I don`t collect foreign coins, but I just picked up a nice 1975 Russian proof set with some really nice toning on 4 of the coins. ($5 for the set) I did a brief search online and did not even find a single pic of them. What are these former commies worth? (Right about now I wish I had the World Book.) :headbang: Thanks for the help.
Well it`s better than the $5 I paid for it. lol. The toning is what caught my eye, I like em regardless. Thanks vnickels.....I appreciate it.
I have never heard about a mint set from soviet period that is worth $8, not even mentioning proof sets. vnickels: Which book did you use?
Found it, thanks a lot. And by the way, those prices are quite unrealistic. Prices for mint sets are staring from $20 in my area (its cheaper here than online). On eBay they start from $20-45 and can go up to $150.
Good call taxidermist... Russian coin collector here as well, and those mint sets usually go for $40. I have not seen one cheaper than that in a while, and $40 isn't the limit - I've seen them go for $50+ on occassions too. Nice find for $5. You can keep them if the coins have a nice enough toning that it appeals to you, or you can always flip the set on ebay and profit by $30 or so.
I don't mean to ask things of you, but if you have time you should consider posting pictures. I've never even thought of the SU having a proof set, that is very interesting.
I`m not home too much as of late.....but I will get try to get some good pics of it. Toning is difficult for me to capture pics of with my camera, but I will give it a go in a few days or so. Thanks to all who responded to my question.
Russian coinage was extremely lightly saved and the mint sets were widely dispersed and suffered very high attrition. Dealers often cut these sets up and threw them in poundage and the tokens from the sets are often seen for sale by token and medal dealers. Mintages were low enough that attrition simply left few of these around and the demand is growing. Imagine such a large country as Russia with just a few thousand of each of their Soviet era coins surviving in unc. It should be noted that the attrition on the circulated pieces is extreme since the bulk were melted down to make consumer products. The coins are still fairly common in worn out condition but pristine examples are elusive. Mint set coins were very finely made and are often mistaken for proofs. Large percentages of these were sold in the US and some were sold world wide. Typical unc coins just aren't seen in unc and aren't available in Russia either. Some of the mint sets were packaged in degradable plastic (foam rubber) that will have destroyed the coins by now. This mostly applies to the older sets from the '60's and early '70's. I believe many of the Russian sets were packaged abroad.
