Henri Charriere

Re "stickers"... as Popeye might have said, I don't believe in such things, i.e., opportunistic numismatic appurtenances.

I like Casa Blanca. Has a nice ring to it.

Please, please, please RESIST the urge to use a "wire" brush! The tool or liquid you use should be of the least intrusive and non-abrasive kind. And any damage you may do, inadvertently or not, cannot be undone regardless the age and condition of the coin. Without knowing its precise cause, I would put down that Q-tip and wait to hear from our resident experts to chime in.

The mint-mark is an "s" In your initial display, Washington then sported one black eye. Now he has two! I am flummoxed.

@The Neophyte Numismatist: to the ever-lasting consternation of strict constructionists who expect, nay, demand I hew the line on the Forum, I respectfully direct you to the column marked OFF TOPIC using this undeniably beautiful coin as a pretext for discussing a little-known aspect of penological history...

The 1907 [MCMVII] HR details, should be marked.......... $10,520 w/hbp, i.e., w/high blood pressure.

You are absolutely right. I thought about that all night long and realized I had contributed nothing to the discussion. For starters, I think @JamieE who is "new to the Board" should consider providing a photo to best illustrate what he sees. That is what most members would want to see at a bare minimum: the obverse and reverse sides of the coin, as well as its edge. Even one who buys a coin sight-unseen, generally has a good idea of what he is getting himself into. If it is not an imposition, @JamieE should do likewise. Besides, the membership, with an aggregate now of 200 years of numismatic experience may wish to examine the coin for other characteristics that go beyond strike, preservation, luster, color and overall attractiveness, or eye appeal such as the presence of an error or possibly a variety. [Aside: Psychoanalysis when performed professionally requires the presence of the patient. A notary public will not affix his seal in your absence. Likewise coins. We may all have our doubts, but the proof is in the pudding. We must see the coin--front, back and edge, before we can make an informed judgment. IMHO.]

Speaking strictly for myself, for simply defending the OP's position, I was ostracized by many members, saddled with atrocious labels, marginalized and ultimately banned. There are members still alive today who have placed my [user] name at the top of their "to be ignored in perpetuity" lists. I do not believe you have anything to worry about.

[Funny how your coin looks infinitely better and yet we're both the same age.] In my heart (to borrow from an old campaign slogan) I know you're right, but the gods of numismysticism have been arrayed against me. Maybe that's why they invented the term "business strike". 🤔

[I live hard by the poorest Congressional District in the nation, which embraces a swath of the South Bronx and upper Manhattan. When I make a purchase producing negligible change, I usually give it back to the proprietor and tell him, Here, this is for all the people who come up short, those who are beggars, and the like. He is always appreciative and gives me a knowing glance. Most appear to be of Yemeni origin.] The future does not bode well for the coins now in wide circulation.

[Member @Coinbuf would know. I will have to recuse myself on this one but it is an old holder in search of a newer opinion.]

I love the cursive writing using sepia vs. India ink. Would not a prospector have to take his sample to a recognized assayer first before approaching the Mint? Or were things that informal way back when? Just curious.

[Hard to believe I have been bad-mouthing clad coinage for over 50 years without understanding why. Thank you @RWB and @cladking for clarifying matters!]

[Believe it or not, a lot of optimistic things have been written about this currency from the crypt. Unfortunately, it is not written in layman's language. I am convinced this "you just have to wait a little longer [and invest more money while doing so]" spiel was specifically directed at those who have already suffered catastrophic losses. If there is anyone on the Forum who has dabbled in this he has kept it to himself.]

If someone offered you a coin, without mentioning where he found it.. Surely, you jest! Detectable wear is the lowest common denominator. Both circulated and uncirculated coins--even proof coins may be regurgitated by Coinstar machines.

[Accurate or not, I believe I already knows where member @Hoghead515 stands on this]

It defies common sense, but I suppose their sufficient enough number of proponents can cite an intelligible reason.

The entire French 20-franc gold rooster 🐓 run was officially minted from 1899 to 1914. They are small: 21 mm in diameter and contain less than a fifth ounce (0.18 oz.) of gold. Mintages (roughly): 1899 - 1.5 million (m) 1900 - 0.615 m (the rarest) 1901 - 2.6 m 1902 - 2.4 m 1903 - 4.4 m 1904 - 7.7 m 1905 - 9.1 m 1906 - 14.6 m 1907- 17.7 m (highest mintage) 1908 - 6.7 m 1909 - 9.6 m 1910 - 5.77 m 1911 - 5.34 m (rarest "restrike") 1912 - 10.33 m 1913 - 12.16 m 1914 - 6.51 m Total: 117.45 m, a small fraction of which have been certified and graded. Members @zadokand @VKurtB correctly surmised that this is because they are bullion coins which were not struck for circulation. A sort of "poor man's" gold which many countries minted. (I suspect the South African Kruegerrand popularized the higher 1-ounce size, beginning in the late 1960's.) The first eight are known as the "Originals" struck on the dates as indicated. The second eight are known as "Restrikes" struck in the 1920's--and some in the 1950's. There are patterns, proofs, i.e., 9,443 in 1900--and even varieties cited by a number of myriad sources, but almost never acknowledged. There are 50+ set registrants and, to my knowledge, I am the only collector who has spoken openly of them. Advice:. this may sound odd coming from me, but I would not encourage you to collect them because they have become increasingly more difficult to locate in the only area in which collecting them makes any sense: Mint State grades. You will become stuck at the divide between the earlier and later ones. Restrikes are do-able, and plenty of set registrants have compiled "short sets." But the Originals are a problem. I never regarded the acquisition of an Original anything other than payment of a ransom and I have vowed, after all the trouble of getting one, that they will never go back to Europe; I don't care how high the offer is. @RWB whose comment came in first after my initial post, presciently observed "not enough Roosters have been submitted" in explaining why so few of the 117+ m Roosters remain raw. In deference to the Moderators, and preserving @ Oldhoopster's band-width for substantive discussions, I will end here.

No, they were not. (They used to list all issues of 20-franc coins, but apparently they've dispensed with it). Herewith the last three... G20F, 1899-1914 (Rooster) Circulation Issue, 46 sets on NGC Set Registry; G20F, 1871-1898 Genie (Angel) Circulation Issue, 43 sets/NGC; G20F, 1852-1870 (Napoleon III) Circulation Issue, 16 sets/NGC. (If I can locate the complete list of at least 11 issues, I will provide it.

[Welcome back!] 🐓

Six months, no further comments on gold Roosters... why? I received yet another series of notifications from France and Germany, the last one a clarion call: 1900 20-franc MS-65! I stared in disbelief. This is the rarest in the Rooster series! I quickly scanned the column providing selling prices and thought they looked too low--way too low, and upon closer scrutiny realized why. There are roughly a dozen different series in the French 20-franc series, the Rooster being last. The notification was for the Angel series (the one that preceded Roosters) and I was so annoyed at these persistent false alarms which require I drop everything and act quickly that I disabled preferences--across the board. "I am retired," I muttered to myself. (Aside: The night before, fed up with endless repeats and a string of pop-up commercials, I disabled my cable TV and turned in all the equipment the following morning. The sales clerk made two statements which only validated my decision to remove this albatross from my neck: 1- the company was very wealthy, and 2- "You realize your wife's cell bill will go up." This solidified my resolve. Good riddance! When I told a friend, he asked: "You still have cable?" Not anymore.) Just now, today, I was informed by NGC that premium memberships are "50% off". C'est la vie.

[I appreciate the gesture. Hope you're fluent in French.]

[Prior commitment and familial obligations. But I would if I could] 🐓

[I am going to stick with my assessment of "unconditional immunity" unless someone provides substantive proof suggesting otherwise. Man I love this place!] 🐓

"Maybe a Q?" I heard that! 🐓