Henri Charriere

I know in the music business using another's tune, in small part, is called "sampling." I wonder what using someone's book as a prop is called? I would guess free advertising. The gold commemorative had an exceedingly low run. I wouldn't be surprised if time were set aside on a paricular day and they were all minted at once. These coins, commemoratives, and rarer than an 1894-S dime, will never come down, and even less so with gold prices expected to rise as they inevitably do. Double Eagles were never the province of the average Joe on the street. If anything, it's the guys who could afford them but procrastinated who lament their inaction. The truth is, in that regard, I suspect there are many should've, couldn't, would've folks out there.

Wow, another member owns one of these. I've always wanted one but couldn't afford it. Now I suppose I can, but I am too old. The whole story of this and the three cent ones are on Google. They were made by an ordinary citizen in his shop in Manhattan. Yours is very lovely. Edit: I just checked Google. The whole story can be found on Wikepedia. Man I love this place! 🤣

OF INTEREST TO ALL COLLECTORS OF WORLD COINS... As collectors of this series (and this column) know by now, while I cannot say there has never been a time better than now to compile a set, availability seems to have picked up. Accordingly, if you are within the sound of my voice, check out MA-SHOPS, a sponsor of our hosts. Today alone, I received three separate e-mails advertising their latest offerings. The site is based in Germany (with an outpost in the United States - Florida) with employees fluent in English. At one time I unsubscribed from them in frustration but have come to the realization that many terms can be inserted in their search bar which will produce all manner of different results. On one of the e-mails I received, I tweaked the search terms used to read, "20 Francs Coq Marianne MS-67," not sure what to expect. What spewed forth were dozens of listings for 20 Franc coins of several countries, dates, grades, both certified and raw, or in other words, the whole kit 'n' caboodle. (If you collect World Coins, try a variety of descriptions. One or more is bound to produce a bounty.) If you are building a Set Registry, and are not familiar with the site, it behooves you to check it out. True, not a single MS-67 example was included in my most recent results, but I have not been deterred. Instead, I felt compelled to provide a lead to those of you who struggle to find one of the "Originals" (1899-1906). The pickings are plentiful. Six examples of the 1900 alone, were retrieved -- the rarest in the series, in various grades and prices. FOR COLLECTORS OF WORLD COINS: If you are unacquainted with this site, jump in, the water's fine. There is no telling which of the scores of dealers affiliated with their platform, may have that certain something that has eluded you up to now. Happy hunting to all! Note: I have been a member here, and a collector of gold roosters, for five years and recommend MA-SHOPS, unreservedly. Every experience I have had with their dealers has been positive: every order I placed was executed with dispatch. 🐓

[For the sake of argument, if I were to locate the wreck, what should I reasonably expect your cut to be? I ask because I am told you have the power to bump threads. I wouldn't want to get on your bad side.]

But, but... what coin is superior to a coin graded "70"? 🤔

@USAuPzlBxBob : I do not believe I would have had the presence of mind to think about formalities on a sinking ship. Then again, there was no question in Captain Smith's mind that he would go down with his ship... the Royal Mail Ship, Titanic, on of all things a ship's maiden voyage and what was to be the last ship the captain intended to helm before retiring. It's interesting that that flag detail made an impression on you. Thanks for the update!

🐓: I can't believe a self-described rank amateur like you came closest to the Actual Retail Price! You never even knew these existed! How did you do it? Q.A. Easy. Read the Topic. When you say "blew the doors off the place," you're suggesting a truly outrageous gavel price, and that's exactly what I did. *** [Auction records maintained by one TPGS lists a staggering $2,880 for a gold rooster I do not believe I paid more than $700 for at a lesser grade. Anomalies do occur from time to time at auctions for various reasons, but your example is exceptional for what you say is a common coin.]

Hi Ty! Welcome to the Forum! I am unable to assist you with identification, but am sure someone will be along shortly to help you. You have come to the right place. Please be patient.

He' also wearing a discreet clip on hearing aid, but it would be bad form to call him out on it.

Voila!

Maybe I can redeem myself after the recent GTG debacle. Not my area of expertise but it hints broadly as being a fine MS-67 example.

Sandon elsewhere suggested he is partial, if I am not mistaken, to a range of grades used in conjunction with adjectives. I concur. I believe the safest course of action for the OP to take is settle on a do-able series and learn as much as you can about it. If it is short, you will feel cheated. If it is long, it will be like partaking of a good meal with a few key dates to keep things interesting. First stop: get the latest copy of the "Red Book" and see what appeals to you. Collect for the sheer joy of it. You can share your acquisitions and any questions you may have with your family here, only a few keystrokes away. Happy hunting!

I believe this is key. Very often I am left with the impression owners of coins in lesser grades are unable to identify (or articulate) what it is they think they see because they do not have a genuine, unimproved example with which to compare their coin. This entire post is worthy of preservation in perpetuity. Excellent response!

Too bad I came late to the party and was unable to cross-examine the witness. If I could, I would go beyond the coin. For example, who is the seller? Did you see this on a website? Is he affiliated with a business? Reviews? A refund policy? I ask because you "found" it and the party you should be interrogating is the seller. The way you present the matter suggests a casual encounter with a vendor on the street. Now, had you mentioned a prominent dealer by name, you wouldn't need to inquire further. As we are talking a fairly decent amount of money and your familiarity with the coin series is scant enough to jump onto a coin forum to ask the most basic of questions, I would strongly suggest you stick with reputable dealers and if you want this coin strongly enough, you may wish to pass on loose (raw) coins in favor of encapsulations. You want to be safe, not sorry.

I certainly hope JKK doesn't feel that way. I hear that sort of trash talk in my neighborhood all day long. It's nothing more than posturing. It was wrong but the medium used affords one anonymity. Real gangstas don't collect coins!

Just curious... An alloy comprised of copper and tin is called bronze. We refer to them as coppers. An alloy of copper and zinc is called brass. We refer to them as coppers I guess because Cu predominates. Oh, now I know why the Lincolns are called Zincolns. Only .08 copper. And I just checked the steel cents. Low-carbon steel, only .005" layer of zinc. Which is the rarer of the two: a 1943 "copper," or a 1944 steel cent?

Our Just Bob did a terrific piece of detective work! I never would have guessed it was fabricated outside the U.S. I never knew it existed.

Do we? Copper is a non-precious metal. As such, unlike its gold and silver counterparts, it is measured in avoirdupois ounces, 16 ounces per pound. The "medallion," ahem, weighs all of three ounces. Today's copper spot is 24 cents an ounce. Someone won alright, but it wasn't the Moolah Man.

"If no, why not?" You're not going to hear this from anyone else, so you might as well hear it from me. What you are about to read is what I really wrote. You don't have to do a double-take. Ready? I do not regard any U.S. cent minted after 1959, irrespective of Mint mark, to be real. That means the vast majority of cents. If we are talking 1909 to 1959, you're on. If you were to knock on my door and offer that '74-D bag to me FREE, I would smile and say, Thank you, but no thank you! I would not expect you or anyone else half my age (72) or younger to understand this. Not surprisingly, many of the views expressed by members above, comport with mine. (Only exception: mint bags of dimes, quarters and halves dated 1964, and earlier.)

[To my fellow members and members too new to fully appreciate this heiroglyph, allow me to offer an explanation: up until this past month, I assiduously avoided this topic. Even with off-on-off contact with the hobby, I never felt the confidence that comes when coins and collecting have been front-and-center in your life, continually and continuously, for a half-century, and more. Here, we have a member who has seen it all and heard it all. He once conceded, "I would rather be right, than nice." Another seasoned veteran bolstered his excellent reply upthread with, ".... I will do this only once,...." It took me only a few weeks to realize many of us were repeating ourselves, ad infinitum ad nauseum. You have to have the right temperament for this. Some do, some decidedly not. It was like watching "Groundhog Day," repeatedly, and inspired me to recently propose an inherently unfair moratorium on all queries regarding ERRORS by suggesting any coin older than 25 years from date of minting would be time-barred and exempt from analysis simply because entirely too much time was being spent explaining the same concept, over and over again. I floated the idea of dedicating a topic solely to this issue, as a collaborative effort, and posting it at the head of this Forum. A suitable title might be, "Is my coin an ERROR?" The sad, sorry truth is searching for ERRORS a is not unlike looking for a needle in a haystack. It's possible, but highly unlikely. Recognizing true errors comes with repeated exposures and experience. Stick around and see for yourself.] Posted at the discretion of Moderation.

In all fairness, I transcribed the figure for weight correctly, but read it incorrectly. A genuine gold rooster weighs 6.45 grams. This one weighed in at 6.33 grams, or a difference of not 12 tenths, but 12 hundredths of a gram. (I attribute the weight loss to damage inflicted on the coin by a succession of potential buyers in a series of clumsy efforts to determine its authencity, hence the garish mark on Marianne's cheek on the obverse as well as lesser abrasions on the reverse. That it found a buyer at that inflated price, $540. (Gold Rooster melt is about $380.) is nothing less than remarkable.

POSTSCRIPT: To those of you who have endured many a sleepness night wondering about the Final Disposition of the 1904 "Counterfeit Forgery," your worries are over. The coin has since been sold by NumisCorner in France for €500 or the equivalent of roughly USD 540.

An MS-69 would prompt close inspection. An MS-70, likely wouldn't. Now I understand your declaration, elsewhere, that you have never seen flawless perfection. I guess it's a good thing they are virtually imperceptible. Perhaps the graders did not feel they warranted a demerit.

Welcome! Are there any photos, or additional information, accompanying your post?

Interestingly, only six years later (1913) the Federal Reserve Bank comprising 12 districts was set up and though they presumably have served the country well in the 100+ years they have been around, three were established in cities with Mints -- Philadelphia, New York and San Francisco (Denver was skipped) it appears Seattle was either not considered, or considered but not chosen. (There are also 24 branches, which I was unaware of, but know not where they are situated.) Nice find, Roger! I am not a psycholinguist but the Director's intimate familiarity and grasp of Mint operations is evident in the confidence he exudes in addressing a member of the President's cabinet in writing. P.S. Numismatics embraces a wide range of endeavors from the guys in business suits sitting in climate-controlled boardrooms dictating policy, men doing grunt work deep in the bowels of institutions amid dusty stacks -- and even humble coin collectors sharing their fondness of proof die cracks with fellow members. It takes all types to make a hobby run like a well-oiled machine. I appreciate the fruits of Roger's labor and NGC for permitting him to showcase his wares.