Henri Charriere

Yesterday, as reported yesterday on select threads, I received my latest acquisition. The particulars may be found at this Link: https://www.pcgseurope.com/cert/42188163

Let me see if I understand this correctly. Untold quadrillions (I exaggerate) of Proof Sets were broken up and untold quintillions of unciculated Mint sets (I embroider) were cut up resulting in The Great Change shortage for collectors I wasn't even aware of to an extent that the member with the King Tut headdress mourns their loss and predicts, after consultation with industry soothsayers, that they will enjoy an unparalleled resurgence in popularity. Every coin ever minted in world history has found its way in the netherworld known as "circulation," including Proofs, Uncs -- and presumably Lydian staters. Every coin, that is, except those belonging to the gentleman known only by his initials, SMS. According to member Sandon, not given to making grandiose statements, no SMS coins have been found in circulation. While I have no choice but to concede the point he made regarding the coins are of Philadelphian provenance, I am unable (actually, unwilling) to accept the old wives' tale that none have been found in circulation. Surely, in 50 years, any released into circulation, inadvertently or otherwise, simply lost the very characteristic that made them special to begin with. They're out there all right! I can feel it in the very marrow of my bones. The problem is they are no longer recognized as such.

I am going to test-drive Kurt's approach here with a stinging comment. Research is not possible without a basic education. My feeling is you mean well, but are in over your head. Have you obtained a copy of the "Red Book"? Would you be able to submit a Submission Form, unaided. If you do not you will get an education but at a prohibitive cost. You will become understandably frustrated and possibly impatient due to a misunderstanding of the many variables that are considered in grading a coin correctly, meaning a general consensus as to the grade that ought to be assigned to a coin. You haven't even been here a day and already have 10 different posts up and running. I would urge you to slow down and familiarize yourself with the way things are done in this hobby. If you've inherited a quantity of coins, I can understand your feverish pace, but if you truly want to devote quality time to this subject, dispense with any distraction that will prevent you from mastering a few basic facts. This is not a short-haul venture. You have to have the desire to learn all facets of the hobby. This is not a Dear Abby forum. You will have to put in the necessary footwork in order to get out of it what you put into it. There are no get-rich-schemes some may be privy to. That's Hollywood; this is real life. You will discover that sooner or later.

You mention "barley" in your Topic. As you well know, only "oats" have nutritional value. Seriously, if you wish to make optimum use of all available resources, including the Bible of the hobby, commonly referred to as the "Red Book," you must improve your command of the English language. This is important as many auction houses insist on handling encapsulated certified coins. If you have not reviewed a Submission Form, I suggest you do so to get a feel for what the field of numismatics has become. Auctioneers are not graders; that is the province of TPGS such as NGC.

Two things I consider indispensable to the new collector is a review of the current NGC Submission Form and the latest copy of the "Red Book," or Guide to United States coins. These resources will enable you to make your own judgment calls regarding the values of coins and costs related to certifications.

Although collectors have various reasons for submitting their coins for certification -- some for the sentimental reasons they evoke, for so-called "war-time" nickels, only those that appear to be in the Mint State grades (the higher, the better) are worthy of certification consideration. A coin's fair market value must exceed the total costs of submission to make certification cost-effective. In the alternative, you may wish to house them in a display album or simple 2"x 2" stapled cardboard flips. If spot silver continues its rise, your nickels will be worth thirty times its face value, and more primarily due to its 35% silver content.

Danny Downer here. You know, if you were to really magnify this edge, I'll bet you can increase its width twice as much and market it as an seldom seen, exceedingly rare piedfort, you know, an experimental planchet that is twice its normal depth. Tip from an old-timer: you don't find ERRORS; they find you. Happy hunting!

Danny Downer here. WARNING: THE FOLLOWING IS A JOKE! If you are offended by jokes, viewer discretion is advised... So the mule collided with something and the only thing of concern is possible damage to a single penny, a quarter of a century old. Interesting. The mule died -- how did the other party make out? Has anyone taken up a collection to give the mule a decent burial? I guess mules lives don't matter. *** Seriously, you've been around long enough to know you shouldn't pay any attention to these ads. I am letting you know this before the more experienced members sure to follow, deflate your dreams of stardom.

I do not know why nobody has the intestinal fortitude to reply to you directly. I don't know what auction prices you have been looking at but just for once I would appreciate knowing the name of the auction house whose gavel prices you were looking at. This way members can tell you, e.g., "Of course that's worth more! It's a Proof." You're not going to get meaningful feedback by claiming you read something somewhere and confronting a Forum full of people who dash your hopes and dreams by suggesting all they see is something worth 15 cents. Just my opinion. Nobody who went thru all the trouble of joining up and paying their dues wants to hear something like that. Am I right, or am I right? Give us something we can sink our teeth into.

France Marianne - essai (pattern) 20 francs or (gold) etain (tin) uniface, hexagonal, PCGS MS-62, ND (date undetermined) unlisted, unpublished, Top Pop: 1/0... UNIQUE (Photos courtesy of Ricky 🐓.

It's been so long now but as much as I appreciate the emojis, I am wholly undeserving of your endless praise and unending adulation. There are far worthier people deserving of your attention. I'm sorry you missed the Puerto Rican Day parade. I tell you, I have never felt better in my life. With that latest acquisition, I feel I've arrived. I'm due for a new User Name change. Soon as they wrap up the case of my missing coin on the set registry on the West coast, I'm done.

What this Forum needs is a Topic dedicated to ERRORS. This way 97% of the experts can weigh in on truly pressing matters that vex those new to the hobby. Edit: What you may be inadvertently oblivious to is a few handful of members saved you a boatload of ducats despite your misinterpretation of symptoms resulting in a hasty diagnosis. To put this is perspective, you could have renewed your membership 3 or 4 times, not to mention the time filling out forms and saving yourself a trip to the post office. Count your blessings!

I certainly appreciate the compliment, but I owe it all to Ricky!

Monnaie - France Marianne, PCGS SP-62 essai (test) pattern, uniface, undated, unlisted, UNIQUE; Link: https://www.pcgseurope.com/cert/42188163 (Photos below courtesy of Ricky 🐓. )

Gentle reader, you can rest assured if there was the remotest chance there was something to this, zadok would be its srongest, most vocal proponent. Me? Sorry no way you can convince me paint cans which held chemical concoctions, however well scrubbed and sanitized, are a suitable environment for the storage of coins. If they sat for decades in a well-ventilated area, they've got a shot. But n-o-o-o, now we have since learned they were hammered shut, intentionally, in hermetically-sealed metal containers... for decades. 🐓 : On the level, Kurt... what do you attribute these phatasmagoric wildly psychedelic toning patterns on these old coins? VKurtB : Ya got me Ricky, I have no idea what could have caused this and you know me, this is nowhere near the tasteful toning I like. (I'll have to make a note of that proprietary formula they use to remove unsightly garishness in my next trip to Berlin.) ,

🐓 : You do realize this Topic is now 38 posts down the list, don't you? Q.A.:. That's too bad because as of 10:47 a.m., today, Thursday, May 13, 2024, I am the very first member in recorded NGC history to place $2.000 in cash in a stamped envelope, unregistered, uninsured, uncertified with no tracking number to place an "order" to a coin emporium I am not a member of, deal with a principal and his associates without ever having inquired as to the availability of the item sought beforehand, not once exchanging texts, receiving an order number, without ever having met, spoken to, or writing to a place I had no prior experience with in a city in France that was previously unknown to me...and having the merchandise delivered to my door on time and on schedule. (Yes, I tipped the courier.) I haven't opened up the package. I don't need to do that right away. Right now I am sitting in the park, crowing. Inside that envelope is an essai, a (test) pattern, etain (tin) uniface which those members rooting for me have already seen: hexagonal, undated, unlisted, a Top Pop 1/0, graded SP-62 -- UNIQUE. Added Bonus: NO CUSTOMS! Some of you thought the very worst. What can I say? I am sorry to have disappointed you. Now, uncle z can put the strait jacket away. And the whole Forum can heave a heavy sigh of relief. To my many detractors, this was MISSION IMPOSSIBLE. To me it is MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! Secretly, I already knew it was a fait accompli. 🐓 : Fine. Can we eat now? Q.A.: Oui, With crepe suzette for dessert. Man, I love this place! (Posted at the Discretion of Moderation.)

I expect this matter to be resolved shortly. I have spoken to those responsible for maintaining the Set Registry and have exchanged a few texts with them. What I am hoping for is not a text saying it's all been taken care of, but how and why this happened in the first place. In lieu of an explanation, I am expecting a suggestion I change my log-in info. We'll see...

FWIW: MERCURY DIME: 16.5 mm diameter. 2016 CENTENNIAL DIME: 17.91 mm diameter. Any other specs are readily accessible on the internet. Regarding "looks". I examined it closely with my antique 30-power jeweler's loupe. (Yes, the very one VKurtB explicitly forbade me from using) and, like your example above, I thought it was lacking in explicit detail -- aggravated by the fact that it is comprised of "pure," theoretically SOFT gold, unalloyed with any other metal. In short, I am not a happy camper.

I thought it was common knowledge by now that I have one, looked at it once, and decided right then and there I didn't like it. a). I do not appreciate the newfangled term, "business strike"; b) It was brought to my attention that, being composed of gold, it was smaller than a standard Merc, and. c) evidently because it was a circulation strike and not a Proof (I don't know how I overlooked that) it, to me, lacks sufficient detail. I want my money back on that one even though I paid a premium for it. Back on Track!

I've got a large dong, but it's Vietnamese. I guess it doesn't count. 🤣

Why all the secrecy concerning the date of issuance of the coin? And why the use of highly radioactive charged plutonium rods to prop the coin up?

And how, pray tell, will that enlighten me?

Kindly elaborate as to how this can be accomplished.

@Mike Meenderink : You mean these things are worth more than a dollar now???! I gave away all my Ikes, Sacagaweas and Suzie Bs. Conservatively speaking, I do not believe any "modern" coin was more intensely disliked. New Yok City Transit wound up with a bunch but then the fare went up. I never knew a laundromat that accepted them. They all got bogged down in quarters and then switched to cards. The grand experiment to phase out the one-dollar bills failed miserably. .

🐓 : Say, Q, whaddya make of this. Ya got one bloke sayin' they exist but are limited to Philly '58s and '59s, and one TPGS will recognize the moniker while another won't. Q.A.: Sorry, the only thing on my mind is tomorrow is D-day. I received a call and dispatch from P--- confirming the deletion of my '09 rooster and another suggesting the Holy Grail is in the U.S. Regarding the "Black Beauty." it's a nickname. Kinda like my uncle z likening me to an s.t.d. At least our Grand Master provided an explanation. I have seen them but never gave much thought about them.