New pickups from E-bay and Steve Hayden

These are some new counterstamps I picked up in the past couple of weeks.

The first one was issued by the Chicago Coin Club in 1952 to celebrate their 400th meeting. Coin club or coin related issues are pretty rare, but I do have a dozen or so of them in my collection. This one exhibits nice craftsmanship which is usually the case with any exonumia issued by this club. I bought it on E-Bay from a Florida collector named Bob Slawsky.

The "C. Merrill & Son" counterstamp is struck on an 1847 Large Cent and is apparently unique. Charles Merrill was a New York City hardware and tool manufacturer in business from 1824 until well into the 1860's. This piece was struck between 1854 and 1856, as the company was called by that name in only those three years. Starting in 1857, a second son joined the firm and it became C. Merrill & Sons. I won this in Steve Hayden's recent auction.

"N.J. Tracy" is a very common counterstamp with probably about fifty examples presently documented. Although the stamp has been known for many years it remains undocumented, but is listed in both Brunk and Rulau. This example is nicely struck up, whereas many of them are poorly struck or heavily worn. I also acquired this piece from Hayden's auction.

The "J.E. Skalbe" counterstamp is actually a contemporary issue of Boston dealer and collector Jim Skalbe. They're often mistaken for 19th Century issues because many if not all of them are struck on old copper coins. I don't know Skalbe personally but a friend of mine does and he was kind enough to ask him to strike an example for me. I've wanted one of his stamps for my contemporary collection for years, and now I have one. I'm always happy to hear any comments or additional information you might have about these pieces. Thanks for looking.

Bruce

 

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Cool and interesting pickups. I like the stories with them.

 

That CCC one is incredible. I like that one a lot. What I especially like is the high quality of the work. If a person didn't know better, they may think it was part of the original coin design. Very nice.

Btw anyone collect the odd currency handouts the CCC gives out at the CICF every year? I have a number of them from years past.

 

Thanks for your comments guys. I agree about the CCC stamp, it was perfectly punched on the coin and at first glance looks like part of the design. Like I mentioned, the Chicago Coin Club always issues high quality exonumia. I see their medals on E-Bay at times and they usually bring a decent price...more than the issues of most other clubs. Another plus for this stamp is that it's struck on a nice big old Mexican silver coin.
I don't have any of their currency handouts, but wouldn't mind having a few pieces. I pretty much collect any type of coin related material, including wooden money, elongates, encased coins, medals, and of course counterstamps.

Bruce

 

You would love their handouts Bruce. They have older versions for sale, you should try to contact them. They are well written 4 page articles on odd money, and on the front either a real example or a fascimile. An example would be a real piece of silk on an article discussing silk money. Eight years ago I ordered back copies, and they had about 6 years of them in stock.

Chris

 

Thanks for the info Chris. I will go ahead and contact them and see what types of club exonumia they have for sale.

Bruce

 

Great new pick-ups Bruce! I also like the Chicago Coin Club stamp, they came up with a very nice design that really shows well on the coin they chose...are all of them found on Spanish coins or did they stamp US coins as well?

 

Thanks Hunter. This is the first one I've seen, so I don't know how many they stamped or what they stamped them on. If I were to guess, I'd say they were all stamped on the same type of coin. The club seems very particular about their exonumia, so may have wanted them to all look alike.. This is definately a well thought out piece thought...in design and placement.

Bruce

 

Really nice Bruce! I like that Skalbe piece too. It does look 'older' to the untrained eye. I'm always very intrigued by the pieces you share on CT. Regards.

 

Those are amazing and great history too. Thanks for sharing. You make me want to buy some of those.....

 

I agree, well actually I own some counterstamps but seeing them through Bruce's eyes makes them more appealing.

Mine were found in group lots, many times saying "oh cool a large cent.....dangit it has a stamp on it, that is why its in this pile of junk". I know I owe Bruce some pics, its just with a 7 week old at home not a lot of time to sort through coins, and believe me its not a little job. I was going to try to sort through this week because I need to put my US holdings in a SDB, (I never look at them), so maybe I will find them then.

Chris

 

Thanks for the comments.

Chris: Good to see you posting again my friend. The font and look of Skalbe's stamp tells us it's much newer than the coins they're stamped on. It could be mistaken for a late 19th Century issue though (which some collectors have done). To his credit though, he's never tried to pass them off as old counterstamps. As a matter of fact they're listed as contemporary in both Brunk and Rulau. From what I understand he used to give them out at shows from his table.

Tonedcoins: If you're really interested in counterstamps, there's always a lot listed on ebay. You can usually pick them up for a decent price, but like always you have to be careful what you're buying and from whom. If you do see one you might be interested in p/m me and I'll look it up for you.

Chris: That 7 week old is more important than the coins Chris. You sure have your hands full with the young ones. Anytime you get around to it I'll be glad to see them.

Bruce

 

I think I have a CCC counterstmap but on a copper Lincoln medal of some kind. Not sure of the exact occassion being marked.

I also have a few Skalbe c/s - a few from eBay and one from him personally. The one I got from him was "as struck" (bright metal exposed in the recesses of the letters), but most of the ones I bought had letters that had been darkened. Some sellers don't necessarily lie about the age of the c/s but are happy to let unsuspecting bidders have misconceptions. As far as I know, most Skalbe c/s are on worn or cull large cents but I have a slick shield nickel and I think I also saw it on an older silver coin (either US or Mexican - I don't recall).

 

I'd love to see a pic of your CCC counterstamp Jeff. I know you collect those kinds of things so I won't even ask if you want to sell it, but if you do...:devil:
If you can send a pic or at least a good detailed description, I can send the info on to Greg Brunk so he can add it to his listing.
I've seen a few of Skalbe's stamps on old English coins also. I don't know what type of coin this one is on, but if anyone can identify it by the tiny bit of detail left on it I'd appreciate it.

Bruce

 

Nice Bruce.

Btw is it just me or are Hayden's coins jumping up a lot in prices lately?

 

Hayden is getting strong prices on his material lately Duke, but he has some quality pieces. Even the common "N J Tracy" I got from him was a bit more than I might have paid on ebay, but for an inferior example. I buy off ebay because I generally do better price wise but the higher quality and rarer pieces aren't always there. Like with anything else, you have to pick and choose.

Bruce

 

Those are some great pieces. Are counterstamped coins commanding any premiums relative to the condition of the coins? Enjoy the large cents!

 

Yea I do like his quality better then most.
I just have gotten stuff from him and either more have found out about his stuff or there is just less around as I can't afford to get what I used to get from him anymore. Guess I just need to be more selective on how many pieces I go for in the future

 

The primary concern for a counterstamp collector is the stamp itself, but the coin type and condition will make a difference on price too. Collectors actually do "grade" the counterstamp but there's no formal scale for doing so that I know of. I suppose it's based on the eye appeal more than anything. A stamp on a silver coin, especially a half dollar, silver dollar, old Spanish coin, etc. generally bring more than a more common stamped large cent. Counterstamps on gold coins are very rare and always command a premium, sometimes a huge one. Overall, eye appeal, coin condition, and "look" are important, but the biggest factor is the stamp...is it attributed to a famous person, a political movement, a significant historical event, a "romantic" locale such as the old west, etc.

Bruce

 

Its really nice to learn about your counterstamped coins

Thanks for the post.