Post your "Epic" coins
Boosibri
Posts: 12,212 ✭✭✭✭✭
adjective
heroic or grand in scale or character.
"his epic journey around the world"
synonyms: ambitious, heroic, grand, arduous, extraordinary, Herculean; More
Could make for a fun thread...
This is the only 8 Escudos of Charles IV in 65 or above (made 65 at both NGC then PCGS), from any mint of any date. How about you, any epic coins?
19
Comments
Super coin!
Nice gold, Brian!
While I hesitate to start this thread off with two darkside coins, my most epic piece is a Mexican 8 Reales.
The Cap & Rays series ran from 1824-1900. Only three coins have been graded better than 66 during the entire series.
The three are 66+ coins. Here is mine:
@Boosibri they don't get much epic'er than that!
Kind regards,
George
Awesome Charles IV Boosibri.
I hope I am not stepping on this thread by posting a medal instead of a true coin, but this is a really strong medal.
Here is a Pope Pius IX 1854 Papal Medal, work of engraver Bianchi. I will let the medal speak the rest for itself, and please understand I take lousy pictures.
Just look at the details on this piece. It is a large medal and I have included a pic of the full obverse next to a Mercury dime for comparison.
Note the detail in this first pic, the lettering for example, compared to the entire medal when shown full size, both obverse and reverse.
Here's an epic weirdo - the only O-Mint die trial that I am aware of, and one of the only Branch Mint die trial pieces in existence:
What is now proved was once only imagined. - William Blake
I don't think I have ever owned an "epic" coin. I will have to put that on the list.
That Pius IX medal is insane !!!
Possibly the only privately available plasters of an accepted coin design? Of course, it was subsequently unaccepted
I want that. Wow.
Lance.
Here's a coin minted under Hannibal (including his elephant):
Then a coin depicting the Colosseum, handed out at the inaugural games:
This coin was minted for and used at the ancient Olympics with the obverse of Zeus modeled after a massive statue which was unfortunately destroyed:
And the father of epic poetry himself, Homer:
Wow... Epic coins/medals....Now I will have to think about this, and likely go into 'deep storage'....I must have one - or two - in my vast holdings...
Cheers, RickO
It's not exactly "epic" for its state of preservation, but it was of historic interest. When Queen Elizabeth I died childless in the early 1600s, the British crown passed to James I who was also the King of Scotland. This combined the two crowns for the first time. Ironically James was the son of Mary Queen Scots whom Elizabeth put death because of Mary’s efforts to take the crown from Elizabeth. Mary’s son won the position that Mary gave her life to achieve.
To honor that James issued this gold coin, "the unite." James tried to combine the two parlements, but that would have wait for another century.
Since this is a US forum, I'll reluctantly play by the rules.
1827 Quarter B-2 Original. Finest of 2 known.
Edited to add that most 1827 B-2's are struck from heavily rusted dies, and have always been recognized as late restrikes. But there are two 1827 B-2's that were struck from fresh, completely unrusted dies. Obviously, they were made long before the typical pieces struck from heavily rusted dies.
Karl Moulton was the first to discover this, and wrote an important article explaining the history of the coins. He also argued that the first issue of B-2's were the first of ANY 1827 Quarters struck. Having read his article and having studied the coins side by side, I am convinced that he is correct.
Is that "epic" enough for you? (:>)
Doggedly collecting coins of the Central American Republic.
Visit the Society of US Pattern Collectors at USPatterns.com.
I'll bite. Huh?
This is the very earliest die state of the Silver Libertas Americana medal, placing it in the first group of 20 silver medals delivered to Franklin and covered with his payment of April 4th, 1783.
Each one of these was presented personally by Benjamin Franklin to his intended recipient. While the King and Queen of France received the only gold medals (presented by Franklin on April 8, 1783), 19 of these earliest of the silver medals were presented personally by Franklin to the most prominent VIPs of the French Court, leaving just one silver medal that Franklin presented to Elias Boudinot as President of the Continental Congress.
I think for the Indian in the foreground, that was a setting sun.
Yes, the Papal Medal is a true work of art , thanks for sharing it here
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
I didn't know about the very early die state of the Libertas Americanas medal. All the pieces I have seen had the die chips on them. Thanks for sharing.
Gold coin that flew on Gemini 4, where Ed White II had the First American walk in space (the second space walk in history).
U.S. Type Set
@SkyMan
I truly never tire of your postings concerning space exploration.................and coins
Thanks
Truly amazing photo...........correct me if I am wrong but were those helmet face shields and space suits made at "David Clark" in Worcester ?
Successful transactions with : MICHAELDIXON, Manorcourtman, Bochiman, bolivarshagnasty, AUandAG, onlyroosies, chumley, Weiss, jdimmick, BAJJERFAN, gene1978, TJM965, Smittys, GRANDAM, JTHawaii, mainejoe, softparade, derryb
Bad transactions with : nobody to date
Only known specimen in mint state at any grading service. PCGS MS65.
I thought long and hard about this and concluded I have no epic coins.
But I enjoyed the thread.
Lance.
I NEED THIS COIN!!! If you ever sell, PLEASE let me know! That is so cool!
Is that space gold so designated on the slab?
Cool.
Closest I got is a Franklin Mint "moon medal" made from a MIX of ....some....silver that went to the moon.
But it's probably as close as SILVER will ever get "todamoon."
Aw that's mean. But I do think silver is silly.
Thank you!
I believe you are correct. I am not exactly sure if it was a name change or not a year or two later, but the Apollo suits were made by ILC Dover.
U.S. Type Set
Congratulations on your Moon medallion.
U.S. Type Set
Here is a coinwith an epic history, the 1848 CAL. quarter eagle. The U.S. Army in California gathered up 230 ounces of gold bullion from various sources. These included mines, prospectors who panned for gold and the custom house in San Francisco.
Lucien Lozier took that bullion in a tea catty from California by ship to Columbia where he boarded another ship that took him to Panama. He crossed Panama by land to the other side where he boarded another ship that took him to Cuba. From there another ship took him to New Orleans. He may have boarded a ship to the east coast from there, but the preferred route was to use the railroad system to Washington, DC. That’s how soldiers were moved from New Orleans to the east coast during the Mexican War.
Overall the trip took him about three and a half months to complete. He left California in late August, 1848 and arrived in Washington, DC during the first week of December. That was quite an epic trip for this little piece of gold.
I'm afraid I have nothing epic in my collection. I guess I'm just an average guy.
Great thread as I enjoy looking at these pieces.
That Hannibal coin, SmEagle1795, posted is over the top, elephant and all,
>
I think it was a tea caddy (also described as a small oyster can), but for anyone wanting an even more detailed account check out Q. David Bowers tome, "A California Gold Rush History." He devotes several pages to the history of the 1848 CAL. quarter eagle.
Of particular interest to me was the likelihood that it was Chief Coin Designer James B. Longacre who added the CAL. designation after it had been suggested by the then Secretary of War. (Longacres's estate had in it three First Strike "Proof" pieces that he had held onto along with a similar First Strike "Proof" 1850 Double Eagle that he had designed and which is now in my own personal collection. Reference "first mint's" post in the below linked thread.)
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/620118/collecting-coins-with-a-story-a-k-a-provenance/p1
So I guess, to be responsive to the OP's post, here is my "epic coin", the details of which are referenced above and set forth in the subject link.
(Of added interest to this thread, the poster "first strike" identified above is Karl Moulton to whom MrEureka (Andy Lustig) also made reference in his post on this same thread crediting Karl Moulton for having determined the attribution for his rare coin.
)
From my readings, the "oyster can" was the container that held the gold from the Customs House.
The only coin I own which could claim "Epic" Status would be my special Eisenhower Dollar acquired at the February 2008 Long Beach Coin Show. Still only 1 of 2 known.
The name is LEE!
That does seem to make sense, but then again the description may simply be referring to how the lid was attached rather than size. In any event, this is the quote from the above referenced writing by Q. David Bower in his "A California Gold Rush History" at page 114:
"Colonel R.B. Masson, Jr., acting governor, shipped the metal ... to the East via ... Loeser, who carried it in a small oyster can, or more elegantly, a tea caddy."
Thereafter an original source is quoted
".... Captain Folsom bought an oyster-can full at $10 the ounce ..." and the narrative goes on to describe transport by ship.