The story of the ugly rouble

I took the plunge and became a Society member for several reasons. The coins in my very small collection of Russian coins were scattered and in disarray, with some pretty valuable ones being stuffed in envelopes and subject to being lost. Then I learned from bad EBAY experiences. (Those high ratings don?t necessarily mean much.) And my long-time coin dealer on the East coast recommended NGC for any coin purchase.

My main area of interest is Russian coins dated between 1800 and 1845. No dealers locally in Nebraska have the sort of coins I like.

While some coins are fairly valuable, some are what others would consider just trash. Probably the NGC staff was amazed that I would preserve some of these coins. But I like them for reasons of the history represented.

Now I understand the anxiety involved with the certification process, the dismay of coins being rejected for certification, and the sort of codependent relationship we have with NGC.

As a sort of test, I submitted a 1733 rouble I have owned for about 20 years, the just plain ugliest coin anywhere ? thinking it was a fake and wanting to see what happened. I also submitted a gorgeous rouble of the same time period for which I spent several hundred dollars ? from a reputable guy in CA.

The order is back and a bunch of coins were rejected for various reasons. The gorgeous coin was polished and rejected. The ugly rouble was certified at XF 40. Forever preserved in its ugliness, though it looks better now in a slab. Now I wish I?d sent it to conservation before grading. Oh well.

Service was pretty good for part of the order, though they forgot the imaging and are slow with the rest of the order.

So now I have some organization in the collection and others will be able to know the value. Some coins will go to NCS. Most future purchases will be NGC. The net cost of about $45 per coin is worth it. They are now great to enjoy.