Post your earliest proof coin

Agree completely. Patterns are a fascinating area of US coins. In many cases, you sigh because of what could have been when comparing pattern designs with designs of circulating coins. Best way to start learning about patterns is to get the Judd book, which isn’t very expensive. It’s somewhat out of date, especially on values, but worth paging through it.

Main problem with patterns for most collectors is expense. There are a few that are still 3-figure coins. That’s about as cheap as it gets for problem-free coins. Patterns haven’t been appreciating in value as much as some other types like CC Morgans or early gold.

But you don’t have to own specific coins in order to admire and learn about them. I’ll never own a stella (it’s actually a pattern), but I enjoy reading about them and seeing them in auction sales.

Cal

 

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I used to have 1883 shield and no cents V nickels in proof but now this is my earliest proof

 

I concur fully. They're great, as they add a wonderfully broad spread of interest to a collection. I used to collect 2 denominations, but essentially got fed up with the serried ranks of things that differed little aside from the date. I went eclectic, trying not to duplicate designs and now have dozens of things that are both nice and different. My earliest is a 1660 Charles II pattern farthing following the Restoration of the Monarchy. Engraved by David Ramage and using the three pillars employed by him in the Commonwealth era, it wasn't adopted.


And seeing as this thread is mostly US collectors, an 1848 ONE DIME pattern 'Godless' florin seems apposite.

 

Beautiful coins. The Florin pattern is incredible and the Farthing is none too shabby either.

 

Thanks. I like it too. It's actually quite an informative coin concerning the chronology of the series. There are nearly 3 dozen discrete varieties for the series involving various combinations of 3 obverse dies and 3 basic reverse designs but with legend variations which it has been suggested were produced in sets, but this reverse die contradicts that theory.

The three obverses were the familiar adopted Gothic bust as seen on the currency florin and Gothic Crown of the previous year, the laureate head seen earlier and a filleted head seen here.


The reverse designs were as the adopted seen earlier, the VR monogram above and a variation on the wreath seen on shillings etc. I still need an example of the latter with the ONE CENTUM/100 MILLES legend paired with the adopted obverse, so no picture to hand.

Three of the varieties are mules of two different reverse dies. VR mongram both sides reading ONE FLORIN & ONE TENTH OF A POUND / ONE FLORIN & TWO SHILLINGS and two VR/Wreath pairs, one pair reading ONE DECADE and the other ONE CENTUM. The ONE DIME is notably absent. If you look at the ONE DIME reverse, you can see that DIME has been punched in over a filled FLORIN legend, so must be later than the bulk of the varieties. The reverse pairs had to be concurrent, and as one of them includes the ONE FLORIN reverse, the DIME must have been an afterthought. Probably significant is that the ONE DIME is only used on the adopted reverse, suggesting that choice had already been made regarding design, but not the legend nor the obverse, as all three obverses are paired with the ONE DIME reverse.

All in all a quite fascinating little group of patterns.

 

I’ve had and have quite a few proofs including some real eye candy but this my earliest

 

1799 silver pattern halfpenny by Fullerton, PR66Cam. This is also the silver version of Conder token Ayrshire 5.

 

1963 U.S. Proof Set in a Capital Plastics holder.

 

How about a proof set. Right click it and open a different window to see full size pics.

 

As you can see, I like proof coins. Here a few more to look at.

 

That’s a winner

 

Love the Abe cent.

 

Very nice but what about Abe

 

Just dumbfounded. An amazing collection

 

Nice coin. That's clearly a 19th century restrike by either Matthew Young or W J Taylor with the flaw below the bust. Interestingly it is also identifiable by the plumes in the second and third quarters which have a different stem arrangement to the 1799 struck coins, so the question is, who did it? My money would be on Taylor, he being a serial modifier of the Soho dies he acquired, and he was always trying to create varieties for collectors. I've only just noticed this, so if anyone has looked at this before and can definitively say which can be attributed to either of the two involved, I would like to know.

For comparison, I have this original proof striking in silver on a thin flan, ex Cockayne.


W J Davis in his book on 19th century tokens considered them to be pattern halfcrowns, but whatever, it is irrelevant as they didn't circulate.