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31 May 2023

Why I Write Blogs.

Coins | Mike

I hope everyone is doing well. I'm writing this blog because I'm upset. The lack of blogs. I will tell you when it started ago. A while ago. I joined to learn. Yes I'm old going to be 70. And I still learn everyday. Sometimes I see something I never saw before and I ask for a bibliography never the less I got no answer. I really thought I would get an answer. I read and comment on 99/44% of blogs. Some are coins we all know. Its the ones were people take there time and put up nice coins,rare coins,error coins. Research history. I have learned more on this site about just everything about coins. But we will never know everything That's why when I sign on everyday I hope for a good blog. Something you can put your teeth into but those days are gone . I know things happen in life but this drought is terrible. I feel empty when I sign on. I still have the drive to write and thank everyone who comments on my blogs. Blogs we learn from.If you read them or write them. I will not give up on the ANA and this site. I have wrote blogs like this before but were back to the old ways again and the blogs are gone. I understand why to a point. When we did away with the points I think we said one a week or one every 10 days. With the members we had it worked. Now there gone. But some people think this site is a joke. Its not. Its serious. I write to assist people and share my knowledge in this hobby. I comment also. I like to study and read blogs. A real blog. But there is nothing to read. I try very hard. But the time between the blogs from the old days are gone. It makes me feel very sad. I say I'm not writing as much but about once a week. But my passion for this hobby won't let me stop. My hands hurt so bad. I have lost blogs but I try again and hope it stays up. Because I think its important. I have nothing else to say. I for the first time am lost for words. I won't speak of reasons. Those of you I keep in touch we know. My health and other things. But this site means allot to me. The good blogs, the kids blogs I enjoy them all. Lets get back to making this site enjoyable. Educate us. Show a few pictures. I miss those who left but I understand. The fact that we are still friends brings me hope. God bless you all and the ANA..

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27 May 2023

The hidden feature of the Saint Gaudens Double Eagle

Coins | user_18804

Ever think Lady Lib's eyes on the Saint Gaudens Double Eagle were lacking, or strangely designed? Me too, but theres more! Augustus Saint Gaudens was a genius.I'm a NYC native so I've been amazed with Augustus Saint Gaudens' work since I was a kid growing up exploring the nooks and crannies of the city. There's an exibit of his work at the MET and I highly recommend it. He's also got some pretty iconic stuff in Central Park. If you take long looks at his work, the people in the sculptures appear to be perfectly captured and frozen in whatever they are doing or feeling. Their faces, in particular, are so well sculpted I would find it hard to point out comparable works unless you were look to the Ninja Turtles' namesakes of Raphael, Donatello, Leonardo, or Michelango. When I got into coins later in life, seeing the name Saint Gaudens was a great intersection of interests, so I took a really good look at the $20 Double Eagle. I was let down in a way, because the coin in totality is amazing, but Lady Lib's face was lacking to me. Even in the finest known example of 68+ on PCGS, her eyes are scalloped out and detail-less. I was(am) dumb and it goes deeper though, I think. When this coin was designed, the light bulb was pretty fresh and most homes probably weren't as well lit as they are today. IE if you were to look at a coin back then, you most probably had a single source of light like a candle or lone lightbulb, or probably a ray of sunlight. Ring LEDs and ceilings full of bulbs like we have today were,for all intents and purposes, impossible at that point. It is with these tools that we've been looking at the Gaudens Double Eagle though, and I personally have been missing something critical in the coin's design. It's been in her eyes, and it's only visible under lighting conditions similar to those available in the late 19th/early 20th century.You see, the concave nature of the scalloped eyes actually coalesces the light and throws it right back at your eyes, but you need a single, directional source of light feeding it. What's the effect? With a ray of photons, Lady Lib's face is completed; her eyes are created on the spot and are represented by pure all seeing and illuminating light in some sort of symbolic optical illusion. Take a close look at my pictures after the first one. If you own one of these coins, please try using your phone LED or loupe light and shine from the bottom going up. This would be similar to holding the coin obverse up and tilting it slightly to allow your source of light to hit it. Lady Lib will shine her gaze upon you too! It's very tough to capture the effect in a picture. You need to see for yourself.

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20 May 2023

The Three Legged Nickel

Coins | Mike

Hi everyone ! Hope all is well. Today I will write about one of the great variety of the modern age. The three legged buffalo. His name was Black Diamond. His home was the Central Park Zoo. James Earl Fraser picked him because he thought he was the best looking buffalo there. .Now many people know about this coin but they don't know how it happened. It was part mechanical and part human. There was a space for a planchet. It was empty. When the feeder continued the dies clashed. This left a leg very high up. ..Well a gentleman by the named of Mr. Young decided he could fix this. They would polish it down. So that's what they did. They polished down the high leg were the die clashed Now after there hard work they said its gone and looked great.They didn't look hard enough. The leg was gone The hoof was there that probably told them the leg was there. Gone. They made it to circulation and instantly became one of the most desired variety of the modern age. Its the 1937 D. Now its not me but I think the Denver mint has the most mistakes. ......The nickel was made of 75% copper and 25% nickel.it weighs 5 grams and its 21.2 mm. Now.if your looking to buy this . I strongly suggest you buy this certified. Yes this coin was and is counterfeited. If you look on Ebay and if any of the letters are touching the buffalo move on. The back leg is also an indication that's its fake. ....Simply because in good condition like a MS it commands big money. I got mine for a steal. Won it in an auction. Thanks to Mr. Leab and his son Andrew!. they got me interested but I'm the one who bought it and I'm very happy I did. This blog was written two years ago. But there are allot of new people . So be careful save your money but this coin is worth it. I enjoy it. So will you. Take care be well.

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16 May 2023

Curiosity like a cat...

Coins | user_22257

Hello, I'm new to the numismatic world, 6 months, and just started looking through presidential dollars and Sacagawea dollars. This particular change in appearance boggles my mind. It's random ones. Why? I know time and environment play the biggest part but this one eludes me. Thanks for any feed back you might have.

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15 May 2023

The Kings Royal Cyper!

Coins | Mike

This will be my last blog on the new Monarchy. Every King or Queen has there Royal Cyper. What is that.? Well if you have been successful in life you would have it on your dinner jackets maybe your car door. ....In Britain it goes everywhere. Post office mail boxes Uniforms letter heads, cars government buildings and in this case The Tower of London gates. They are everywhere. Now the coin below is King Charles 111 Cyper. ....He has King Edwards Crown on top then it has C with an R inside of that and the 111 inside the top of the R. It means king Charles the 111. Queen Elizabeth had the R meaning Regina Latin for Queen. Now Charles has an R which stands for Rex Latin for King. You can go all over England and see the Rulers of the Monarchy on something. Enlarge the stamp. You will see Queen Elizabeth 11 on the stamp. You will see King George King Edward, most of them are still up but very few. There are about 2,000 Monarchs in the world with a Cyper. Now King Charles 111 will be in Australia ,Canada, and Commonwealth countries. Now think about that. The Kings Chose was designed by the Alms corporation they made it in September. Now its going up everywhere even on envelopes. The guards hats. I could not believe how many places it goes. So if your ever in England count how many places you see this. And if your taking a picture of the coin. Don't do it with the window open. The dust will find its way on the plastic protection . I hope you enjoyed this small blog on such a big project because that's what it is. . The coin just came out. And its 9999 proof. The fields are large. Its very hard to take a picture of a coin like this because of dust. It will get on there. !!!!!

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07 May 2023

What talking about coins leads to...

Coins | Speeding Arrow

My dad's friend bet me that I couldn't run a mile under 5:40 by the end of the summer and if I did I would get a special prize. So, I practiced, and then yesterday I got 5:33 earning myself an 1887 S VF Morgan Dollar. This was an amazing gift as only around 1 million of these coins were minted. My dad's friend only gave me this prize because he know I enjoyed coins. So, talk with others about your hobby and you could be surprised by others.

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03 May 2023

St. EDWARDS CROWN

Coins | Mike

Well I hope you all are well! May the 6,2023 many of us will actually see a King being crowned It doesn't happen every day. Get up early they are five hours ahead of us. This is about a text message I received from the Royal Canadian Mint. They showed a coin. It's called St. Edwards crown. I saw it and bought it. Its not being released till June 6,2023. It will be the crown put on the new King Charles the 111. I looked it up and this crown has some history. First the coin. Its 99.99pure silver. It weighs 31.39 grm. Its 38 mm.The edge is serrated face value is 20.00,and its a matte proof. That's why it sold out. Mintage was 6000. Its beautiful. And very high relief. The original Crown was found by Monks in1163 on the tomb of St. Edward The Confessor. Now that crown was melted down after England's civil war. Sir Oliver Cromwell had it destroyed. Some of the gold was saved and is in this crown Charles the 111 will where. Yes there was a break in the Monarchy. Cromwell declared himself the defender of England. Charles the second was somewhere in Ireland and Scotland or Wales. He came back and defeated Lord Cromwell and had him killed . Charles was now the King and had the crown made. That was in 1661. It was commissioned in 1661 to Robert Vyner. He was the Royal Golds Smith. It weighs five pounds has 444 precious and semi precious stones in it. Queen Elizabeth said it was heavy on her head. Now Charles will be crowned with it and it has been refitted for Charles head. After the ceremony it will be returned to the Tower of London.

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05 Apr 2023

Great Engravers Series, Gothic Crown designed by W. Wyons

Coins | Doug S.

Hi all,I haven't posted in quite a while but Im still chasing Mercury dimes I cant find!! LOLThat's beside the point though, I saw a Gothic Crown from 1847 a few months ago at my local coin club and was very impressed with the design. So Ive been chasing it as well. In my view the 1847 Gothic Victoria Crown, mintage of 8,000, is one of the mot beautiful coins designs Ive ever seen.I acquired this recently as a part of the Great Engraver Series from the Royal Mint of England. Presentation mintage of 3,750. Most likely the only one I will ever have in mint state. Gothic Crowns from 1847 are really expensive and rare. Really love this though as it is an exact copy of the original design.RegardsDoug

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