Second opinion wanted

mrpotatoheadd

I was looking up some coins this afternoon and came to this one:



The value I found for the coin was rather... surprising, so I'd be interested in getting more input- let me know what you think this thing is, and what it's worth. TIA.

Sapyx

Algeria, Constantine mint, looks like a 1 budju, year AH 1247 (= 1831/2). KM 83, CV $150 in Fine.

Even though they're normally of shoddy workmanship, low weight and poor quality silver, Algerian coins dated after 1830 are scarce and valuable because that's when the French began their conquest of the country. These coins were issued by the Algerian defenders "on the run".

We should probably make sure it's not simply a fractional budju with an uncatalogued date. What's the weight and/or diameter? Is it the same size as the pic for KM 83?

mrpotatoheadd

<< <i>Algeria, Constantine mint, looks like a 1 budju, year AH 1247 (= 1831/2). KM 83, CV $150 in Fine. >>

That's the one I came up with.


<< <i>We should probably make sure it's not simply a fractional budju with an uncatalogued date. What's the weight and/or diameter? Is it the same size as the pic for KM 83? >>

The diameter matches the picture in the catalog- I don't have a scale to get a weight.

A question regarding grading... having had little experience with hammered coinage, I'm not sure how to best evaluate this type of coin. This particular item shows little detail in some areas (basically on opposite sides of the coin from each other at 2/10:00 and at 6:00), but in the areas where the design is best struck (mainly in the center of the coin), it appears well defined, with not a lot of flatness from wear. How would one grade something like this? Being hammered, I'd expect that there might be some areas with less than ideal definition- does this have an effect on the proper grade?

mrpotatoheadd

Ok... I'm back with a weight- 8.5 grams, which appears to be in the correct range for KM83.