coinsandmedals

your questions r not easy to answer....whether going to be positive or negative for the hobby?...its prob going to be determined on the character of the participants, id assume the people drawn to it will gradually segregate into two camps, collectors n dealers....i am aware that the social media platforms have generated great interest in the selling n buying aspects of the hobby/business...my son who collects has quit selling his duplicates on ebay n almost entirely sells on the social media platforms now to an eager audience...on the flip side he has been able to also find some coins for his collection thru the platforms that were not available on ebay etc....so it has benefited him both as a seller n as a collector....

They definitely seem decently big. I'm not sure how big but big.

I'm still seeing a lot of dedicated websites and I've seen a trend towards dealers making their own sites to leave eBay. I buy a lot of my currency from a company that developed their their  own app that I have on my phone that can give me push notifications when they run a "10% off your whole order" sale. So I'd say it's a mixed bag.

Oh yes, my wife often jokes about me getting a “big boy” job. I can’t complain as I often teased her while she was working on her graduate degree. 
It seems my path was a bit different than yours. I was torn between med school and Ph.D. programs my senior year. I was fortunate enough to be extended multiple offers from both med schools and Ph.D. programs, but I didn’t have a solid idea for what I wanted to do. I eventually decided to pursue a master's degree to continue my research, which I soon found was my real passion. Fast forward a few more years, and I’ve nearly finished my Ph.D. with no regrets. 
The only holdup, for the time being, is my inability to bring older participants into my lab due to COVID protocols. Luckily, I have figured out a way to move my study mostly online, I just need the final nod from the IRB, and I am good to go! I’ve already finished several pilot studies for my dissertation, and I’m reasonably confident I know how the new data will turn out. That said, I have been preemptively working on my document. If all goes well, I should have no issues finishing the results and discussion sections a few weeks after data collection is complete. Of course, this assumes my teaching endeavors will not be overly burdensome. 
I am more than ready for my “big boy” job and the accompanying pay increase. It’ll be nice to finally move beyond the monthly stipend lifestyle to something more liberating. 

I don't know your age or if you went straight into the PhD program after undergrad like I did, but grad school gets criticized sometimes for "delaying adulthood." My wife joked about me finally getting "a big boy job." It's quite a transition and feels very freeing in many ways.
In a 6 month period my income doubled when I took a full time job with the school and then doubled again when I left to start a job with a consulting firm.
Good luck with the defense. Writing my dissertation took about 2-3 months and, while I love writing and write often, writing that document was one of the most emotionally trying and stressful things I think I've ever done - but you will be so happy when it is done.

Congratulations on reaching such an impressive milestone! Your journal hits pretty close to home, especially the part about graduate school. In the last year of my Ph.D. program, I am all too familiar with the monthly stipend way of life. Coming from a very low socioeconomic background and being a first-generation student to graduate high school, much less obtain my Ph.D., I truly have a lot to be thankful for. That said, I am eager to transition to the postgraduate version of myself with a full-time job and a little more financial freedom to pursue my numismatic interests. Your journey helps bring hope to realizing that goal. Thank you for sharing! 

I like your sixpence! I have bid on a few of them over the years, but I haven't successfully obtained one yet. 
There is an interesting story about Droz and his move to London. As it turns out, he brought an entourage with him, which no doubt further inflamed the already suspicious Royal Mint officials. Long story short, Droz was carrying a secret new contraption in his luggage, which was used to apply a lettered edge to coins. It was this new technology that initially caught the attention of Boulton and soon became a selling point in his attempts to secure a coinage contract from the government. Droz's move brought a lot of skepticism, and his luggage was subsequently seized by customs officials and later inspected by Royal Mint officials. From the contemporary correspondence, it appears Boulton nearly had a full panic attack over the entire situation. Luckily the Royal Mint officials overlooked the gadget, and his luggage was eventually returned. At the time, his contraption was of the utmost importance. Ultimately it played little role in the Soho mint's happenings, mostly because Droz was too despondent to do the work he was already paid to do. 

The only British coin by Droz I have is a pattern sixpence from 1790.
Many of the top engravers seem to have moved around Europe quite freely despite the wars going on!
 
 

Thank you for taking the time to share this. Great stuff!

Thank you . I found this extremely informative as well as interesting.

I am not able to see the picture that you uploaded, but maybe I can help nonetheless. Below are images of an Irish Penny and Farthing that you can use to compare with your coin to identify it. 

It looks like your question has already been answered, but here are a few helpful links for your coins. 
1942 Penny
1950 3 Pence
1959 6 Pence
1954 Shilling
1940 Florin
1941 1/2 Crown

Mine are mostly modern Euro coins. I like the style of the post modern, sometime I'll have to look into these coin.
UPDATE: I just realized I uploaded the wrong coin. I also have a gold one of Kennedy from Ireland as well.

 
 

The obverse on the 1942 has the date above the flat part of the picture. the reverse is the same and is similar in size to a us half dollar. The others (hope I read these right) 1950 3d ruel , 1959 6d ruel,1954 1s scIwns, 1940 2s floren and a 1941 2s6d coroin I probably have the letters off as I am not sure the are English letters. Are these Irish coins as well?

The top picture is exactly what I have only the date is 1942 and very good but not as good as the one in the top photo although it is darker but great detail. Do you collect these ? Is this a good date or very common. I have 5 or 6 more that appear to be silver and go from small to large with the reverses of a whale a deer I think and other wildlife if you like I can give you the dates and denomination with each creature on them. The obverses are all the same as your top picture. I have many foreign coin which I do not collect and have no idea about. I am going to try to find someone to help me learn to post pictures. I have tried twice and it hasn't worked for me yet. Thank you for your kind help.The 1942 is the only copper one. The others appear silver and some are the size of Morgan dollars.  

Welcome to the Journals.  Those of us that have been here before had to adjust to a rather jarring change that the new format brought about. Best wishes on documenting your passion here.

Pristine coins and a top-notch collection! I look forward to your future posts. A guy in my coin club collects Irish coins but his are medieval coins. I photographed a few of his coins for him and for conversation pieces I'll post them here.
  

thank u ColonialCoinsUK im assuming u looked at my registry sets ....the various voids i own, but just not nice enuf yet n by leaving out makes easier for me to check what im upgrading rather than go by memory, not what it used to be...i used to collect almost everything irish...at one time had a complete set of irish farthings hiberno-norse to decimal, but sold it years ago to my friend,  patrick finn before his untimely death, all except the siege farthings, they r in a custom set...never attempted the ormonde issues, was never knowledgable enuf bout those...never did tokens just too many of those...ditto currency...i decided back in 1977 couldnt collect it all n would just put my time effort n resources into the milled coinage of free state n republic, life long project as it turned out, most of the denomination sets r finest knowns...some of the free state issues r prohibitive to find as im sure u r aware....'43 florin has eluded me, neither of the two mint state examples have come on the market that im aware of, foolishly passed on a nice xf coin bout 25 years ago, have decided not to buy heavily damaged examples n do without rather than compromise...not very frequent do i get a chance any more to add to my sets, may have to expand my horizons a bit, did start buying free state proofs a few years back but not completeable as far as i can determine, n usually prohibitively priced...but challenges r good for the mind n soul.....

Gorgeous! Seriously, wow! 

impressive n im not easily impressed....irish copper n bronze r very difficult to find pristine, partly due to the corrosive ocean salt environment that used to permeate everything, also there were few true irish collectors for many decades and preservation standards were a bit lax...yes i too am a devoted ireland coin collector...one of my most favorite areas of collecting....challenging n so many rare dates....missing one coin in my free state n republic collections.....again congrats on ur upgrade....

The blue/brown color of that Farthing looks great. Super nice example. 

I think with Chumlee, you're right, but given his track record with law enforcement off-screen, he's clearly a jack*ss in real life in a completely different way.  His onscreen stuff is still obnoxious to me, though, act or not.  As far as Rick and Corey, I dislike Rick more than Corey but that's kind of like saying I'd rather have a turkey vulture defecate on me when I'm out in the field birdwatching than to have it get scared and vomit on me....you really don't want either option.

These are all excellent points. Here is my take on the whole thing. I almost entirely collect copper coins. If a copper coin is in an older holder and has nice eye appeal I might consider paying a premium. It’s not so much the holder that would influence that decision but more so the stability the holder implies. Copper coins can change color over time. If given the choice between two red designated coins that are equal in all other ways I am more likely to select the coin in an old fatty or old green holder for a slight premium than a coin in a modern holder. The reason for this is the older holder suggests that the coin is stable and indicates to me at some level that I should not expect any major changes in color for the foreseeable future.

These are all excellent points. Here is my take on the whole thing. I almost entirely collect copper coins. If a copper coin is in an older holder and has nice eye appeal I might consider paying a premium. It’s not so much the holder that would influence that decision but more so the stability the holder implies. Copper coins can change color over time. If given the choice between two red designated coins that are equal in all other ways I am more likely to select the coin in an old fatty or old green holder for a slight premium than a coin in a modern holder. The reason for this is the older holder suggests that the coin is stable and indicates to me at some level that I should not expect any major changes in color for the foreseeable future.