Most amazing America the Beautiful 5 ouncer you've seen

Saw this on another forum... simply amazing!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/331793562829/?orig_cvip=true&rmvSB=true

 

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More like unusual and/or unique than amazing.

It would have been amazing if this was a result of mint error.

 

$2000+ seems... okay, for an effort of this caliber, I think it actually seems pretty reasonable. I'm in no position to bid, but that's a really impressive piece of work.

 

I'd rather have the piece sans jig saw cuts,and in original condition. And without the huge pricetag. I don't follow these, so let me know people....... What do these things cost in original condition?

 

Depending on which one, slightly more than the price of silver. This is much more unique.

 

Unique perhaps, but not worthy of my consideration. Others may find it 'fetching'........

 

If you look at it purely as an art piece, it could probably fetch a lot of money in the right market. Hobo nickels sell for far above the price of nickel for the same reason. This example isn't my cup of tea, but there's a lot of skill involved by the artists, and that's is pretty awesome to me.

 

The store that sells it is http://www.kittlecoins.com/! Great person who ownes the store

 

Very cool piece of art! I wouldn't spend ~$2K for something like this, but I respect the artistry.

 

Each individual puzzle piece was engraved by a different hobo nickel carver. The proceeds of the sale are going to a member of the Original Hobo Nickel Society and fellow coin carver who is living with Lime disease.

 

Mike kittle has a guy in his coin club that makes awesome hobo type coins. I almost bought a Morgan hobo'd with the likeness of The Dude from The Big Lebowski from him but it had a $300 tag and I just couldn't justify to myself paying that kind of a premium. Mike asked if I'd like to join his club but I'm over an hour away... maybe I should

 

Well that puts a whole different perspective to it in more ways than one. I hope it reaches $5k+ now

 

Nice piece of work but I'm more impressed with depression era hobo nickels. Today we have jigsaws, lasers, all manner of power tools, vices, clamps, modern lighting, magnifiers, etc. Back in the day, hobos scratched out the images on a hand held nickel using a pointed makeshift tool like a needle or pin. Today nickel carvers just grind the nickel smooth to start with a clean slate. Back then they worked with the image on the coin and modified it into something else. It wasn't done for profit, it was just a pastime. To me, that was true folk art. Today it's just product

 

I don't normally comment on an opinion, but when there is faulty information I sometimes will. Many early hobo nickels show signs of professional tools being used and several early pieces also are known to have been photo etched, not something that the average train hopper had at his disposal. Cutting a coin with a needle and hand held nickel? I don't know where you heard this but based on personal experience, I doubt that was ever done. Today's carvers use tools ranging from sharpened nails through high buck hand held pneumatic engravers, I personally use gravers and the hammer and chisel method, no power. Old pieces were sometimes smoothed down (nicknamed carver "smoothie" is one example) as are some new ones, but most carvers now as well as then do not start with a flat surface. I teach hobo nickel carving at the ANA summer seminar and each student starts out with hand held, hand made tools and then has the opportunity to try power tools. So far, most of my students took the class for fun and a possible pastime, not for financial gain, although that was and is still a valid reason to carve a coin.

 

My grandfather rode the rails for years during the depression. He is 103 yrs old now, still sharp with a wealth of knowledge about hobo life and culture. He has a marvelous collection of nickels that he carved along with many carved by his peers. I'm just saying what he tells me and by what I see looking at them under magnification. He said it was a long slow process done mainly out of boredom. It wasn't until hobbyists started making them that all the short cuts came about. Those made by hobbyists are not really hobo nickels... by definition. Are you trying to tell me they photo etched nickels back in the depression? I don't believe it... somebody has a far fetched imagination.

 

Yup, there was an article on the photo etched pieces in an issue of Bo Tales a couple of years ago. They were still in the family of the man who made them, I think he owned a printing company or something similar. Your grandfather is an actual period carver of hobo nickels? That is so cool, you're right, he must be a wealth of knowledge. Have you ever thought of interviewing him for an article? There is so little written from the viewpoint of the people who were there and knew about, let alone made the coins. Do you have pictures of his pieces and the pieces his friends made? The OHNS people would be jumping for joy if it turned out that their pieces could be identified by style as having been done by your grandfather or one of his friends. It would just be awesome to see these carvings!

 

In May we're having a family gathering for his 104th Bday. I'll be flying to Arizona to stay with him and my dad a couple days. I'll take some pictures. Never thought of a interview. I'll talk to him. It would be a good one. Carving coins goes back a lot further than the depression. I've seen a bustie and some seated liberties that were carved. There is some name for it, you probably know it, I can't remember. I think it's a French word. Most of the depression era carvers like grandpa didn't know about this. They were just passing time altering buffalo nickels.

 

Did he carve any tramp art too? If he road the rails they would break pieces off of wooden crates and carve boxes or picture frames etc out of them with pocket knives usually in a geometric spikey block pattern.

You should ask grandpa if he'd like to be interviewed by a professional from the OHNS or a Coin World reporter etc. for posterity. He's one of only very few left, maybe the last, from that period. Here's to hoping he makes 110!

 

Not so much tramp art, just nickels and a few other coins, mostly nickels though. His main thing was whittling which he still does. He and dad are a bit reclusive but I'm real close with them. I'll ask about an interview. It's hard to get him started but once he does, he's full of amazing stories.

 

On first inspection this piece could easily be passed over without much thought, perhaps that is what many on this thread have done. But after looking at it for over 30mins, I can truthfully say that is the most impressive numismatic art I have ever seen.

One thing that I really enjoyed was seeing how each piece was finished differently....Satin, Antiqued, Brushed, buffed to look proof, and one with the inlay. All the different carving styles from "Bright cut" techniques, figural, just EVERYTHING!

Those jigsaw puzzle coins are fun and with the right equipment, wouldn't be very difficult to make, but then to have each of those talented carvers put there own stamp on it, wow. It is remarkable, what a fantastic piece of art!