Greenland: 1926 (h) HCN GJ copper-nickel 25-øre, Copenhagen mint

Discussion in 'World Coins' started by lordmarcovan, Dec 24, 2025 at 5:48 AM.

  1. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    Greenland: 1926 (h) HCN GJ copper-nickel 25-øre, Copenhagen mint

    PCGS MS65. Cert. #80862731.

    Numista-6960, Krause-Mishler-5.

    Diameter: 25 mm. Weight: 6.9 g. Mintage: 310,000.

    What could be more charming than a polar bear on a coin from Greenland? Despite its orientation in the PCGS slab and Trueview images, the bear side is technically the reverse on this coin.

    Ex-eBay.

    01-frame.png 02-TrueView.png 03-coinscape.png 04-shadowbox.png 05-obv.png 06-rev.png 07-slab-obv.png

    006200
     
    lordmarcovan, Dec 24, 2025 at 5:48 AM
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    The Meat man, fretboard, green18 and 7 others like this.
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  3. BRandM

    BRandM Counterstamp Collector

    Another great coin!
    The orientation reminds me of the older Irish coins. Whatever critter was on the coin was considered the reverse. The obverse was always the harp side.

    Bruce
     
    BRandM, Dec 24, 2025 at 7:57 AM
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  4. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    The rule of thumb I go by (and I don’t know how official it is, but I think it’s at least quasi-official in some quarters) is this: the obverse is the side that bears the name of the country, and/or its national arms. That doesn’t work for a lot of US coins, and there are exceptions galore, but it’s kind of a loose rule of thumb. :)

    I think a lot of times if there’s a person’s head on one side, that ends up overruling the rule above and you end up with the “heads” side being the obverse.
     
    Last edited: Dec 24, 2025 at 8:25 AM
    lordmarcovan, Dec 24, 2025 at 8:03 AM
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  5. cladking

    cladking Coin Collector

    I think I've seen this coin before. If so it was in a small box many years ago at a coin show. It was offered to me at a very favorable price and I foolishly passed on it. I figured at the price it was offered I could buy a small handful of Gem moderns. Of course this coin is rare and I more likely ended up with common coins for the money I saved.

    This coin can be found in nice attractive circulated grades with some effort but BU not so much. And Gem? Forget it.

    You never know, of course. Perhaps it's not the same coin and it's less rare than I still believe.
     
    cladking, Dec 24, 2025 at 8:26 AM
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  6. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    PCGS population in MS65 is 36 pieces, with 51 in higher grades. So nice though it is, it’s not especially rare in this grade. It’s one of the less expensive pieces in my collection. A two-figure coin, even slabbed in Gem grade.
     
    lordmarcovan, Dec 24, 2025 at 8:30 AM
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  7. TheGame

    TheGame Well-Known Member

    There are a lot of Latin American coins where the 'heads' side is the reverse. Mexican coins are the most famous example, but in general, if there is a coat of arms on one side and a portrait on the other, the coat of arms is usually the obverse.
     
    TheGame, Dec 24, 2025 at 11:17 AM
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  8. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic numismatist Moderator

    I tend to agree, but others might not.
     
    lordmarcovan, Dec 24, 2025 at 12:52 PM
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  9. The Meat man

    The Meat man Supporter! Supporter

    I don't know if it holds true for modern coins, but I know for ancient coins, the obverse is defined as the anvil die, and the reverse the die that is placed over the planchet and struck.

    Lovely coin, by the way!
     
    The Meat man, Dec 24, 2025 at 1:41 PM
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