Maybe because it truly is “the final frontier,” the fascination with outer space continues to soar. Last week, I mentioned an envelope that flew to the moon aboard Apollo 11 that’s ready to cross the auction block for at least $20,000 to $30,000.

A few weeks ago, four gold and silver coins minted to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the founding of Jamestown returned to Earth after traveling 6 million miles to the International Space Station and back aboard the space shuttle Atlantis. Those coins aren’t slated to be sold but will be on display at the Jamestown, Va., museum. (more…)

This one-day workshop, presented for only the fourth time ever, is a follow-up of the introductory course that has been presented by the C.N.A. in the past 6 years.  The workshop,  sponsored by the Canadian Numismatic Association will be held Saturday, November 10, 2007 from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the  Humber College 205 Humber College Blvd. Etobicoke, Ontario.

The original course was the first of its kind in the history of the Canadian Numismatic Association and this follow-up workshop delves much deeper into the technical aspects of coin grading, counterfeit detection, fakes and alterations, authentication and coin & paper money preservation. (more…)

IRVINE, Calif. – Bowers and Merena Auctions, America’s leading rare coin auction house, will auction the first known uncut sheet of Nationals from a rare McDowell County, W.Va., issuer. The sheet of four $5 1902 Plain Backs is from the First National Bank of Kimball, an institution previously represented in the census by only a single large size and a lone 1929 series survivor. Bowers and Merena is the Official Auctioneer of the Baltimore Coin and Currency Convention scheduled for November 14 to 17, 2007, at the Baltimore, Md., Convention Center. The Kimball sheet is one of more than 1,000 currency lots and 3,000 coin lots that will cross the block.

Kevin Foley, Senior Numismatist – Rare Currency for Bowers and Merena, noted that the sheet has been in the consignor’s family since the time it originally was received by his grandfather when he went to the First National Bank to cash his paycheck. Foley said, “Our consignor’s grandfather operated a jewelry store and four-table billiard parlor in Kimball, and when he wrote his weekly paycheck to himself he would go to the bank to cash it. One day the teller handed him the sheet we’ll be selling in Baltimore as part of the transaction. Observing what had happened, a bank officer approached him and tried to get the sheet back, telling him that they weren’t supposed to hand it out to the public. He declined to return it, figuring that if the bank wanted it back, it must be special. As it turns out, it was more special than he ever could have realized.”

“This will be a real trophy item for any collector of National Bank Notes,” said Steve Deeds, Bowers and Merena President. “We are thrilled to say that the November Baltimore auction will be our largest auction ever, and that includes almost 1,100 currency lots. To have this uncut sheet of West Virginia Nationals that is so rare as the centerpiece of our currency section is really quite prestigious.” (more…)

(Newport Beach, California) – Would a damaged dollar be worth only 96.5 cents if 3.5 percent of it is missing? When it’s a clipped planchet error it’s worth more than a buck.

Professional Coin Grading Service has certified two of the recently-released 2007-D Thomas Jefferson dollar coins with nearly identically-located 3.5 percent, semi-circular planchet clips.

“Both coins were discovered in a government-sealed ‘first day of issue’ box as part of a bulk submission sent in by someone who wants to remain anonymous. The graders were surprised to find not one, but two Jefferson dollars with curved planchet clips along the top left edge of the coins when viewed from Jefferson’s portrait,” said Ron Guth, PCGS President.

One coin was graded PCGS MS-66, the other was MS-67.

A clipped planchet, also known as an incomplete planchet error, occurs during the minting process when the coin blank (planchet) is not correctly punched out from a strip of metal. The clip can be curved or straight depending on where it occurred on the strip. In some cases, a planchet clip also can be caused when a struck coin is not properly ejected from the coining press. (more…)