I have a german 50 pfennig piece without a date. Does anyone know if this was common? it is a post war era coin.
No, it is not common, but it is not unheard of either. Can you tell me exactly what the legend says on your coin, and which letter is it that is directly under the 50? Ian
sure can ...it is a standard "Bank Deutscher lander" with the woman kneeling,planting on the front. Bank mint is a "J" it also seems to have another strike mark on the front.
In which case it is definitely a 1949J (minted at Hamburg). This issue (one year only) has noted missing dates, exactly how much of a premium it would command over the dated variety I could not in all honesty say. Could you provide scans of the coin so I can have a look at it's over all condition and to see if there are any signs of the coin having been altered? Ian
I have pictures but have trouble uploading to this site. If you like I can e-mail the scans to you...just send me an address and I will get them out.
I just tried to email you. You do not appear to allow emails to be sent to you via the board. Send me an email and i will respond. Ian.
OK, here's a cropped image of the obverse of your 1949J 50 pfenning coin. I've been in touch with a colleague in Germany who has advised me that according to the German magazine `The MünzenRevue ' (which has a price index each month which also covers (some) errors and irregularities) Quote: "Mutilated or hardly legible figures in the year are due to heavily used and dirty dies. Coins dated 1949 with such flaws are not rare. Add 5 to 10 euro to the listed price. That also applies to the later years." Your coin is a VF.... but with gouges in it! Ordinarily an unmarked VF is only worth about $0.75 (with a date). Without a date, well....the above says it all. Expect between $5 - $10 (I would say closer to $5 with the couple of gouges I can see (not on the cropped image). Just my opinion though. Ian
actually the coin looks like it was stuck in the die and the extractor impacted it. there is a complete circle (smaller) in the center and then the gouges on the side. still looks unusual
Maybe if you asked about it in the `error coin' forum you might get some more information on your coin (as to cause etc) . The lack of date is definitely down to filled dies though. Ian
