On most coin forums, I have noticed that collectors like to create "best of (insert year)" to show off some of the treasures they have acquired over the past year. I enjoy these as I often miss new posts in the "most recently acquired threads" and it allows me to see the progress a specific collector has made on their goals in a given year. Although I have shared most of these already, here are my top 10 in the order in which I acquired them. Which are your favorites? 1799 Great Britain Soho Bronzed Proof Restrike Halfpenny P-1258 (NGC PF-64 BN) pictures from Heritage 1797 Great Britain Tuppence (NGC MS-63 BN) 1799 Great Britain Copper Farthing P-1278 Ex. Boulton With Shells (Raw) 1808 India 10 Cash Madras Presidency Ex James Watt Jr. (NGC PF-65 BN) 1791 Jean Jacques Rousseau Medal By Dumerest Ex. Boulton (Raw) 1805 Ireland Penny (NGC MS-64 RB) 1800 George III Preserved from Assassination Medal With Shells (Raw) 1800 Westminster Fire Office Medal With Wrapper and Shells Ex. James Watt Jr. (Raw) 1803 National Edition of Shakespeare's Works Silver With shells (Raw) 1799 Great Britain Halfpenny (NGC MS-66 RB)
That is a fantastic list. REALLY hard to pick. The 1808 10 cash is my favorite though. The Tuppence is a close 2nd. I love the coins with the Soho shells and if I found one with a set that was attractive, I'd be all over it as a type, you've really made me interested in them. Congrats!!
@kazuma78 so what you are saying is I have more competition now? All jokes aside, I am glad that you find them intriguing.
They are all cool! I only voted for my #1 favorite, the 1808 10 Cash. I'm not sure I can give a specific reason as to why besides it speaks to me a bit more than the others.
All superb coins. You're going to have a hard time topping this year I think. Those Ex. Watts and Boulton pieces are superb and unique. Congrats!
Much to my dissatisfaction, there are not many resources for Irish copper, much less any work specific to the Soho issues. Most of the significant works on the Soho Mint only provide a short paragraph or two at most. I am not sure how frequently they replaced the dies or how many were even used to fulfill the order. From what I can gather, the Soho Archives are very extensive, and likely include all of these answers and more. Unfortunately, they have not been digitalized, so I have not had the opportunity to investigate them. I did note a few differences between this example and another I have in my collection. The strike is far superior, and some of the more minute details appear on this example but not the other.
The result of the engravers' art is a testament to his ability to produce a stunning dimensional image.
