GoldFinger1969

Good stuff...thanks for posting it. I wonder if they ever thought about striking a few MCMVIII HR's EVERY year, changing the date ?

It's too bad they didn't have a 1-ounce coin like the Liberty Head or Saint. Seems that for most countries their #1 gold coin was much smaller than 1 ounce.

Yes...I was referenceing actual gold production, Olympics.

Their output is miniscule compared to those countries (and South Africa).

Cyprus.

One of those phrases I never forgot in investing: you only have to get rich ONCE. Think about it. It's so true. I would suspect that this guy SHOULD have had 1st-dibs on the best/easiest gold....probably made some $$$...but then either squandered it or invested in assets/businesses poorly.

Heard that some Spanish ship from 1709 might be raised soon and has $17 BILLION in treasure !!!

How many of the originals (non-restrikes) were minted and how many survived ? Both numbers are probably much less than for Liberty's or Saints....but this was a SMALLER gold coin used for commerce and the French seemed to use their gold much more than Americans, given their domestic upheavals from 1870-1936.

Why do I feel I am re-living the M*A*S*H sitcom, with me caught between Hawkeye Pierce and Trapper John/BJ Hunnicutt vs. Frank Burns or Winchester ?

May he R.I.P....along with his 8 MCMVII UHRs !!!!

Report back....

Reading and LEARNING about the history of the coins can be as much fun as simply opening your wallet and buying. I love collecting/buying Saint Double Eagles, but they aren't cheap and I can't buy one every few weeks...or months....and sometimes years. So I spend lots of time doing lots of researching and reading on threads, forums, books, journals, etc. Not as much fun as buying, for sure, but it makes getting the next one that much more enjoyable. For sure, spend time reading forum threads here and elswhere that talk about Roman/foreign coins...and get a book or two that matches your experience level so you can learn the basics (or more advanced stuff, if you already have the basics down pat).

You came to the right place. Don't be embarassed...we see lots of people with coins they THINK are valuable and turn out to be legit but worth alot less OR are counterfeit. If you do have an interest in starting a collection or adding to an existing one, we're here to help !

Didn't Franklin Halves take a big price drop from about 2010 to 2020 ? Have they bounced back since ?

Are you looking to build a sizeable collection...or just get a few Roman coins ? If you decide you want to look at Saints or MSDs, I'll pipe in then. Until that time, I'll leave you with the foreign/Roman coin experts. Good Luck, Kinlar !

Late-2023 Numismatic News article on French Roosters. Good for most of us, probably 2nd-hand to Henri: https://www.numismaticnews.net/collecting-101/bargain-collector-french-rooster-popular-gold-coin

We're all here to learn...it's all a journey.

Sandon didn't say if they had any sizeable quantity of gold coins, just a few that he inherited plus the fact that they dealt in coins from time-to-time. His grandparents would have been allowed to hold/possess $200 in gold coins between them.

I would say that immigrants from Eastern Europe -- esp. Jews -- were more likely to bring over gold coins and then continue to utilize them in their trades or business, if customary like Sandon's ancestors food market. I would expect Irish immigrants to not have much in the way of gold savings and not to be business ownes in a position to utilize or accept gold coins. JMHO.

I wanna throw up......

They could probably sell some Saints or Liberty's or common Indians if they had a display case explaining their history. Again, I'd bet that most gold buyers don't know about them. I didn't !

Bill.......$2-$3 increase ?

BTW....the 1930-S Saint went for a total of just under $60,000 INCLUDING bp !! So the initial listing asking for $60,000 wasn't that far off the mark, it was the commission that pushed it too high for bidders. 8 bidders were willing to pay $20K or more.

Is it just me or do these kind of "True Views" look like they don't show any luster ? The new GC pics look pretty good. BuffaloHead's pic above also shows shine and luster.

Bill Gross, the former "Bond King" who founded PIMCO, had a complete set of U.S. stamps as far as I know including the "impossible" ones like the Inverted Jenny's. So he'd be famous collector, IMO, at least if you watched "Wall Street Week" in the 1980's and 1990's.