My Top Numismatic Acquisitions of 2023 0

[coinsandmedals]

Wow, 2023 was a particularly productive numismatic year. Not only did I attend FUN for the first time, but I also took the opportunity to attend the Token Congress after spending a few days exploring all that London had to offer. Although I did not buy much, I made several new friends and thoroughly enjoyed the varied lectures while sipping on a pint of true English ale. In sum, I added well north of a hundred new pieces to my collection. Of those, 11 came from the Watt Jr. Collection, and 3 resided in the Boulton family holdings. There is something very cool about owning a piece that once belonged to the proprietors of the Soho Mint for nearly two centuries before making its way to the market. I am pushing the boundaries of brevity, but since I have not posted here much lately, I opted to share my top 30 acquisitions from 2023. These are presented in the order in which I purchased them. Please note that in almost every instance, the marks you see in the photo are on the holder.

Of the 30 pieces below, only 4 were not struck at the Soho Mint. Can you figure out which ones?

1803 Ireland Wexford Enniscorthy Halfpenny – Ex. James Watt Jr. – NGC PF-66 BN

1791 England Hampshire Portsmouth Halfpenny – Ex. Boulton Family – NGC MS-63 BN

1803 Madras 1 Cash Bronzed Proof - Ex. Puddester Collection – NGC PF-65 BN

1792 France 5 Sol Maz-145 - PCGS MS-64 BN

Edited December 27, 2023 by coinsandmedals

[coinsandmedals]

I consider the following three coins to be a single purchase. All of the holders are very scuffed.

1796 African Gold Coast Bronzed Proof Ackey - Ex. James Watt Jr. - NGC PF-66 BN

1796 African Gold Coast Bronzed Proof Quarter Ackey – Ex. James Watt Jr. – NGC PF-67 BN

1796 African Gold Coast Bronzed Proof Tackoe - Ex. James Watt Jr. NGC PF-67 BN

Here is the entire set in a single image:

Edited December 27, 2023 by coinsandmedals

[coinsandmedals]

1822 Argentina Decimo Pattern - NGC PF-65 BN (Very scuffed holder)

 

1806 Bahamas Penny NGC PF-65 BN (Very scuffed holder)

1796 Scotland Angusshire Dundee Bronzed Proof Halfpenny D&H 12 – Ex. James Watt Jr. – NGC PF-65 BN

1796 England Token Cornwall Penryn Bronzed Proof Halfpenny D&H 4 – Ex. Boulton Family

1794 Scotland Invernesshire Inverness Bronzed Proof Halfpenny D&H 2a – Ex. James Watt Jr. – NGC PF-63 BN

1793 Scotland Invernesshire Inverness Halfpenny D&H 1b – Ex. James Watt Jr. – NGC MS-63 RB

1800 George III Preserved from Assassination Medal (with shells) – NGC MS-66BN (Very scuffed holder)

1796 Scotland Angusshire Dundee Halfpenny Bronzed Proof D&H 13 – PCGS PR-64BN

1791 Scotland Lanarkshire Glasgow Halfpenny D&H 2 (Coin Alignment) – Ex. James Watt Jr.

1791 Scotland Lanarkshire Glasgow Halfpenny D&H 2 (Medal Alignment) – Ex. James Watt Jr.

1791 England Cornwall County Bronzed Proof Halfpenny D&H 2 – Ex. Boulton Family

1790 Scotland Lothian Edinburgh Hutchison's Halfpenny D&H 24 – Ex. James Watt Jr. – NGC MS-64 RB

1773 Virginia Halfpenny

1805 Boulton's Trafalgar Medal Struck in Copper – Presentation Piece

Edited December 27, 2023 by coinsandmedals

[coinsandmedals]

1803 Boydell’s Shakespeare’s Works Medal – Struck in Copper 

1823 Ireland Proof Halfpenny - PCGS PR-64+ BN

1792 France 5 Sol Maz-150 - PCGS SP-64 BN

Edited December 27, 2023 by coinsandmedals

[coinsandmedals]

1792 France 5 Sol Maz-150 - PCGS MS-64 BN

1782 Ireland Halfpenny – NGC MS-66 BN

1806 Great Britain Farthing – Ex. James Watt Jr. - NGC PF-66 BN

1805 Ireland Penny Plain Edge Restrike – Ex. James Watt Jr. - NGC PF-65 BN (Very scuffed holder)

1805 Bank of Ireland 10 Pence Token - Ex. James Watt Jr. – NGC MS-65 (Very scuffed holder)

Edited December 27, 2023 by coinsandmedals

[coinsandmedals]

1792 France 2 Sol Maz-157 - NGC MS-63+ BN PL (NGC's images) 

1805 Ireland Gilt Proof Halfpenny

1803 Madras Presidency 1 Cash - PCGS MS-64 BN

Edited December 27, 2023 by coinsandmedals

[Henri Charriere]

On 12/27/2023 at 1:26 PM, coinsandmedals said:

Wow, 2023 was a particularly productive numismatic year. Not only did I attend FUN for the first time, but I also took the opportunity to attend the Token Congress after spending a few days exploring all that London had to offer. Although I did not buy much, I made several new friends and thoroughly enjoyed the varied lectures while sipping on a pint of true English ale. In sum, I added well north of a hundred new pieces to my collection. Of those, 11 came from the Watt Jr. Collection, and 3 resided in the Boulton family holdings. There is something very cool about owning a piece that once belonged to the proprietors of the Soho Mint for nearly two centuries before making its way to the market. I am pushing the boundaries of brevity, but since I have not posted here much lately, I opted to share my top 30 acquisitions from 2023. These are presented in the order in which I purchased them. Please note that in almost every instance, the marks you see in the photo are on the holder.

Of the 30 pieces below, only 4 were not struck at the Soho Mint. Can you figure out which ones?

1803 Ireland Wexford Enniscorthy Halfpenny – Ex. James Watt Jr. – NGC PF-66 BN

1791 England Hampshire Portsmouth Halfpenny – Ex. Boulton Family – NGC MS-63 BN

1803 Madras 1 Cash Bronzed Proof - Ex. Puddester Collection – NGC PF-65 BN

1792 France 5 Sol Maz-145 - PCGS MS-64 BN

Very fine line-up!  Of note, the date on the obverse of the 4th  piece, [14 July 1790] marks the first anniversary of the French Revolution. I would guess the French coins, and the Irish penny were not products of the Soho Mint.  (Incidentally, an asterisk should appear next to the reference to FUN, and a note a la Sandon reading: "Attendance courtesy of Mrs. Spud.")  🤣

[coinsandmedals]

On 12/27/2023 at 1:08 PM, Henri Charriere said:

I would guess the French coins, and the Irish penny were not products of the Soho Mint.

I will forgo any discussion of the French pieces until others have had ample time to guess, but I likely should have been more specific in the language I opted to use for the Irish Penny. If following Peck's classification this would likely fall under the "Late Soho" category, as it was probably struck at the Soho Mint at a much later date than indicated on the coin. The term "Restrike" is typically reserved for pieces struck at a later date using retouched Soho Mint dies, but not by the Soho Mint (i.e., Taylor). The waters get a bit murky as you dive deeper. 

[Zebo]

On 12/27/2023 at 1:26 PM, coinsandmedals said:

1800 George III Preserved from Assassination Medal

Wow - what great acquisitions. I was possibly the underbidder for the 1800 (assassination), maybe it was another. I put it out of my memory.

The 1773 Virginia half penny is a 25 M correct?

So many nice ones, I am not sure which one is my favorite. Well done.

Edited December 27, 2023 by Zebo

[coinsandmedals]

On 12/27/2023 at 3:23 PM, Zebo said:

Wow - what great acquisitions. I was possibly the underbidder for the 1800 (assassination), maybe it was another. I put it out of my memory.

The 1773 Virginia half penny is a 25 M correct?

So many nice ones, I am not sure which one is my favorite. Well done.

Thank you! So you're the one who bid me up on the medal? 

Yes, the Virginia piece is a 25M. I had a blast attributing that coin - it brought back fond memories from EAC days. 

[Fenntucky Mike]

Fantastic pieces, congratulations on being able to acquire them. 

[Just Bob]

We need a "drool" emojie.  Wow! Amazing pieces! 

[powermad5000]

You would just need a photo of Homer Simpson for that @Just Bob.

Very nice acquisitions! 

[farthing]

Amazing pieces!  As you can probably guess I am especially taken by the Conder tokens!  Yes, 2023 was very good thanks to Baldwin's, I added over 100 tokens to my collection

 

[Henri Charriere]

On 12/27/2023 at 2:08 PM, Henri Charriere said:

Very fine line-up!  Of note, the date on the obverse of the 4th  piece, [14 July 1790] marks the first anniversary of the French Revolution. I would guess the French coins, and the Irish penny were not products of the Soho Mint. 🤣