Mail came through today and I finally got the package I've been waiting for over 2 weeks. First impressions: Obverse is a little more toned than the reverse, though both sides are rich in luster. This is not a particularly high relief coin by any means, so it doesn't photograph as well (especially with some toning), but in the hand it really comes to life. I know it's the "King of Commemorative Halves", and I genuinely like it, but I can already tell that it's not going to end up being my favorite....not when classic commemorative halves offer other coins with higher relief and plenty of art deco inspiration. That being said, this coin was a necessary step in my journey to collect a type set and while not my favorite so far from those I've acquired, it sits solidly in the middle of my current collection as far as what I like. I'm glad about that because it shows me that price tag isn't enough to sway me and make me like one coin over another, and that I can fairly judge my coins on their own merits regardless of value.
Holy Hawaiian Ham!! It's a sharp coin for sure. Not really knowing much about this coin, are these generally struck like this (weaker strike or low relief)?? Thanks!! Congrat's....
I believe these were all low relief and weak strike... and for whatever reason most surviving coins tend to be quite darkly toned. It's just the way it is. Here's about the clearest photo I've managed so far. I'll let you judge which one you like better out of the ones I've provided.
One of the reasons of holding off my purchase of one is that they're so danged expensive and I haven't come across any that I really like within my price constraints. Patience is a virtue, and unless you get something you really enjoy it becomes a waste of money. On the other hand, you have a bargaining chip for an upgrade in the future. It has been fun and entertaining tagging along with your journey, dear fellow. I hope you continue it......
Don't get me wrong, I am not disappointed with the coin's condition. The toning is not too dark and the coin has no major visual flaw. It is not an ugly coin... It's just that from a design and strike perspective, it is not at the top of my list of coins I've acquired so far. It sits somewhere near the middle. As far as upgrading it, I'm sure if I looked hard enough and was willing to cough up an extra $2,000 I could have gotten an MS-65 that was slightly brighter or whatever, but frankly my goal in this collecting journey is not to get the more blast white or the highest grade coin, but rather have fun and get coins I can live with and enjoy along the way. I'll leave the shinny fancy bug for my gold collection. Commemoratives is my fun side project.
Congrats! You picked up a more difficult part of the set. I also agree there are nicer classic commemoratives in the series but this one is decent too.
This is what the back of the holder looked like when I got it, real gunky and nasty. Not sure why dealers insist of stickering holders in the back like that. I freaking hate that. Removed the gunk with a swab and rubbing alcohol, and as you can see from my opening post, it cleaned up real nice.
A lot of these coins were stored on the islands where it is humid. Therefore they frequently are toned. The Dole Pineapple Company had a significant hoard of them which was partially sold at auction over 25 years ago. The auction catalog had one piece after another. I think that were a couple hundred of them. Overall I think that there were about 1,500 pieces in the hoard. The remarkable thing is that a bill got through Congress to authorize this coin. Hawaii was not even a state in 1928. If you thumb through the commemorative section in the Red Book, you will see lots of commemorative coins for cities and towns in New York State. The reason is New York had the largest delegation in Congress, and those guys had a lot of clout. The Hawaiian has long been an expensive coin. The issue price was $2 at a time when commemoratives frequently sold for $1.
Here's my piece. It's an NGC graded MS-64. I bought this when I was a dealer. It was part of a 50 piece set that I bought. I ended up feeling that I could afford to save it.
We missed a couple today Spanish brought $17,500 and Grant w/star 68 brought $6800! ouch. on Coin World
Kripes John, you bought 50 pieces? Surely you were entitled to one, and the best out of the lot I suspect.
