One of my dream coins.

ajaan

N.Z.

wybrit

It is a nice coin. I know that it's a dream for some others here as well.

lordmarcovan

I knew it was gonna be a Waitangi before I clicked the link. I like the George portrait but don't care much for the reverse. Nevertheless, I would never turn down a Waitangi- that's one of those quintessential Darkside coins like the Gothic crown.

Something about that one makes me uneasy. Is it just me, or does that just look too good to be true somehow?

wybrit

Something about that one makes me uneasy. Is it just me, or does that just look too good to be true somehow?

I agree. Along with British rarities, is this simply a restrike? The seller's rep is pretty good, but not a lot of coin sales in my perusal of his feedback.

lordmarcovan

It might be on the up-and-up, but there's enough suspicious Litesider in me that I would wanna see that thing in major third-party plastic before bidding.

wybrit

I agree with you on that. Plastic isn't my favorite thing, but it would provide a few warm fuzzies in this case.

ajaan

I thought the same thing Rob. The obverse looks too good to be true, but with those rim nicks . . . I think it's real but like you said, I would want it to certified before I bought one.

SYRACUSIAN

At this price, certification is a no brainer. So, I tend to agree that something might be wrong. Isn't this shiroh's dream coin too?

FilamCoins

I picked up one last year from a U.S. dealer. It sits in a PF62 ICG holder. It is somewhat dull and beat up, but I was determined to start my date set with the key. I would love to see this replaced with a blazing gem! I handled a beauty once in Christchurch, but the dealer was asking $8k and I wasn't prepared to pay that. While in NZ I was interested to learn that many of the best NZ coins are found in the U.S. because U.S. serviceman brought them home during and after WWII. Apparently there were not many numismatists in NZ at the time, and with the economy still in the developing stage, most people could not afford to set aside coins for collections.

lordmarcovan

Y'know, it might just be the design on those... the portraiture just happens to look like so many of those fantasy "pattern" pieces, I guess.

Had he not mentioned it was slabbed, FilamCoins' example below would've made me even more leery than the one in the eBay auction, and it's real. So I guess it's just a gut reaction since I am not used to seeing these.

Cruzi

New Zealand like Australia did indeed have few numismatists and most of the collectable coins from both countries ended up in the US, only exception is Australian Gold.

It was not until the change to decimal currency that interest in collecting started within both countries. In Australia's case it continued from strength to strength, in NZ's case there is still not enough Kiwi's to have a strong domestic market.

The obverse of the 1935 Crown is the same as the 1934/5 Florin in Australia and was designed by Percy Metcalfe, the bloke responsible for Irish coins.

These are not as scarce as some coins, there is nearly always one or two for sale, but as pointed out by others, they are the premier Kiwi coin.

lordmarcovan

<< <i>These are not as scarce as some coins >>



Like what, 1804 USA dollars? Dang, weren't there only thirty-some struck?

(Or wait...maybe I'm thinking of the 1943 Irish florin...)

Cruzi

Its a bit like the 1930 penny in Australia, these are by no means our scarcest coin but are the most well known.

The same applies to the 35 Crown, there are quite a few coins harder to obtain but do not have the same profile.

cosmicdebris

$3,450 ain't that bad for a dream coin go for it.

FilamCoins

Cruzi is correct. Although the Waitangi Crown has by far the lowest mintage of any NZ predecimal coin at 1,128 (764 business strikes and 364 proofs), there are a few coins that are even more illusive in mint state. For example, the 1936 Florin with a mintage of 150,000. I've talked to NZ specialists who have NEVER seen an uncirculated one. There are 2-3 other key dates and a few varieties that are very tough as well. Other than that, a pretty easy series to complete in very choice condition. Since most of the best coins left NZ shores long ago, prices in NZ are actually much higher than in other countries (demand is also higher in NZ of course). Work with Canadian, U.S. and U.K. dealers to get the best value and quality.

coinkat

Interesting thread... I had 2 interesting Australian Melbourne Commems. One I kept and sent to NGC and it came back 63. The other had a strong PL surface and I thought it could be a proof. After carefully looking at it, the rims, quality of the strike and other factors, I decided to sell that one. The only reason I bring this up is because of the concern that this example has a look to it that has made people feel alittle uneasy. This is hard to say from just looking at the scan, but that portrait of George V is the way a strong PL will look. I tend to think that it is okay, but the bigger problem is what do the surfaces of the coin REALLY look like? Hairlines? Past cleaning that has left an unnatural look to the coin, however, if it is titled just right it looks great. I have to agree that this is one that needs to be in plastic to be an agressive bidder without actually seeing the coin first. My thoughts from the cheap seats.

Cruzi

There is a specimen strike of the 34/35 florin coincat along with the proof strikes, all ended up in the US ( think the US dealers ordered them ).

Slightly OT, the Australian 34/35 florin was second choice, they originally applied to make a sovereign, the RM denied this request.

rhound1977

Nice dream coin, I recall passing it over as an addition to my British sets, cost prohibitive, but if I were to buy I would
either want it slabbed or a guarantee to buy back if authenticity was a question from a TPG...

mainline13

Had he not mentioned it was slabbed, FilamCoins' example below would've made me even more leery than the one in the eBay auction, and it's real.

Come on, Rob, you've been on these boards long enough. Even though a previous post is below when you are typing your reply, it ends up above in the thread.

Or is it that you do so much posting, and I'm primarily just a reader?




So I guess it's just a gut reaction since I am not used to seeing these.

Who is?

lordmarcovan

You should know that I hang from the ceiling like a bat, and read the screen upside-down.

FilamCoins

$4,000 ... Not bad!

shirohniichan

One of these days I'm going to have to get a Waitangi (preferably a business strike) for my George V crown collection. I prefer the E.B. MacKennal portrait to Percy Metcalf's, though. The best looking (and one of the most affordable) commonwealth crowns of George V is the 1936 Canada dollar.

Does anyone have a business strike Waitangi crown for sale in AU? How much do they go for these days? No, I'm not interested in the 1977 version.