Anyone have an idea as to the value of a Yap (Rock) Coin?????

Hey Coin Talk Folks,

While selling coins at the Flea Market on Saturday, I received an interesting inquiry about the value of a Yap Coin! An elderly lady stated that she has a Yap Coin for sale and was needing to know what it's possible value. She and her deceased husband received the coin from the King of Yap back in the early 50's and since she is getting well up in age, she wants to sell the coin and get a fair price for it. She has been offered $500 for the coin which is about 12 inches in diameter and weighs around 25 (U.S.) pounds but believes that it is worth much, much more. Since these coins were banned from sell and export outside of Yap in the 1960's or earlier and very few examples are found outside of the Island of Yap, I believe that she is correct! Do you think that PCGS, NGC or ANACS would have a holder big enough to protect the coin and still have room for the label? LOL!!!!!!!!!!!! Since the Smithsonian would more than likely appraise the coin but expect the elderly lady to donate it to them, would she be better off consigning the coin to Heritage, Bowers & Merena or Goldberg Coins?

Any help and ideas would be appreciated! Thanks!


Frank

 

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Wow. Where is YAP??

 

I'd hope she has some type of provenance to authenticte it, Frank.
But yes. I agree that $500 wouldn't touch it.

 

Yap is located in the western Caroline Islands about 850 miles east of Mindanao in the Philippines (and probably about 1,500 miles or more South of the Southern Japenses islands) and is part of the Federated States of Micronesia!


Frank

 

I have not gotten that info from the elderly lady and did not think about it at the time! She was very open about all of the nice coins that she has and wants to sell and since there was a questionable character hanging around, listening to every word out of her mouth, I had to take her to the side and advise her not to be so open about the coins that she has. I also advised her to watch for this character or anyone else following her at the Flea Market or once she leaves!

She probably has some documentation to show that she and her husband was in Yap as they worked in close contact with the King and other Dignataries there and this is the reason the King presented the coin to them!


Frank

 

If she can prove that the King gave her that stone, then I would have to believe that a major auction house would definately be interested.

 

Yapese stone 'money' is regarded as being 'primitive money'.It isn't a coin as such.I didn't know that Yap has its own king.

Here's an article; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yap .

Aidan.

 

Weird, if you google 'King of Yap', the only name you see is David O'Keefe, who was declared dead (lost at sea) in 1901. That starts to poke holes in her story, nice as she sounds...
I wonder if they are authentic, and if she starts asking the wrong people too many questions, if it will be about as helpfull as sending in some 1933 Double Eagles to the mint so they can authenticate them?

 

The Island of Yap is part of the Federated States of Micronesia, and has its own constitutional government with three co-equal branches of government consisting of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches.

There is a guy who claims to be the exiled King.
You can go to his website and see what you think.

http://www.kingdomofyap.org/

 

When I was in college, I worked in the lunchroom with some guys from micronesia...Mitau, Judge, and Smither from the island of Truk and there was also a guy from Yap. He had a T-shirt he wore when he he wasnt working which had a guy sitting up against a large stone coin...I asked about it and thats when I learned about the funky money.

They were...odd...They loved beer and pork, they have real basic shaped tattos (a few of them on the face) and they played music together using a guitar with 2 strings (I taped a few songs). Oh....and they LOVED beer.....a lot.

I hung out with them (the guys from truk) who all lived in the same house. The guy from Yap lived alone...and was a biker, he also liked beer a lot and had a mac-11 and a bunch of knives and a bad temper...they all acted very strange when drunk, almost scared me.

They would do stick dancing on campus here and there...on the whole nice guys...I discovered they are pretty much just like american citizens, they can join the army (one did)...I think they just cant vote or run for office...

and that is my experience with the guys from Micronesia...

Oh...and one of those stone coins would go for a lot I am sure...they are very rare and the guy from yap said they are protected from leaving the island...

 

Frank:
Wow, that is just about the first time that I have ever heard of someone who actually had one of the Yap coins available, outside of Yap of course.
Good luck.

 

Aidan,

As with most of the Polynesian and Micronesian Island chains, there was a ruling Hierarchy such as Kings and Chiefs in the Islands of Yap for hundreds of years! However, as we all know too well, the interference from many other Countries such as Germany, Spain, Japan and the United States as well as the United Nations itself, has changed and shaped the Political makeup of Yap. I believe that the last (real) known and recognized King of the Yap Islands, served into the 1950's and then the Politics changed and the ruling by Kings was ended. Below is a link with a picture of (probably) the last known (recognized) King of the Yap Islands (2nd picture down) as well as other pictures of some of the ruling Counsel and Chiefs (the 1st picture with the King). The first picture caption has the King's name spelled as King Weeg and the second picture has it spelled as King Ueg but I am almost certain that both pictures are of the same person!

http://www.pacificworlds.com/yap/visitors/people.cfm


Frank

 

I would seriously be saying it would be worth $4000-$6000....

 

Frank,that was a very interesting link.The institution of chieftainship remains very important in the British Commonwealth Pacific Islands states,especially in Fiji,Tonga,Western Samoa,& in Vanuatu.Maori chieftainship is recognised in New Zealand,but there is no constitutional recognition like there is in Fiji.

Aidan.