by Greg Reynolds for CoinLink

On Thursday, Jan. 10, in Orlando, an extremely rare pattern cent was auctioned. It is historically important as a central component in the series of the events that brought about the first widely circulating, official coinage of the United States. The auction of this 1792 cent pattern for $603,750 set auction records in several categories, as will be discussed below.

Photos and descriptions used with permission and courtesy of Heritage Auction Galleries

Matthew Kleinsteuber, an analyst and buyer for NFC Coins, examines most American coins in almost all major auctions. Kleinsteuber declares that this 1792 pattern “is a priceless historical artifact that is worth whatever a serious collector of Americana can afford to pay.” It “relates to the beginnings of America’s coinage and the struggles of the early years of America as a new nation.”

This 1792 cent pattern is of the so-called ‘fusible alloy’ issue, though it might not be made of a ‘fusible alloy’ at all. The considered idea was to seamlessly combine (fuse) silver and copper into an alloy.

Before ‘fusible alloy’ patterns, there were minted silver-center cent patterns. A small drop of silver was placed in the center of an otherwise copper cent. The bullion value of the silver was three-fourths of one cent while the surrounding copper was worth one-fourth of a cent. Hence, each cent with a silver-center would be worth one cent, not by decree, but by metallic or bullion content. (more…)

In June and July of 2008 the ANS is moving into a wonderful new space at One Hudson Square in Manhattan. This means, unfortunately, that the Eric P. Newman Summer Graduate Seminar in Numismatics, usually held during those months, is cancelled for 2008.

In June and July of 2009 we shall resume with an expanded seminar that, in addition to teaching students the mechanics and methodologies of numismatics, serves to introduce them to the wider social, historical, and economic context of monetary instruments and systems. (more…)

WASHINGTON -Bags and rolls of the first commemorative quarter-dollar coin of 2008-honoring Oklahoma-will be available beginning 12 noon (ET) on January 28, 2008, the United States Mint announced today. There is no order limit on these options.

The coins contained in the Oklahoma quarter bags and rolls were struck on the main production floors at the United States Mint facilities at Denver and Philadelphia for use in general circulation.

The Oklahoma quarter is the 46th coin in the United States Mint’s popular 50 State Quarters® Program. The coin’s reverse design features the State bird, the Scissortail Flycatcher. The bird is soaring above the State wildflower, the Indian Blanket, amid a field of similar wildflowers. Inscriptions on the reverse are “Oklahoma” and “1907.” (more…)

By Dalya Alberge for the TimesOnline (UK)

Two “extremely important” gold coins that shed light on a little-known rebel Roman emperor from the 3rd century AD have been unearthed by a farmer in the Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire area. They relate to the Roman commander Carausius, who declared himself Emperor of Britain around 286 or 287 after the Emperor in Rome ordered his execution. He was overthrown in a coup d’état by his finance minister, Allectus, in 293.

The coins were handed in to the Portable Antiquities Scheme and moved to the British Museum. The scheme is facing a freeze in funding, despite recording more than 314,000 discoveries that have revealed many new archaeological sites. The farmer’s identity is not being revealed because archaeologists are to explore the site. See Source