Henri Charriere

Oh : Your Honor, I object! Members nowhere near my standing, stature and legendary longevity are making a mockery of my thread! THE COURT: Did you not proclaim you were not going back? What was the title of your topic? Oh : "Outta here." THE COURT: Well then, you opened the door, counselor! CASE DISMISSED. *** 🐓: C'mon back, Oldhoop! Please don't make Q come and get you and embarrass you i/f/o your friends. Do you really feel Q can hold things down for you in your absence? C'mon back. C'mon back.

🐓: I'll go further, M1967. This is something Q would do! Oui, Quintus, J'accuse! Q.A.: Your right about that, but I lack creativity. 🐓: .

I found the source! The latest catalog on French Modern Coins (Modernes 44) from cgb.fr Numismatique Paris. Turning casually to the section on 20 FRANCS OR, I noticed immediately each listing had a stock number followed by the standard French grade, SUP (Superbe) SPL (Splendide) and FDC (Fleur de Coin) and a specific number within the grade range. Following that entry further, are boxed pictogrammes denoting PCGS, NGC, ANACS and GENI, the precise grade repeated, and the price in Euros. I do not believe I have seen these in previous recent catalogs. [There is even a listing for a frappe medaille with the caption, FAUX DE 20 FRANCS OR COQ. [Emphasis mine.] Unfortunately, I found nothing that would be useful for an upgrade, although I am not officially looking.

Even the Perth Mint's King Tut centennial gold bullion piece pales in comparison to this. Where's Ricky? Hey Ricky, your cousin's here!

I must have missed this the first time around. I recall reading Main Street got its first traffic light. (Sorry, I couldn't help myself.)

Thanks for the update, gentlemen. And here I was thinking a good one could be had for $129. My mind is still in the 1950's. I don't recall anyone ever walking into Rick's Pawn Shop with a metal detector, new or old, but I got a big kick out of him test-firing that gorgeous brass Gatling. I ain' got nothin' against nobody but that's what I'd sink my money in if I were still young. Jus' sayin'

It was something I've always wanted to do, but never got a chance to. I assume the next step is taking it to a concern that refines it. That's some haul!

@Sandon : T'was I who located the info after conducting a search for "jefferson nickel specifications," which directed me to a page with oversized type, emphasizing composition: Cu 75% Ni 25%, weight: 5 grams or 77.19 grains, and diameter: 21.2 mm, with a note indicating the specs applied to coins struck from 1938 to 1942 and 1945 to the present. Clearly, the Wartime nickels which contain silver would differ in weight but by how much was not disclosed. For the record, the composition of the Wartime nickels is 56% Cu, 35% Ag and 09% Mn. The weight is 4.68 gms or 0.176 oz., the diameter is 21.21 mm. and the thickness is 1.95 mm. Silvertowne, the source of the Wartime specs, also notes the existence of a unique Jefferson nickel, commonly referred to as the Ken "Frith" coin featuring the only known example of a Jefferson dated 1942 with the reverse of a 1941 Large S variety. A Walter Br**n is associated with this discovery [but good old common sense on my part prohibits me from providing the spelling of his full last name on this Forum.]

🐓: What do you say, Q? Q.A.: Is it going to rain tomorrow, Veteran's Day? 🐓: Yes, why? Q.A.: Because Roosters don't like rain. I will have an unprecedented access and opportunity with which to confer with you and your clan on how and what inspired this assemblage and post it with everyone else's on Hog's thread. I can't wait to start my story with "I was sitting there minding my own business when..."

The 1909-S VDB was the very first coin I actually bought. Two developments have stuck with me. One is, the great number of them were (unbeknownst to me in the 1960's) set aside as novelties which inadvertently made this "rare" coin not so scarce in the highest grades which was, at the time, UNC [whether B.U., Gem or Choice]. The other is something I read very recently, which is, it was not the designer's idea to place his initials so prominently on the bottom of the reverse. "Most Controversial," though? Okay, so a design change was effected. But wasn't that also the case of the 1883 NO CENTS V-nickel, too? If 10 is the limit, perhaps some substitutions, particularly in light of @RWB's comprehensive reply, are in order. As always, IMHO. Historical note: the controversy attendant to the "unveiling" (no pun intended) of the 1916 Type I LSQ, was also the reason why "Civic Virtue [Triumphant Over Unrighteousness,"] a sculpture group and fountain [by Frederick Wm. MacMonnies] dating back to its installation i/f/o New York's City Hall in 1922, was subsequently removed after Mayor LaGuardia's objection to viewing a naked man's buttocks every day, entering and exiting the seat of city government led to its banishment to Queens Borough Hall in 1941, where a congressman's and feminists' furious objections led to its banishment in 2012 to Brooklyn's Green-Wood Cemetery. Now that's a century's worth of controversy. Moderation: Edit as you see fit.

@Hoghead515: Franklin's... I have two that I am afraid will be of no use to you, but first chance I get, they're going out. Briefly, a 1955-P UNC (I got from that guy in S.F., I believe, with notations all over the flip underscored in red ink) and a 1959-P PROOF (also in an unmarked flip which you're better off keeping because at least your son will get a kick out of it). Too bad it can't be a part of your Registry Set. This is not to say I am 100% a Rooster man. I have a few odds and ends like everybody else. But given a choice, it makes a lot more sense being in your hands, appreciated, than sitting in a box in my home, for no discernable reason. Straight outta Noo Yawk Ci-tay!

Respectfully, two things... 1- the OP posted his swan song hence the topic. Theoretically, the thread is rudderless (and derail-proof). And more importantly, 2- level with me... please tell me if it's true you waited nearly three years to get those nuggets off your chest? You're in the right place! And so much for detectorists who never find anything of value. (Are you sorry you used up your once annually quota for speaking up?)

@VKurtB : Good thing I had the presence of mind to send you that plate, with my lucky number on it and all. But you never did say whether your state will permit you to affix it below the bonnet.

I saw two guys at Coney Island at summer's end with those dowsing wands (metal detectors) wearing 🎧 and they were happy to share their finds, pocket change, yes, but watches, chains, keys, rings----even a fancy brooch. I got the impression it was more a pastime than a hobby. Seniors and retired folks have the time; the young don't have the patience.

Holy cow! This is a public forum! Surely, with the flak being lobbed your way, you don't expect me to restore your credibility now! This is beyond the pale!

@GoldFinger1969: [Guess my use of "eloquent" didn't go over well. That was a take from "Enemy of the State," when Will "slap heard 'round the world" Smith corrected the gangster who called him a shyster and said the correct term was mulignan. I recall he said, "as you so eloquently put it." No offense given; none taken.]

❤️

Maybe someone ought to consider a topic along the lines of, "What are your nominees for the Top 10 Greatest Of All Time [Most] Controversial Coins" list...

🐓: Personally, I don't think this guy'll exchange phone numbers with you. Q.A.: I don't either, but there's only one way to find out! [Just kiddin'! Just kiddin'!]

Exemption granted! Carry on, sir...

First time I have ever seen a silver "cash" coin... think about it!

There's copper, too, in dem dunes! Your old beat-up detector had taste!

What a shame! Have you any idea the treasures that await for lack of a basic metal detector boasting cutting edge technology? Forget the cigarette butts, bottles and cans. There's gold in dem thar sand dunes!

Given a choice between a silver or gold certificate----as nice as they are, I'd still go for a note from the Educational series, or my all-time favorite: the "watermelon" note.

Top Ten Most Controversial... Like most readers, I am going to guess there are folks out there thinking the most curious aspect of this list is not what's on it, but what isn't. How is the Type 1 Standing Liberty Quarter any more controversial than the 1913 Buffalo Nickel on the mound? Has the controversy surrounding the 1943 copper simply abated, or has that long been written off as chopped liver? And why include the trillion-dollar platinum? Was it produced for general circulation? Too bad Oldhoop ain't around. He'd tell me to read the article first. [Edit: Okay, I read the article in its entirety. The Type1 Standing Liberty Quarter stays; the trillion-dollar decidedly does not: it was never even made! Who cares? And the space accorded the 1913 V-nickel is woefully inadeqate: no mention was made of Hetty Green, the "Witch of Wall Street" who briefly owned one of the "specimens." The list should be lengthened to accommodate... how does a baker's dozen sound?]