naoko about the period coins you guys are talking about and have shown her pictures. I knew a little about the periods, but she's explained more to me which is pretty cool.

Yes, I knew his selling handle. I'm glad you've done good business with Roy in the past. There are collectors on base, and once a month or so, they have a coin show. It's not usually a very good turn out, and I seem to always be working when these go on, but I make it there time to time. There is one 6 December I'm gonna try to get to.

Keep up the collecting and let me know if I can help. I dont know how, but....I'll try.

Stork

Is that a group at Misawa that meets there or somewhere else (i.e. somewhere closer to Yokosuka she says hopefully )?

As far as I can tell there isn't much coin collector related activity around Yokosuka...any of the MLCs I've asked look at me funny, though one was kind enough to translate a little out of my JDNA catalog--she looked at me funny too.

I'm still just trying to get organized into forming a Japanese 20th century type set (including commemeratives).

Cathy

SYRACUSIAN

<< <i>she looked at me funny too >>



I know that look : they're smiling,while thinking that not only we're weirdos and nerds, but we probably need some medical help too, in order to stop wasting money for such useless stuff

hamiltonjh

Hi Stork. Yes, it's a gruop of pepole here at Misawa that get together at the recreation center for a flea market/coin show usually 1 Saturday or Sunday a month. The typical comic books, baseball cards, coins and other crafts and stuff. I'm not sure how many people here collect coins (here=Misawa), but the coin show does not have a great turn out, unfortunately. But, it's still fun to go even if there is just 1 table.
If you want to start a club at Yokosuka, put an ad in the base paper or public access channel and ask anyone interested to show up at *wherever* so you can press forward.
It would be cool if our bases were closer together (like you guys and Yokota) so there could be MORE people involved in the hobby.

shirohniichan

Do Marines collect coins, too?

hamiltonjh

hmmmm...good question.
dont get me started on "Marines" jokes.

Anyone at Sasebo or Iwakuni on here?

shirohniichan

I was never in the Marines, but Iwakuni was the closest US military base to Hiroshima when I lived there. I wonder if I missed out on the chance to meet more collectors.

hamiltonjh

shirohniichan, anata wa nihon-gin desuka?

Askari

Welcome to the forum, JH!

hamiltonjh

Thanx Askari.
Where are you from?

SYRACUSIAN

He's from Texas hamiltonjh, but he won't admit it in public. I sympathise with him

sumnom

Janai no?

hamiltonjh

haha....Texas.....I understand.

everyone has to be from somewhere.

satootoko

And Texas is a wonderful place to be from, as far from as you can get

shirohniichan

<< <i>shirohniichan, anata wa nihon-gin desuka? >>



Na, I'm just Nikkeijin. I'm as Japanese as apple pie.

sumnom

Na, I'm just Nikkeijin.

You're a stock market person?

Askari

Always the folks from the wee states dissin' on Texas! Yep, I live in Arlington, which is midway between Fort Worth and Dallas. I'm actually an Alabaman by birth. I grew up an Air Force brat and while my dad was flying C-124s everywhere -- including Japan -- we stayed in my birthplace, Mobile. When he stopped flying, it seems the rest of us started!

shirohniichan

<< <i>Na, I'm just Nikkeijin.

You're a stock market person? >>



I'm not an Indexjin, just a Nikkeijin.

Japanese Americans in Japan oftentimes confuse the natives by saying, "Watakushi wa Sansei desu." Unless they know by the context that you're Japanese American, that's like saying, "I'm the Third" (as in James III).

sumnom

Shiroh III!

MSD61

Nihongo ga chotto wakarimasu......

Askari

Ah, we're enticing the lurkers out of the woodwork!! Welcome to the fray, MSD61!

MSD61

Thanks! Most of the time you will find me in the U.S. coin forum. But I have some lovely coins from all over

shirohniichan

<< <i>Thanks! Most of the time you will find me in the U.S. coin forum. But I have some lovely coins from all over >>



Chotto misete kureru?