As my collecting emphasis moves away from my long-held Indian and early Lincoln sets and toward type, I figured I'd let my avatar reflect that shift and show a recent new purchase. I'm expecting this one to arrive in my P.O. box tomorrow. It's an 1853 trime (silver three cent piece) graded PCGS AU-58. Wonderful strike, very problem-free surfaces, and ex-Eliasberg to boot (it was lot 862 in the May 1996 Eliasberg sale). I'm looking forward to getting it!
That's a b e a uty there ziggy, I know how the whole shift change goes from lincolns to another type coinage such as 3 cent pieces, or in my case high grade barber coinage, it deffinatley is a slight increase in prices, but, there is something about those little silver doo das that seems so right eh? Have you started collecting any half cents? I know that was a good way to ease my craving for wanting some high end older wheaties, but, at the same time kind of straying away from something I collected for years, still keeping with the copper coins, but, having some very nice high end pieces that are differant.
Nice coin, Ziggy. Another good thing about slabs is it makes it harder to lose those little buggers. When you're done with the type set, you ought to crack 'em all out and see how many get upgraded to MS grades!!
Another one of my fairly new purchases is an 1833 half cent, also PCGS AU-58 (attached, as is a bigger shot of the trime, obverse and reverse). Nah, it's the crackout artists that make the really nice 58s hard to find.
Atta-boy Ziggy. Once you step out of the mainstream coins, there is really a whole new world of beauty.
Congrats ziggy - gorgeous coin !! But you just wait - now that you're branching out - I'll have ya goin darkside soon
Darkside, eh? I gotta learn to walk before I run. I'm a little interested in ancients, I guess, but for the most part I haven't gotten into the dark side yet. I received the trime in the mail yesterday and the half cent today (in addition to a PCGS AU-58 1971-D Ike that seriously looks MS-65). I'm a happy guy. The trime was everything the picture shows. The half cent is even *better* that I expected. The spots on the obverse aren't really as noticeable as in the picture, the luster is still essentially full and cartwheeling on both obverse and reverse, and there are pretty hints of blue and olive toning, depending on how its viewed. I want to get a better picture of this one, one that captures the life in it. I honestly don't see the rub; this coin looks like an easy MS-63BN to me. I won't say much about the Ike since it doesn't thrill me (but I need it for the type set) other than to say that I think someone thought they had a slam-dunk MS-65, shrieked in horror at the AU-58 label and cut their losses. (In truth, if you look at the coin in a specific angle, you can *barely* see a trace of rub on Ike's cheekbone. And I do mean "barely.") Other than that it looks solid MS-65 through and through, and it was nice enough that I paid MS-64 money for it (which isn't much for a common date Ike). I also have another one coming soon from the Superior pre-Long Beach auction, a 1917 Type 1 SLQ graded PCGS AU-58FH. That should come early next week. As you can see, I'm still in the early stage of this collection where I can find appropriate pieces I need fairly easily. At some point, it will become much harder, I'm sure, and not just financially.
Pictures! Where are the pictures? Ignore this post - I forgot that you had put pictures in the beginning of the thread.
No, I won't ignore it. Here's a sneak preview of the SLQ I should be receiving around next Monday or Tuesday:
I love it! I especially like the golden perimeter toning. There's something about the SLQ design that I have always liked. I can't put my finger on it. I think part of it is the eagle in flight on the reverse. I'm very happy for you and your new acquisitions.
Thanks. It was the toning that reeled me in on this one. I'm not a big fan of "monster toners," but I'm an absolute sucker for this type of toning -- prominent yet not overpowering on the rims, gently giving way to lighter shades as you move toward the center of the coin and then a nice white center. To me this is just what a nearly 90-year-old coin in this state of preservation should look like.
i consider any toning ugly i prefer blast white or a natural dirt patina . toning just reminds me of the discouloured edges of a flange weld
Subtle toning has always been a weakness for me. The closest I came to monster toning was my avatar. That was a coin that we sold for a client. The subtle rainbow got me - especially knowing that it was natural. You definitely have a good eye!
Love that Quarter Ziggy. They are sooooo cool. Grats to ya. That 3 center is neat too. Small suckers. I haven't found one yet but I will. The half cent is neat too. Love old coins.
