I have a co-worker who is planning to go visit her relatives in Japan next month. She is willing to look for some coins for me while she is there. I am doing some research on what I want her to look for. Since my area of interest is World Silver and my budget will be limited to say $150, what would you have her bring back? I am thinking maybe a trade dollar, with or without chop marks. A silver 1 Yen or maybe even a Samurai bar. What do you think?
There are some small rectangular gold and silver bars, I think like Ripley is refering to, that would be interesting and not too expensive. The 1 yen silver from the late 1800's and early 1900's are really nice silver crowns.
Those are the 1 and 2 bu and shu hammered coins of the last years of the Tokugawa Shogunate (generally mid-19th Century). I agree that for a little dabble in Japanese coinage a few of them would be ideal. High grade silver yen from the late 19th-early 20th Centuries are likely to exhaust your budget very, very quickly, and no early gold milled coinage is going to be available within budget. A word of warning - DO NOT buy coins from hotel bellhops, or anywhere else other than an established B&M shop, or you're very likely to wind up with Chinese production items, not Japanese Mint products. Depending on where you will be traveling, I may be able to recommend a good shop or two. If interested, PM me with details of your itenerary.
Take a look on ebay and see what you like. You may be able to buy a 50 Sen Silver Coin, very nice or a Japanese Trade Dollar but I don't know what the normal retail price for those are. I bought this little coin box for around $50. There's a couple on ebay right now, one for $75 and the other one for $99. You can most likely get the coin box cheaper in Japan, I mean if you want one. I actually bought it for my wife, but she don't know yet so I may just keep it.
The Japan Mint has 3 shops in Tokyo, Osaka and Hiroshima as well. They sell stuff at the shops you can't buy direct from outside Japan.
When I went to Japan many moons ago, i was just walking through a department store and happened to see a counter where they were selling coins. I bought one of the large oval bronzes with the square hole for 1200 yen, and I think the yen was at like 120-150 yen to the dollar then.
Department store coin counters are not the best source in Japan. Your significantly overpriced 100 mon coin is a good example of why I say that.
She is going to be in Aomori with possible a side trip to Hachinohe. I think I best keep it simple and have her pick me up some of the small brass, silver, and gold bars. Too much risk( and not fair to her) in expecting her to be able to select an authentic coin. I will have her bring me some of the current currency.
At today's exchange rate (~92 cents) perhaps 600 yen. Unfortunately I don't know any shops in Aomori Province.
In the World Money Fair catalog I read that the Japan Mint is going to set up a web store. Not sure whether this is interesting for anybody here, but just in case ... Christian
