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Fun day at Ye Olde Coin Shoppe (lg cnt, buff, 2 busties)
coinpictures
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Every shop has its "counter rats"... that corps of regulars that drop in several times a week just to see if there's anything new. You know, people in dire need of getting a life. 
I am one of these pathetic individuals.
Well, yesterday I dropped in, and the owner said that he had just bought "a huge deal" but he wasn't about to show any of the material as he hadn't had a chance to go through it in detail. Well, of course any self-respecting counter rat would not let it lie... so about a half hour later he was showing me (and one of the other other rodents who happened to come in) some of the pieces. The best stuff will be going in to PCGS or NGC. The gold had some very nice skin, and there were some very attractive commems, specifically an Isabella, an Oregon Trail (great lustre!) and a Hawaii. The two pieces that really caught my eye (yet will never be able to afford) were a pair of 20-cent proofs, one being so incredibly original, it was amazing. Dark, almost black toning, but underneath it was some lovely color as you cartwheeled the coin.
All of these coins were brought in by a single collector (the same one that had sold that 1873 seated dollar proof I showed here earlier this year). All the coins have been in storage for 10-15 years, and are either loose in old paper envelopes or in cellophane and then in paper envelopes. Amazingly fun stuff to "ooh" and "ahh" over (yeah, I know it's "junk" for some of the people who regularly traffic in 5- and 6-figure coins, but some of us will never be able to travel in those circles...).
Well, the dealer let us each "reserve" a few pieces that he would work on overnight and have priced for us today. So at 9:30am this morning I was back again, going through coins and deciding which ones to buy.
I ended up with the 5 pieces below (6 actually... there was an 1879-S Morgn with PL surfaces that I simply could not photograph to my liking).
Any comments with respect to grade or variety appreciated.
Columbian Exposition Elongated Nickel (and dogtag?). This one is just plain weird. Most of the Columbian Exposition elongated nickels I've seen have been liberty nickels, whereas this one is a shield nickel. It also appears that they positioned the piece so that the shield portion of the nickel would be berfectly aligned. Then there's the matter of the stamped information. The date that is stamped is 1888... which predates when the elongated nickel would have been created! Any clue what this is? I thought that it might be some modern defacement similar to what you sometimes see Civil War Re-enactors do... but I would think this would have zero appeal from that perspective... the dating is all wrong.
No clue what it actually is or what it's worth. I simply had to buy it for the bizarro factor alone.
Large Cent, 1838. Nicer grade than what we usually see out here in the sticks. Nice color too.
Buffalo Nickel, 1913-T1. Love the color and lustre! Just had to have it...
And lastly, a pair of pieces that I probably overpaid for, but they just don't come around here very often. You go into any dealer's shop in downstate Illinois, and you're likely to find 2-3 bust half dimes or dimes and maybe 3-10 bust halves. Occasionally a bust dollar or 2. Nobody... and I mean NOBODY has bust quarters though. If any dealer has 1, it's a rare occurrence. Well, I bought 2 of them today.
1818 Bust Quarter. No clue which Browning number it is. EF details (in my opinion), but it has been cleaned. Nice clashed die though (it's hard to see in these pics, but right below the ear are the vertical lines of the shield from the reverse). The lighting of these pics has really accentuated the scratches... they are nowhere as apparent in hand.
1807 Bust Quarter. Browning 2? It has the closer spacing between stars 1 and 2 as well as the signature die crack on the reverse. It has that "long stored in an old paper envelope" blue color that you frequently see. I assume that the TPGS would bodybag because of it? Any suggestions?
I am one of these pathetic individuals.Well, yesterday I dropped in, and the owner said that he had just bought "a huge deal" but he wasn't about to show any of the material as he hadn't had a chance to go through it in detail. Well, of course any self-respecting counter rat would not let it lie... so about a half hour later he was showing me (and one of the other other rodents who happened to come in) some of the pieces. The best stuff will be going in to PCGS or NGC. The gold had some very nice skin, and there were some very attractive commems, specifically an Isabella, an Oregon Trail (great lustre!) and a Hawaii. The two pieces that really caught my eye (yet will never be able to afford) were a pair of 20-cent proofs, one being so incredibly original, it was amazing. Dark, almost black toning, but underneath it was some lovely color as you cartwheeled the coin.
All of these coins were brought in by a single collector (the same one that had sold that 1873 seated dollar proof I showed here earlier this year). All the coins have been in storage for 10-15 years, and are either loose in old paper envelopes or in cellophane and then in paper envelopes. Amazingly fun stuff to "ooh" and "ahh" over (yeah, I know it's "junk" for some of the people who regularly traffic in 5- and 6-figure coins, but some of us will never be able to travel in those circles...).
Well, the dealer let us each "reserve" a few pieces that he would work on overnight and have priced for us today. So at 9:30am this morning I was back again, going through coins and deciding which ones to buy.
I ended up with the 5 pieces below (6 actually... there was an 1879-S Morgn with PL surfaces that I simply could not photograph to my liking).
Any comments with respect to grade or variety appreciated.
Columbian Exposition Elongated Nickel (and dogtag?). This one is just plain weird. Most of the Columbian Exposition elongated nickels I've seen have been liberty nickels, whereas this one is a shield nickel. It also appears that they positioned the piece so that the shield portion of the nickel would be berfectly aligned. Then there's the matter of the stamped information. The date that is stamped is 1888... which predates when the elongated nickel would have been created! Any clue what this is? I thought that it might be some modern defacement similar to what you sometimes see Civil War Re-enactors do... but I would think this would have zero appeal from that perspective... the dating is all wrong.
No clue what it actually is or what it's worth. I simply had to buy it for the bizarro factor alone.
Large Cent, 1838. Nicer grade than what we usually see out here in the sticks. Nice color too.
Buffalo Nickel, 1913-T1. Love the color and lustre! Just had to have it...
And lastly, a pair of pieces that I probably overpaid for, but they just don't come around here very often. You go into any dealer's shop in downstate Illinois, and you're likely to find 2-3 bust half dimes or dimes and maybe 3-10 bust halves. Occasionally a bust dollar or 2. Nobody... and I mean NOBODY has bust quarters though. If any dealer has 1, it's a rare occurrence. Well, I bought 2 of them today.
1818 Bust Quarter. No clue which Browning number it is. EF details (in my opinion), but it has been cleaned. Nice clashed die though (it's hard to see in these pics, but right below the ear are the vertical lines of the shield from the reverse). The lighting of these pics has really accentuated the scratches... they are nowhere as apparent in hand.
1807 Bust Quarter. Browning 2? It has the closer spacing between stars 1 and 2 as well as the signature die crack on the reverse. It has that "long stored in an old paper envelope" blue color that you frequently see. I assume that the TPGS would bodybag because of it? Any suggestions?
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Love the cent and nickel.
As for the date stamped on the back, who knows. Maybe it was the year he was born. Maybe the year he died.
Very interesting piece. It would look really nice in my Columbian elongate collection.
I love that Columbian Expo coin that I will promptley bid against Tmot if you want to sell it
Even if these are rarely seen at the local shop, they are around in trouble free condition at regional shows or from mail order dealers.
I never get a good enough deal on a questionable coin. I nearly always regret buying it down the road. At best I break even.
The Buff nickel shows some signs of "rubbing" imo on Indian nostril and cheek and hair, on buff's central belly. The rim shows some cuts and not full luster. From that I'd say not gem nor really choice. I'd peg the coin in the AU58 to 63 range. Assessing luster and rub from a photo is difficult though. An attractive collectible piece. But for me, what I paid determines how much I like something...as harsh as that sounds.
Can't see the copper coins clearly enough. The Expo elongate is interesting. I've never owned one.
roadrunner
coinpage.com
<< <i>I'm not sure what the heck that Columbian elongate is. I question if it really is a shield nickel. The stars across the horizontal lines on the shield are not normal. The shield nickel doesn't have those. The leaves also seem to be pointing up rather than down as on the shield nickel. It certainly is possible that it's foreign or a token. But I do doubt that it is a shield nickel. >>
Given the stars and bars motif, I wonder if it's a Civil War or political token?
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<< <i>The design on the elongate looks like a confederate half reverse. No idea why it's engraved 1888 when it was presumably made in 1893. Perhaps it was a guy bidding for elongate techniques for the fair? >>
The 13 stars on the field would jive with it being a confederate piece of some sort... hmm...
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U.S. Revenue Stamps
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Nice Buff! I'd guess 65, perhaps 66 due to great color.