We recently acquired and then immediately placed with a private collector this unique $3 piece. This "pattern" is really a die trial piece struck on a nickel planchet. There are several known in copper and a few in aluminum but this is the only piece known struck in nickel. What I personally think makes this coin even cooler it tis pedigree. This coin is from the Bob Simpson collection but it was also owned by King Farouk of Egypt. For those of you that are unacquainted with King Farouk, he was quite the collector in his day before he was deposed in a coup in 1952. Among the other coins the King held is his possession is the infamous, and only legally owned 1933 Double Eagle that recently sold for over $18 Million.
Cool piece. Interesting they would make one in nickel considering all of the hassles the mint was having striking in that metal at the time. Of course, any King Farouk piece is special given its unique relationship with the 1933 double eagle.
Do you know what they were attempting to discover by striking this in copper, aluminum and nickel? It wasn't for the $3 gold as a pattern as you mentioned since the mint had been striking these since 1854. Couldn't be for the FE and Indian Cent Cu-Ni pieces. Nickel 3- cents and 5 - cent pieces had been in production since 1865 and 1866 respectively.
I think most of that "scruffy" is just the result of the poor striking up of the nickel which therefore didn't eliminate all the surface marks in the planchet.
