Henri Charriere

Unfortunately, the web runs rampant with inaccuracy and self-serving commentary. I will consult a few sites, here and abroad, and should have an accurate historical explanation for you shortly. (Those lurking on the sidelines are free to jump in with what they may have heard or read as they see fit.) Incidentally, so high in regard is the rooster held in France that recently one municipality posted a sign at their municipality limits stating ambient noise such as pre-dawn crowing roosters are an integral part of rural life and city folk who object are no longer welcome.

Just to clarify... a member asked to see a nice Rooster -- no particular date, with which he could compare to the one in question. I supplied a 1909 MS-67. (I don't know if your coin, one of only 7 graded 66+, is detailed enough to demonstrate the point I was trying to make. Have you viewed the coin in question?) The number of 1910 French 20-franc gold roosters currently graded MS-67 by the two top TPGS can be counted on two hands; no Rooster of any date has been graded higher.

[With all due respect to Tyrock, can anyone tell me whether Richard Snow's "Eagle Eye Photo Seal" plays any role in the history of CAC, and if so, how?]

You did the right thing and kept your cool. Better that than sitting in a bullpen somewhere being asked, So what are you in for?!

Not only are you right, but I have since found out these things are still redeemable and have been around since the late 19th Century. I'll bet some of our younger numismatic brethren have no idea what we are talking about.

If't'd been a 377, you'd've had a problem. I "liked" a member there who ignored me here -- the only time I ever spoke up, and was promptly excommunicated. By the time you read this, all should be copacetic.

Reminds me... whatever happened to S & W green stamps?

[Not to worry, EdG_Ohio. Not 10 days ago, an admonition came from on high: "Back on track. We should be on Walkers." After an interval, a member snuck in a Lincoln Cent, without comment... followed by your Large Cent, indisputably one of the finest to grace over 7,300+ posts spread over 244 pages going back nearly 15 years. With over a hundred years of Lincoln Cents not to mention several mint marks, the lineup will likely change by summer. 😉

Your advice is well-taken. I also cannot help but feel that in the run-up on precious metals prices, some individuals use the opportunity to rid themselves of problematic stock. Caveat emptor! *** Note: I do not know if this is "legal," or against Forum guidelines or "simply isn't done," but for fellow members who were kind enough to test their grading skills and weigh in on an example of a top-shelf coin -- and anyone else who may be curious to determine the veracity of my claims as heretofore set forth, I provide (in the absence of a direct link) an eBay reference containing four views of the contested coin which may be found by typing: 1910 France Gold 20 Francs NGC MS 67. (Certification No.: 607 7 279-005) spacing in numbers to make identification easier. Bear in mind, the MS 67 grade has never been surpassed by any TPGS in this 16-coin series with a total mintage of some 117 million pieces. I have dealt with the seller before who has a 100% satisfaction rating and has always treated me with courtesy, accommodation and professionalism befitting his sterling reputation. For the seasoned grader amongst us, you need look no further than the ability, if the device you use permits it, to magnify view #4, the reverse -- and render your decision, accordingly.

Your advice is well-taken. I also cannot help but feel that in the run-up on precious metals prices, some individuals use the opportunity to rid themselves of problematic stock. Caveat emptor!

[Spoken by a true collector.]

I have since re-visited this matter and feel now, in view of comments made by members elsewhere regarding grading by TPGS, generally, that all things considered, PCGS (or divine intervention) unwittingly did me a favor by declining to cross-grade a coin previously certified MS-67-- which I hadn't yet taken delivery of, by offering a second opinion. It prompted me to more closely re-examine the coin which upon sober, unhurried scrutiny more than justified the unfavorable assessment. I own several Roosters in this upper-tier grade, and not a one, NONE, displayed the disorder clearly bedeviling the date, legends and fields. There is no question that the experience taught me a valuable lesson, saved me a great deal of money and validates our colleague, VKurtB's hard-line stance on refusing to engage in blind buying. Takeaway: do not allow your resolve to complete a compilation to supersede what is obvious to you after close examination.

["What God hath wrought, let no man tear asunder." Applications: marriage; the severing of North from South America with a Canal at the Isthmus of Panama; traumatic (unauthorized) de-encapsulations; and the dispersal of proof sets... After-action report: Very lively thread; informative, entertaining -- and revealing. Arrived with a bang. Chugged through 235 posts before being spent nary a week later. Lots of flying recriminations leaving more questions than answers. A rather feisty OP holding his own right on up to the end. No winners. No losers. No matter. A good time was had by all.] * * *

[Nor have I or would I. Somewhere buried deep within the APA's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition: DSM-5 is the formal name for those afflicted with the malady of "grading" bullion silver so that one, an MS-70 -- otherwise indistinguishable from its fraternal twin, the MS-69, in terms of date, weight and purity, is nevertheless worth twice as much. Grading bar silver cannot be too far behind.]

As well they should. Who doesn't love those old classics?

[Let's pretend, for a moment, you're Noah Dietrich and your boss, Howard R. Hughes says, "How's that [Spruce Goose] coming along? Here, take this coin down to Richard [Pawn Star's Richard B. Harrison a/k/a "Old Man"] and have it and a written appraisal on my desk first thing Monday morning." Would you want to run that chemical alibi by him, or any Type A "Nothing is impossible" personalities like John D. Rockefeller, J. P. Morgan, or Cornelius Vanderbilt? The Johnstown Flood occurred because no one in authority could summon the courage to tell Andrew Carnegie, "No, we will not lower the dam for you or anyone else!" The VKurtB we all know and love will not disappoint: he will find the expeditor/facilitator who won't shrink at taking A Message to Garcia.] I wonder what the folks in Conservation have to say about this...

[I believe it fair to say -- particularly in the midst of a quietly raging, full-blown pandemic, that were it not for the internet, many more brick-and-mortar concerns, already struggling in a tight market with slim profit margins, would have closed their doors for good. Many of us have been fortunate enough to have lived long enough to witness great moments in numismatic history play out before us with our own eyes. And I truly believe better days are yet to come.]

[Can't wait to hear what RWB and VKurtB have to say about all this...]

[Forgive me, Rocket man, for ruminating out loud here]... I want to believe, however unlikely, that some shnook mistook a coin for a coaster but the dead-on-balls precision of the damage is highly suggestive of malicious aforethought and intent. (Reminds me of that '37 three-cent Feuchtwanger sporting similar localized damage apparently caused by the application of a small diameter wooden dowel to the center of the reverse which was then slowly rotated long enough and with enough pressure to leave a tell-tale circular mark virtually impossible to ignore -- except by the third-party grader which inexplicably assigned it a superior upper tier grade, without comment, thereby enabling its owner to command a stratospheric price. In coin collecting it's poor form to point out the glaringly obvious: "Hey guys, what about that, whatchamacallit, on the back ?" Retort: you buyin' or jus' cryin'? Read the sign: PRINCIPALS ONLY! Caveat emptor.

This is a curious comment coming from someone with arguably one of the finest collection of a single type of coin, billions of which have been produced, and a statistically insignificant number of which have undergone certification. The truth is the entire universe comprised of all coins lies in uncharted waters and we are only beginning to understand what it is we did not even know existed before the discoveries of caches, vaults, hoards and shipwrecks.

[Come to think of it, I can recall Gimbel's department store at Herald Square had a small coin counter on its first floor in the early 1960s.]

[Pay me no mind, Oldhoopster. I am just considering the possibilities, however absurd, on paper. The very worst that can happen is being taken seriously.]

[I don't know about all that but the flight characteristics and staining patterns of blood makes this coin a prized piece of forensic crime scene evidence.] 😉

[It seems to me the only way this can be resolved, responsibly, and if the disparity in price justifies it, is through re-submission to NGC but this will likely involve an additional expense.]