Anyone interested in strictly US-PI swaps?
IloiloKano
Posts: 1,051
If so, I can post information (and pics) on numerous dates, denominations and grades (both cleaned and uncleaned), which I wish to swap for others in order to upgrade my own collection.
edited to explain...
US-PI coinage are coins minted for the Philippine Islands while under US Administration. The pre-Commonwealth era was from 1898 to 1935, and the US began minting coins depicting the US Arms with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and the date on the reverse, with the obverse being either a seated young Filipino man with hammer and anvil having the volcano Mt Mayon in the distance, or a young Filipina girl standing and holding a hammer over the anvil, also with Mt. Mayon in the distance. The obverses also included the Spanish word for the Philippines (FILIPINAS) along with the denomination in either Centavos or Pesos. In 1936 the Philippines became a Commonwealth under US Administration, and the Arms of the US on the reverse was replaced by the Arms of the Commonwealth.
Even today, US-PI collectors disagree over which is the obverse and which is the reverse, so my description is based upon what I believe is the case.
This is the only US coinage ever minted that was bi-lingual and issued in a denomination other than Dollars and Cents. The exchange rate was fixed for the entire period from 1903-1945 at 2 Pesos for 1 Dollar, even though from 1903 to 1906 the Filipino pesos contained (slightly more?) silver than the US Dollar. In 1906 silver prices rose so quickly that the coinage was being melted for silver content, so the 1906 Peso was recalled, creating an extreme rarity of perhaps less than 200 coins now extant, though some say less than 100.
In 1907, the crowns and minors were reduced in size. Both crowns and minors were also reduced in finess, the Pesos to 80% silver and the minors to 75% silver, which made for a much harder alloy. As a result, weak strikes are common, and many coins exhibit a cupping effect, perhaps caused when dies came together under greater pressure in order to try to achieve more detailed striking. Worn and rusty dies were also regularly used, the worn dies being the result of both the harder alloy and the attempt to use them much longer than similar dies state-side would be used. The rusty dies were from storage in the extremely hot and humid climate in Manila.
This coinage is also the only source for an example minted by the US Mint at Manila, for those who collecting coins from all US Mints. The US mint at Manila was destroyed by Japanese bombers in WW2 and rebuilt after the war, but by that time the Philippines had become an independent nation, as was promised by the US after the Spanish were defeated and the US took possession of previous Spanish territories in 1898, (Spanish-American War), including the Philippine Islands, Puerto Rico and Guam.
Most forum member collecting this coinage frequent the World and Ancient Coins Forum, as that is generally an extremely civil lot, and since many in the US Coins Forum won't consider these to be US Coins (the words "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" don't seem to be convincing enough to them). Since collectors of Canadian coinage have taken the term GraySiders, I suppose we US-PI collectors are MuttSiders or Step-LightSiders; however, DarkSiders accept us without question. As I said, they are a civil lot.
PCGS has provided a lot of information regarding collecting this coinage, which I believe is fascinating. Below are links to such descriptions.
Philippines Half Centavo, Circulation Strikes (1903-1904)
Philippines Centavo, Circulation Strikes (1903-1944)
Philippines Five Centavos, Circulation Strikes (1903-1945)
Philippines Ten Centavos, Circulation Strikes (1903-1945)
Philippines Twenty Centavos, Circulation Strikes (1903-1945)
Philippines Fifty Centavos, Circulation Strikes (1903-1945)
Philippines One Peso, Circulation Strikes (1903-1912)
edited to explain...
US-PI coinage are coins minted for the Philippine Islands while under US Administration. The pre-Commonwealth era was from 1898 to 1935, and the US began minting coins depicting the US Arms with UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and the date on the reverse, with the obverse being either a seated young Filipino man with hammer and anvil having the volcano Mt Mayon in the distance, or a young Filipina girl standing and holding a hammer over the anvil, also with Mt. Mayon in the distance. The obverses also included the Spanish word for the Philippines (FILIPINAS) along with the denomination in either Centavos or Pesos. In 1936 the Philippines became a Commonwealth under US Administration, and the Arms of the US on the reverse was replaced by the Arms of the Commonwealth.
Even today, US-PI collectors disagree over which is the obverse and which is the reverse, so my description is based upon what I believe is the case.
This is the only US coinage ever minted that was bi-lingual and issued in a denomination other than Dollars and Cents. The exchange rate was fixed for the entire period from 1903-1945 at 2 Pesos for 1 Dollar, even though from 1903 to 1906 the Filipino pesos contained (slightly more?) silver than the US Dollar. In 1906 silver prices rose so quickly that the coinage was being melted for silver content, so the 1906 Peso was recalled, creating an extreme rarity of perhaps less than 200 coins now extant, though some say less than 100.
In 1907, the crowns and minors were reduced in size. Both crowns and minors were also reduced in finess, the Pesos to 80% silver and the minors to 75% silver, which made for a much harder alloy. As a result, weak strikes are common, and many coins exhibit a cupping effect, perhaps caused when dies came together under greater pressure in order to try to achieve more detailed striking. Worn and rusty dies were also regularly used, the worn dies being the result of both the harder alloy and the attempt to use them much longer than similar dies state-side would be used. The rusty dies were from storage in the extremely hot and humid climate in Manila.
This coinage is also the only source for an example minted by the US Mint at Manila, for those who collecting coins from all US Mints. The US mint at Manila was destroyed by Japanese bombers in WW2 and rebuilt after the war, but by that time the Philippines had become an independent nation, as was promised by the US after the Spanish were defeated and the US took possession of previous Spanish territories in 1898, (Spanish-American War), including the Philippine Islands, Puerto Rico and Guam.
Most forum member collecting this coinage frequent the World and Ancient Coins Forum, as that is generally an extremely civil lot, and since many in the US Coins Forum won't consider these to be US Coins (the words "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" don't seem to be convincing enough to them). Since collectors of Canadian coinage have taken the term GraySiders, I suppose we US-PI collectors are MuttSiders or Step-LightSiders; however, DarkSiders accept us without question. As I said, they are a civil lot.
PCGS has provided a lot of information regarding collecting this coinage, which I believe is fascinating. Below are links to such descriptions.
Philippines Half Centavo, Circulation Strikes (1903-1904)
Philippines Centavo, Circulation Strikes (1903-1944)
Philippines Five Centavos, Circulation Strikes (1903-1945)
Philippines Ten Centavos, Circulation Strikes (1903-1945)
Philippines Twenty Centavos, Circulation Strikes (1903-1945)
Philippines Fifty Centavos, Circulation Strikes (1903-1945)
Philippines One Peso, Circulation Strikes (1903-1912)
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Comments
==Looking for pre WW2 Commems in PCGS Rattler holders, 1851-O Three Cent Silvers in all grades
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I'd trade it, but I have no clue as to its value (other than it was equivalent to a US dime) nor its grade.
I was sort of hoping there might be a couple such collectors posting here, since this particular forum does not explicitly exclude them in the title, and the concept of swapping appears to be fun. I'll probably gather the remnants of my US collection and try to participate with them.