Henri Charriere

There was a thread recently, members may recall, wherein the subject of the posts, an eBay seller, liberally sprinkled it with his own grading system; a two-digit number, followed by any number of ➕ marks beside the grade "UNC." One of the enumerated comments made in response to the post, by @RWB, was so interesting that I have never seen an observation like a nowhere like it -- or a retort since. The coin had a few ding marks along its rim, clearly visible to any alert reader which indicated "circulation." Coins do cascade from the mint chute but my understanding, fine-tuned by those more familiar with the process, is not with enough force to produce that type of damage. That was a noteworthy comment that made my desire to acquire the coin through competitive bidding -- as my fellow member whom I respectfully call The Great Zadok, a moot point, right out of the starting gate.

Knowing your well-known views on the subject and not wishing to belabor the matter anymore than necessary, drawing on your many unheralded, underappreciated and untold hours working feverishly to uncover the root causes and possible environmental intermatallic interactions involved, to what do you attribute this phenomenon to, NT or AT, suggesting exposure to proximity to what chemical-laden elements involved, gaseous or otherwise? 🐓

@gmarguli Respectfully, I see a number of disturbing anomalies throughout your "Express" submission form for which there does not appear to be the likelihood of a rational explanation... So I would like to ask you an impertinent question, no offense intended: Did you, as per instruction, "mark each side of your shipping box with EX in large, bold letters?" [Note: Buried deep within an interview with John Albanese published on the NGC site, I believe, was the remarkable recollection that turnaround times in the early years routinely reached ten months. What happened to you was unacceptable in every sense of the word "estimated" turnaround times, which has apparently been discreetly deleted from current literature. I will go further, I believe you are owed an apology. 🤔

I am going to pretend my version is the correct one: To my knowledge, silver does not rust. Accordingly, this is a grocery list of items compiled by an employee named "Rusty" responding to a routine request made by his employer.

@VKurtB It does my heart good to know you are able to freely engage in the numismatic pursuits of your desires unfettered by artificial constraints like a nine-to-five.

[Looks like your dedicated thread was a good idea!]

@Cat Bath This is a most unusual request! Really? Why? What would you expect to find? (In my mind, I'm saying, "You've seen one Rooster, you've seen 'em all.") But there are practical considerations, as well: 1. I an officially retired as of Constitution Day, 2021. No, not from my imaginary "profession" of Master Chiffonier (which @RWB with a most sensitive schnozzola accurately revealed to be nothing more than a fancy term for a common "rag picker.") But, from the hobby: coin collecting. 2. The first order of business would be re-activating my long dormant membership in a concern which appears to direct the bulk of its work, probably 99.44%, on U.S. coins. That's $249, for the privilege of paying additional fees to have photos I was never impressed with to begin with, taken. (Now if @Buffalo Head were involved, he'd win, hands-down. I am a big fan of his photographic skills.) 3. True-View, last I was aware, cost $5 each and it was my understanding they've been superseded in favor of something finer. Would these True-Views be of sufficient quality to inspire @VKurtB to abandon his long-standing, iron-clad policy to base a buy on a photo alone? I doubt it. 4. It is my understanding, possibly dead-wrong, that any picture-taking would require a coin be posed in its raw state, a polite way of saying disrobed or de-encapsulated. If that were to occur -- and I have not ruled it out -- the coin would then have to be re-encapsulated. Assuming I still retain a vestige of common sense, this would mean favoring the newer security-chip embedded Near Field Technology holders. As a practical matter, I, me, a collector, born under the sign of Virgo would be forced to live with a hybrid set consisting of older and newer, cutting-edge holders for no reason other than satisfying the curiosity of a collector. (We are insatiably critical and annoyingly particular.) No way I am going to upgrade the others in order to conform to symmetry (unless the Great Zadok insists, which I seriously doubt.) 5. During the recent national elections (discussion of which is prohibited 🚫 on this Forum) I believe I broadly hinted that the older candidates -- they're ALL old irrespective of party -- should graciously step aside and allow the younger whippersnappers have a shot at the crown. My intention was to move my Set Registry to NGC but suddenly seemingly out of nowhere, a contender I shall politely refer to as #3, who made his intentions abundantly clear with a sizeable financial commitment (only a Rooster collector could truly appreciate) made his debut and I knew jeopardizing his investment would be inconsiderate and in poor taste. (An honorary arbiter like @Hoghead515 would never stoop so low.) Right now, it's those Roosters recently graded MS-68, the inevitability of which @RWB correctly predicted with continuing submissions, is the only thing that keep me up at nite: whose got em? where are they? what's it gonna cost to make one (or both) mine. Sorry, @Cat Bath.

@VKurtB I was just pulling your leg, my friend! My sincerest apologies.

@RWB... "false grade." Dem's fightin' words! Or are they? If there is one thing that sticks out above all others in this business, it's the realization that until the extraterrestrials land and show us a better way to grade coins (to go along with their bestseller, TO SERVE MAN) grading is equivalent to rendering an opinion and, as such, any attempt to win a debate is futile. I believe those two Morgans posted on the Follow the Lead thread exemplifies this point perfectly. Two coins with the same date -- and identical grades. (The coins I thought were one and the same, before and after treatment with a secret cleaning formula.) More and more, member, author, research scholar's reasoning processes are making eminent sense. And his conclusions, granted, rendered with authority are logical and inescapable.

PA. may have been given a dispensation to account for rickety, wooden, covered bridges, the Tpke all shot to hell, inhospitable topography and roadside coin stands that slow traffic to a rubber-necking crawl.

Mint State - 66 🐓 (probably one of the ones you would be reluctant to part with for all the '67's in the world.)

I believe what many people, lovers of toning or not, fail to realize is how far ahead of its time this coin was in terms of utilizing the principles of applying tie-dying, then in its infancy, and adapting that knowledge and experience to the hydraulics involved in producing still malleable planchets with an application of vibrant colors over time in a disciplined, clock-work manner so as to keep bleeding to an absolute minimum. Coins that failed to meet the rigorous inspection were promptly discarded and remelted without debate or discussion. Few survive making this spectacular coin the ultimate prize of globe-trotting, exacting, life-long collectors like our own difficult-to-please @VKurtB . While it may be generally true that VKurtB eschews toning, this scarce and unusual piece far exceeds blanket and peripheral phenomena that is ordinarily observed on the more modern coins in their various denominations whereas this coin, not often seen, is in a class by itself. Rating: 🐓 🐓 🐓 🐓 🐓

Decades ago, historic documents, newspaper morgues, yellowed books -- even the Dead Sea Scrolls, were photocopied. Warehouse space costs are prohibitive but I automatically assumed important documents, once microfilmed, were now being transferred to computer discs. I am evidently unfamiliar with R-kive boxes marked, "Destroy by (date)" and those earmarked for preservation.

Based on your service record, I assume you are marginally older than me. I trust your judgment, your reliance on emoji -- and even the no-holds-barred dressing down you gave me for defending the Nevada guy. In my eyes, you can do no wrong. My many detractors were not content with simply ignoring me. They fled the premises, en masse. I have checked out the Water Cooler and the surgically precise posts ATS and marveled at their total intoleration for deviation from the topic at hand. Regardless, what you may feel, I appreciate all your comments -- and choice of friends and associates. Lately, I have been experiencing operating difficulties. My Notification notices are ignored; my comments are routinely delayed if they are published at all, and that's okay with me. For the most part I am simply sounding off. I am amused by people who seem to take me seriously. *** I am not overly concerned with Chinese-made U.S. knock-offs. I collect 🐓 but I am not a fan of the French. They occupied Indo-China, exiled Dreyfuss, had the nerve to demand -- and get! millions in reparations from Haiti and I am glad they got their comeuppance at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. NGC has honored me with a membership; PCGS has honored me with two plaques (though I privately concede the 🐓 Set ranked at #2 is better: consistent, well-organized and photographed well.) The quote I want to remember you best for, particularly for someone with an extraordinarily long memory is a modest one: "I would truly like to help but I don't know anything at all about pennies." @Alex in PA. circa Nov. 13, 2018. That's as honest as honest can get.

You make a valid, often overlooked point. Depending on the source you consult, there are pronounced class distinctions, up to ten official dialects, sub-dialects and regional variations with Wenzhounese having the reputation of being the "least comprehensible dialect" for the over billion majority Mandarin speakers. Not to denigrate the comments made by other members but, to me, the drug trade and the rise of the Narco-State responsible for the deaths of millions and the expenditures of billions of dollars over the past 50 years is more of a significant threat than collectors who fail to exercise due diligence. Besides, it is the ready, able and willing consumer buying brand-name counterfeit handbags and clothing at cheap prices, trademark laws and sub-standard quality be damned, that guarantees investigations of numismatic counterfeits will remain on the back burner. And what about the sudden profusion of all those 99-cent stores? We have met the enemy and it turns out he is an ordinary American who cannot resist a bargain. My opinion.

@VKurtB... if not for the intermittent on-site reporting, this would have been comparable to Arlington National Cemetery. Considering the scarcity of road stands of the type you had long become accustomed to -- and perhaps took for granted, Rosemont was a shot in the arm for you. 🤔

[I secretly envy all of you. I believe each of you wrote the Administrator of the chat board stating, in substance, you are high-profile VIP's who should be exempted from NGC's community guidelines and content-moderation procedures. You want proof? Feel free to tap on my name and take a look at my NGC Chat Board rap sheet replete with warnings ⚠️ and a wrist slap for "inappropriate humor." I have no recollection of what I was alleged to have said, nor to whom. Granted, I am fluent in sarcasm, but inappropriate humor? Get outta town. From now on, like it or not, I am going to make an effort to be worthy of membership. Besides moderating me excessively has cost the company money and extended turn-around times. 🐓

[Looks like I am going to have to start work on a bimillennial tribute commemorative soon.]

[Whatever happened to the word "patina," or has it fallen out of favor? And nary a mention of "verdigris" anymore. Why?]

Truth be told, the entire subject is superfluous. It reminds one of the father who told her daughter, Virginia O'Hanlon, If you see it in The Sun (a New York newspaper at the time) then you'll get your answer as to whether there is a Santa Claus. Noticeably absent from all this discussion, with a persistent insistence on conclusive proof with official documentation is the sad tale of the boy who wrote the then Mint director a letter inquiring as to whether his 1943 copper cent was real and received a typically curt bureaucratic reply: None were authorized therefore none exist... Now get away from me kid, ya bother me. So, to all the huffer-and-puffers out there demanding documentation, records, and the like, a simple question: What would you have done if it were you standing in that boy's shoes in the pre-TPGS era?

Blanket statement sure to rile up the Alex in PA which resides in us all... The primary cause of what numismatists commonly refer to as "milk spots," has been known to man since the dawn of civilization millennia ago.

I WANT TO GO ON RECORD AS SAYING I WOULD SELL, WITHOUT EQUIVOCATION, OR BATTING AN EYE, EVERY SINGLE MS-66 🐓 I OWN (ABOUT ONE DOZEN, NOT ALL IN SET REGISTRIES) IF DEEMED NECESSARY BY THE gods of FAIR MARKET VALUE (AS DETERMINED BY AUCTION, OR OTHERWISE) FOR THE PRIVILEGE OF OWNING EITHER OR BOTH OF THE FRENCH 20-FRANC GOLD ROOSTERS a/k/a OR COQ MARIANNE RECENTLY AUTHENTICATED AND CERTIFIED AS MINT-STATE-68 GRADED COINS. 🐓 09/21/2021

It stands to reason that if you produce a product in quantity, you will also produce a product to accommodate it. The only "generation" I am familiar with is the Pepsi one and their bottling line. My guess is someone intimately familiar with "fatties" will be able to help you. Maybe Coinbuf.

"What do you mean I'm funny.... You mean the way I talk? I'm funny how, like a clown? I amuse you? I make you laugh, I'm here to.... amuse you?" . [Goodfellas, 1990.]

You are asking me to take you by the hand and help you read between the lines, and that, I refuse to do. 🐓