Thank you Zohar and the origins of WishView

Today, while chatting online with a dealer friend about various issues, he suddenly showed me a true gem example of the essential crown for every self respecting Greek collector, the 1833 5 drs, the first (modern) Greek crown , without mint marks, struck in Munich.

I had observed that the past two years, an unusual number of high grade examples of this crown had appeared in the market, in numerical grades ranging from high AUs to even MS65 grades (although the vast majority was in between the two and up to 63) and just before the virus stopped the viewing of the lots of a local auctioneer (who continued his auction’s online with no viewing at all) I’ve had the chance to see an MS64 and two MS65s, all in NGC holders, that were among the ugliest that I had ever seen, doctored, dipped or even harshly cleaned and yet instead of being in AU details (harshly or not) cleaned holders, they were graded MS65. Thé harshly cleaned in particular had an opening of 20-25% less than a similar example would have normally had in that particular auction, and at first no one bid on it, but in the end, some poor fellow got it at the starting price. And this, during a very hungry period from collectors who did not hesitate to rely on pics alone, a very risky tactic when buying high end coins.But the strong market in the US is noticed in Europe too, especially for top or near topo grades.

The other ones I’ve only seen them online and some choice BU examples in shops and in hand too: they were all messed with.

As such, the pop reports give an entirely different image of the true gems that are all locked up in collections whose owners are unwilling to sell them and I’m referring now in particular to the NGC pop reports and not the ones by PCGS, especially everything added after 2006-2007 and maybe one or two at PCGS too.

Anyway, my friend, (not the one whose coins were stolen), whom I had visited the previous day to get something that he had received at Coinex by a friend in the US, showed me the TrueView of a coin that he had just purchased 39 mins ago. As soon as I saw it, I went to his website, making the purchase without paying straight away and I immediately jumped in the car to go see it in hand.

I was so stressed after missing so many other coins by this same dealer, because someone else had gotten to them first, that I missed the right exit, kept going on and had to return in a fast peripheral road of Athens.

1833, Greece 5 drachmai, PCGS MS 65, KM 20 pop 5, pop higher 2

During the 15 minute drive from my house to his shop, he also posted it on Facebook, but the coin appeared sold on his website because I , for once, had the chance to do it. He had already 4-5 serious requests, but the coin was gone! 😅

Before leaving , I’ve sent this picture to Zohar, whose opinion on crowns is essential, in other words his positive reply would have confirmed what my gut was already telling me but an eventual negative reply would make me requestion the entire thing. It is not only that they don’t come cheap, but also the very small number of such coins with original skin, luster, eye appeal, untouched, , compared to other identical and even higher numerical grades. But this one had it all. So I was sooooooo happy that Zohar had given it a big thumb of approval before I left. 😋

It will be the third such example that I buy for my collection, the first being a PCGS MS63+ now, that used to be an NGC old holder MS63 , too original and nice with only a light scratch below the truncation reducing it to 63(+), that I’ve upgraded with an NGC MS66 in early 2008, but with less eye appeal than the orevious one and only a gem at arm’s length as my agent had very well put it back then, a good 64 otherwise with strong luster.

I still have images of the previous two examples (within a span of 20 years), which I will post here so that you too can make the comparison.

First the ex NGC MS63, now in a PCGS MS63+ holder, imaged here by our friend Phil A, the head of PCGS’ TrueView and for years the first and and only photographer of PCGS’ TrueView section, which in many coins should have been called WishView.

In most superbly colored coins, the colors are there, but the saturation is so well done in the editing phase, that the coin in hand has little to do with the WishView. But not in this one above that has no colors, but just original skin , true patina and wonderful underlying luster, it was the real deal.

1833 5 drs (ex NGC MS63) PCGS MS 63+

This first coin was imaged just before he got the TrueView job that was first announced on a sunny Saturday in December 2004 in Athens, when Phil had just finished imaging my entire collection after a horrible 6 month period that he had spent in a bum freaking nowhere place in Germany as a part time English teacher in Berlitz. This was a change of plans! If I hadn’t invited him to Athens, all expenses paid from Germany and more, he would have been back to Canada. But then, he didn’t need much convincing to head straight to Newport Beach instead!

Phil was and is a graphic artist by trade but with an incredible talent in numismatic photography and the portfolio that he had created by imaging every single coin in my collection probably gave him the opportunity to make his first portfolio and with it, it is no wonder that he got the job hands down. All this with a $50 camera with a mini zoom that was activated by a push button, ie the lens was moving a few mm further aepway. No smartphones back then, but I did help him create his all important set up , by providing him with two architectural lights from my office and an empty house in a suburb by the sea,but that he must have had little time to enjoy given his amount of work. Yet, life pays you back in mysterious ways, other than the return ticket to Germany, the $1 fee per coin (edited too) the free stay with a nice view and a few other perks.

That first coin, was also featured in a special collage that Phil had made me of my entire 1833 set, from the copper one lepton to the gold 20 drachmai, the only date in the lifespan of King Otto with a full range of values, from the tiniest copper coin , through the silver to the elusive gold coin, in MS63 below.

And below is the one that replaced it and was sold circa 2016-2017 without a crown of that date up until now.

As for the new one,

,

it is now LOCKED UP IN HERE: