Tell me the story behind your best purchase (PRIZE)

One of my favorite parts of being a member on this forum is reading all the stories about how people run across coins that become the prize of their collection, or just another coin in their collection with an interesting background. I really just love a good read about anything, but coins just get me up and going.
Please tell me a story about one coin in your collection and how you came to acquire it, pictures would be preferred as well.
I WILL be awarding at least one prize for this contest, although the prize is undecided at this point. All I can say is it probably won't be as pretty as the coin the winner posts.

 

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I have purchased 3 1911 $2 1/2 Indians that have graded as 1911-D weak D. 2 xf45 and one AU55. Turning $200ish into those was nice (sold the AU for $2,500+, still have both xf45s.) Also bought a raw 1914 $2 1/2 Indian That graded 62 or 63, and sold for a couple grand if I remember. Purchased for about $260. Whoo hoo!

 

Building a Presidential Dollar set with Pcgs and
Sold a MS-67 2009-P Zachary Taylor Position A, for 5000.00 Dollars .

Only had 15 dollars in coin and grading fees .

 

It's probably not the prettiest coin and I've shown it on here before I think.

So it was 2009, the summer before my senior year of high school. I like looking in antique stores for coins and one locally always had coins. This time they didn't have much to look at but I wanted to get something cause I had money burning a hole in my pocket. So I had the guy working, to open a case for me. It was literally all junk. I looked through it for at least five minutes and couldn't find anything. However, I hate looking through coins like that with the guy standing there watching me, and then I don't buy anything. So I like to get something just as a courtesy to the store.

There was this 1833 large cent that I had been eyeing the whole time in this case. It's price said $25 but it was in really poor shape. It was cheap enough so I picked it up and looked over the obverse. It wasnt really a coin I was interested in until I turned it over. And then I almost fell over. I flipped it back around and checked the price again. I even had the guy standing there make sure it was $25. I said I'd take it paid and left really quick. I was really excited. It was easily the most valuable coin I ever had at the time. Still my best find to date.

Here she is:

1833 large cent. N-5. Double struck with obverse brockage.
ANACS VG-8 details bent???

I think where they say it's bent is the indent on the reverse by AM which is where the brockage is on the other side. So whatever. Still one of my favorite coins ever.

 

Well I have good stories about buying a coin for a handful of dollars and selling it for hundreds but I don't really care about those.
My story is the chase for a 1925 Australian Penny. It's the 2nd rarest date and usually retails for a couple of hundred. But since I'm in college and unable to spend a lot of money I've been chasing one of these for 3 years. Earlier this year I was able to win one on ebay for less than $30. One of the pride and joys of my collection. And it's a "weak N' variety.

 

My story comes from pawn store shopping. I had just started collecting coins. The first series I began collecting and studying was Jefferson nickels. A friend of mine knew I was collecting coins and turned me on to a stash at a pawn shop. We arrive at the pawn shop, him and I, to a trove of coins. The most I had seen at that time. I dig through them and find mostly junk. Except for this one bag. This bag was marked $10.00. Great another marked up bag of junk. Then, I see the date, then the mint mark. I put everything else back in the case and purchase the bag of six nickels and one wheat cent.

I sold the lowest graded coin. I gave one coin(graded) to my buddy for a finder's fee. I kept the nicest one raw. The other three are in my possession in NGC holders. They graded the highest. I don't know what happened to that cent.

 

1806 O-127a R-7
1806
O-127a

R-7

Grade: G-4
[Note: no condition census given for die state. However, O-127: 20,20,15,12,12)
Obverse: 12-s2
Reverse: H

Diagnostics:
Obverse: Die Crack, Y above T at top.
Reverse: Berries do not have stems.








Value?

Undetermined, even auction sales are scarce on this die marriage.

 

or this one:

[hard to believe]

was at a coin/pawn shop about 10+ years ago, [I just checked, it was 1996] and spotted a 1909 S Lincoln.

I had never owned one before and at $40, which was bid at the time, I just had to get it.

Long story short, I thought that I saw the infamous VDB on the reverse, but I wasn't sure.

So, when the ANA was in NYC about 10 years ago, I stopped at NGC's booth for their opinion, and they agreed.

So, I submitted it for slabbing.


This is when I got back in the mail:









Yeah, I know, very blurry.

 

Ever since I was young around 10 years old and started collecting coins I dreamed of one day getting a St Gaudens 20$ gold coin. Well fast forward 35 years after and though I had many coins I still didn't own the one coin I dreamed of. I began dating a girl that had elderly parents and I ended up doing a lot for them fixed there car mowed grocery shopped and so on. One day my girlfriend said we are going to go to her home state New Hampshire to meet her older brother. She had told him that I just bought a new gold pan and was going to try my luck at panning for gold. He suggested that I bring my new pan and told her to tell me that there is gold in NH.
Well I was excited to try this and the first day we were there I tried it spent that whole day trying with no luck. The next day we drove up to meet her brother he told her to have me bring my pan and said he knew a spot I might find some. After meeting him he told me to go down this hill to the creek and try there it was known to have gold in it. He went for a walk with his sister and about an hour later he come back and yelled down to me have you found any gold? I told him not yet but I am still trying. He then asked me to come up there to where he was at I said all the way up there and he said yes come here. I went up there and he looked at me and said hold your hand out. So I held my hand out and he placed a MS St Gaudens in my hand and said now you found your gold. I just started shaking as I knew right away that he just gave me the coin I have wanted my whole life. I looked at him and asked why are you giving this to me and he said this doesn't even begin to repay you for what you have done for my parents. I am currently working out of state so I don't have a picture of it but as you all can guess it is my most prized possession and I collect many things coins being my favorite though. And this coin to me is the most beautiful coin ever struck. Hope my story doesn't bore the hell out of people but this was how I obtained my prize possession. I am truly grateful for what he did for me as he felt the same about what I did for his parents, PS I have now found gold panning for it so much fun.

 

1832 half dime

 

I was at my very first Coin Show in Buffalo, NY. I had kept all my, small amount, of world coins kept in a tin box since I was of single digit age and had finally decided to become a real collector. Imagine my surprise when I found this beautiful coin. Not only was it in great condition but I saw it had my last name across the top lol. Out of some 900+ countries on my to be collected list, I now have around 1/3rd of the list collected but, aside from my ancient coins, this is my favorite.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk

 

Gosh a lot of good ones so far!
It will be hard to pick out of these but I will make my decision in a week from today.

 

do you have to show a pic?

 

No

 

I bought a 1850 half dime from K2coins for $7 ?? It was the best purchase that I have made in my coin history!!

 

One time, I was at a coin show, and a coin dealer gave me a chocolate coin with gold foil. As I was walking around the coin show, a dealer attempted to hand me a mylar coin flip to protect the coin, when I proceeded to explain that it was just chocolate =) I have delt with, and bought coins from the dealer sense including an 1836 8 realz piece!

 

In 2007 I bought a roll of cents to hunt for RPM's and ended up finding this beauty....


It was featured in all the major numismatic magazines. After exhibiting it at the NENA confrence in 2008 (1st place) and the 2010 Worlds Fair of Money (2nd in class) i eventually sold it for $4000.

 

In the 1970's I was a paper boy. Back then every one gave the paperboy the same gift; a box of twenty rolls of life savers. I had 80 customers and would get about 40. (I hate life savers to this day.)
One of my customers was an old man who lived on the top floor of a four story boarding house. He claimed he had bad legs so insisted I bring his paper to his door. I did that for four years.
Christmas the last week I ever delivered his paper he handed me a rectangular box (life saver size), and told me I must open when I got home. I got there and opened the box. Inside was a note that said, "Sorry kid, I got a sweet tooth but here you like coins hope this makes up for it."
There is no candy but there is a small black jewelers box. Inside is a 1921-s choice fine Walking Liberty Half.
I am sorry no pictures. That coin bought my daughter Christmas in 1984, but that is another story. (Although I will add I could pick that coin out of a line up anywhere, I think I wore it down one half grade just by staring at it so much.)