Holed/pierced coins

That's a beautiful coin. The coloration is particularly nice. The jewelry mounting grooves add visual interest -- I agree.

 

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It's interesting to read comments here about the acceptability of holed coin collections when virtually nobody here ever admits to the acceptability of buying cleaned coins, which is a lesser form of damage.

 

Let me guess: SGS slab, MS-69?

 

Funny. MS-69 "for the type."

The above plugged gem is the ugliest Bust dollar I've ever seen, which is why I had to have it. Want to guess how much it cost me? I won't be insulted by any deliberate lowball guesses...

 

(Large) cents (and occasionally tokens) used to be nailed over the doors of barns for good luck. I have a few cwts that have two holes close together in the center, I imagine for use as a button. A couple of others have a hole in the center and crude teeth cut around the rim for some sort of sprocket/gear.

I'll admit it, I have many cleaned/damaged items in my collection. When many of the token populations are only in the single, double or triple digits, I thought it best to acquire what I could as it became available.

 

I have a friend who is putting together a type set of holed coins, also a date set of Indian cents and various date sets of Seated coins.
He enjoys the challenge.

 

I have a large cent on my key chain, and collect a few every now and then for that reason, makes an inexpensive gift too.

 

I think this may be because people don't want to encourage the cleaning of coins. It's seen as something that unscroupulous dealers and sellers do. Over time, it will degrade the coins, even if it makes them better in the short-term.

In contrast, no one drills a hole in a coin with the intention of improving its apperance or getting more money for it from a coin collector.

 

The legend behind holed conis was that prople holed them and then tied them together so that they wouldn't lose them.
This was always the theory, and about twnety years ago someone went to an antique store and found an old Civil War uniform and found a group of holed coins tied together with a string in one of the pockets.
So, perhaps, the theory was proved to be true.

 

It would also be a good way to "shave" coins, to remove from the hole rather than scraping it off the edges.

 

Perhaps it looked similar to this.

 

I have never seen anyone complete a set like this before.
I have a friend who is working on one, a type set like this, plus a date set of dimes and quarters for the Seated Type.
Nice set.