Henri Charriere

One of the "most appealing 1934 Washingtons" needs a good back story. Here's one: this is the "good luck" quarter that fell out of [John] Dillinger's vest pocket at the coroner's office after J. Edgar's G-men tracked him down and ambushed him outside a Chicago theater with help from The Lady in Red that fateful nite long ago.

This is what I get for assuming you would confine your remarks to toning... Yes, the Atlanta Olympics wins by default only because it seems so glaringly out of place in a classic collection of silver American coins.

@Mohawk BUT... when my father threw out the special issue featuring one in Life magazine, my mother refused to speak to him for a month. Rediscovered and dubbed "living fossils" in 1938, they're exceedingly rare. I never expected to see one again so your photo is much appreciated. (And a big Thank You to @leegfor allowing this diversion!) Good nite, gentlemen!

@Mr_Spud... a personal challenge, huh? Little late to do it tonite, but I am going to see if I can find it tomorrow. Nine by thirteen... 117 total, a good half of which can be eliminated though I lack the resolution capability. We'll see. Great silver! 👍

I would have appreciated a coelacanth but I appreciate the thoughtfulness.

[I absolutely, positively refuse to believe anyone of @gmarguli's stature would even entertain a thought involving an "acid dip," quick or not -- and coins. Whomever hacked this long-standing, seasoned veteran's account owes him and the membership an apology!]

Wait, someone mention denticles? Just as this started getting interesting... 🐓

This has to be the absolute Last Word in toning (or lack thereof) in silver coins from dimes to dollars. Surely @VKurtBwill agree. Nice compilation, @Mr_Spud !

I await [with bated breath] an account of the observance of the 500th anniversary of the settling in New Netherland of Walloons (French and Belgium Huguenots) by the Dutch West Company, 1624 - 2124, to be formally known as the Quincentenary chapter. (Nice historical sketch @leeg !) 🐓

I had heard about this coin, but it is safe to say since no 1964-D Peace dollars have surfaced, though authorized, an order that was later countermanded [with all subsequently melted] it is safe to say you are in possession of a rarely seen last Peace silver dollar in the series produced for circulation in the United States -- and a lovely example at that! 🐓

My appreciation to @MorganMan for keeping it simple: a date, a beefy bison and no acknowledgment at what was done to the native population discovered inadvertently living here peaceably for God knows how long before other more civilized people arrived who brought them disease, forced them to participate in long marches and confiscated their lands at gunpoint without due process and competition. The Acts engaged by the former were performed with God's blessing; the latter were excoriated as strategic impediments. We honor none of them today and some five hundred years later it is more than likely we never will except as minor footnotes in history as commemorated in statues and coins. 🐓

I certainly do!

Sequoiadendrum giganteum. That's about it, and the few left are threatened.

(Oops! I neglected to mention my sister visiting my aunt in Istanbul many many years ago and mentioning Ephesus and Troy as among the places she had gone to, evidently forgetting to mention that salient fact. I have no trouble staying away from her as I am permanently tethered to my wife and ensconced in New York while while she continues to "serve" at the pleasure of wildfires and the San Andreas fault in the Great Sovereign State of California.)

First coin I have ever seen from Liberia. (Very interesting line-up of coins!)

I understand. I was just pulling your leg! 😉

Spellchecker: Dictates what you write, how you write it and must be over-ridden several times to accommodate my writing style and non-English words. No accent aigus, cedillas, graves, umlautes and that Bulbuous B you used once! 😉

I am flattered!

As with most so-called Hoard discoveries, news of the find is not announced immediately. Considerations: Where was it found? Who is the owner, or rightful heirs? Who found it? Where applicable, were investors involved? The location of the find, ideally, must be approached much as one would an archeological dig. Excavation and documentation when properly conducted takes time. Professionals must be consulted. Questions of authenticity and conservation and preservation must be explored. Estimated values must be established. These were "re-discovered" in 2019. Exactly what was found, where and by whom, notwithstanding, the find will undoubtedly contribute enormously to numismatic understanding of history as it unfolded in Europe during a specific range of years in France and Europe.

That it is... but what do the colorblind see?

This is plausibility in its raw state worthy of further investigation. 🔎

[Yes, attrition does take its toll. It was just my luck, locally at the Main Library here in New York, that the person with whom I wished to converse had just retired and the young woman who took his place, a newly-hired college graduate, had limited experience but clearly lacked the "institutional knowledge I sought. I told her when I showed my wife around the richly appointed Rose [study/research]huge Room upstairs, she smiled pleasantly, and whispered in my ear: "Ba'am fait ti ba pou ou," loosely translated as, "Let me give you a little kiss." Apparently, with her love of architectural detail, she had never seen a pair of simple though huge, study halls [outfitted with oak tables and brass incandescent lamps] so vast, tall- windowed, high-ceilinged -- and quiet, all you'd hear is the occasional rustling of turned pages. [Computers on the study side, through which tourists are directed, are outfitted with headsets, or you may bring your own.]

Labeling merely speculation on my part. As far as Ephesus, I am sure she was there many years ago, but your wish (sage advice) is my command.

@MorganMan (Actual conversation I had with myself after wakin' up from a bad dream at 0400 hrs)... "Oh OK, Morgan Guy... hey, must've changed those new coins... (puts on glasses). Oh, centennial.... but those dates are way off. Biden and the son he lost, Beau, behind him in uniform...

FURTHER to my revelation yesterday of discovering two (2) French 20-franc gold roosters, a 1908 and 1912, had been graded MS-68 by NGC, a cursory review of PCGS certifications reveals that while those graded MS-66 continue to pile up on the "restrike" tier, none have been graded MS-68 for any year nor has any graded MS-67 for 1914, officially the last year of the series. 🐓