Story time! My 1881 Indian cent and why it resides in my box of 20.
2windy2fish
Posts: 1,108 ✭✭✭✭✭
There were several forumites that thought this coin should be replaced in my box of 20…
Perhaps 8-10 years ago i stumbled upon an ebay seller that lives in Belgium. He sold 3 or 4 Indians out of a set every couple of weeks. He started with 09S and worked backwards. I found his listings when he was on 1904 or so.
His photography was very strange, the perimeter of the photo was kinda fuzzy and the exposure quite dark. So much so that at first i thought the coins had to be counterfeit/fake. I studied the pics closely and decided to take a chance. Won the first 3 and upon receiving them they all looked like the coin pictured above! Okay, game on, after continuing on i kept winning the coins at silly low prices ( clearly other bidders shared my initial reservations).
As we got back towards the early 80s i messaged him and asked if i could buy the coins outright at a much higher price than he was getting on Ebay, he said no he really wanted to auction the coins…🤷♂️ Asked if the 1877 was in the set and he replied that it was missing. I won nearly every coin and was selling them at shows raw, this was before i really knew how to maximize profit…i know, i know…
Now we are at 1866 or so and i asked him if the 2 1858s, 1857 and 1856 were there and he confirmed that they were!😳 So, i messaged him back and he sent me a photo and the 56 looked like an AU coin. I replied and told him the coin was worth roughly 10K or more and that he would surely not get that how he was selling the coins, i proposed sending it to me and i would find someone to grade the coin and either buy the coin at a fair price or sell it for him and take a small percentage…Once again he said thanks but no thanks…Life goes on…
Next go around i win the 1861,2,3 and 4 CN coins, a few days later he messaged me and says Daryl, i included the 1856 with your order, thank you for helping me with this, do what you need to do and when it sells you can have 20%. All along he has been placing the coins in a flimsy plastic holder then taping that to a piece of card stock and send with tracking and no signature required…the coins all arrived ok , but once in awhile one would escape and be loose in the envelope…Had i known he was going to send the 1856 i would have instructed him how to in a more safe/secure fashion..
I replied immediately and asked how he sent the coins and he of course said the same way i have been…
Envelope arrives the 4 CN indians are there and no 1856, 😳There is a small hole in the corner of the envelope where the coin has slipped through..does not look at all like it was tampered with just kinda fuzzy and worn, i am absolutely devastated because not only is the 1856 gone but what the heck am i gonna tell this man? He will certainly think i am up to no good! I messaged him absolutely shaking and explain what happened…
I also chased down my mail carrier and helped him search his delivery truck, and also went immediately to my local post office and explained the story to the postmaster and she was actually fairly helpful and said she would try but really thought there was little chance of finding it. I even took a Redbook with me and showed her what the coin looked like…Of course we never found the coin, it’s likely sitting in some sorting machine in NY or perhaps someone found it along the way…
He replied the next day and basically said “such is life…perhaps it just wasn’t meant to be” he could not have been any nicer about the whole ordeal…
I kept the 1881 and eventually had it holdered as a very bittersweet reminder.
Comments
Now that is a story for the ages! Holy c*** Batman!!
It was also worth waiting for, and that saying something considering you told me you'd tell me the story almost exactly a month ago!
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Yeah, I think I'd keep that one too.
“We are only their care-takers,” he posed, “if we take good care of them, then centuries from now they may still be here … ”
Todd - BHNC #242
Hell of a story!
Dang! So sad that 1856 went missing.
A great example of how a coin’s history can make it more meaningful and enjoyable.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Great story and coin. When Ebay 1st came around I originally joined it to sell my hunting knives. Did so, but along the way started buying/selling coins. I ran across a seller from France who's photos were the worst, coins were so bright you couldn't hardly see the features, but I could tell they were higher quality than he was selling them for. So I bought a couple of IHC's. They were far superior to the price he was asking. I had a cheap camera at the time and was not much better at photography than he was but not quite as bad. Long story short. I ended up buying 30-40 IHC's from him over a year and all AU+ coins. I told him early on that he should post better photos, but he never did.
Again, great story and thanks for sharing.
Jim
When a man who is honestly mistaken hears the truth, he will either quit being mistaken or cease to be honest....Abraham Lincoln
Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.....Mark Twain