Church Tithes and Illegal Games Contributing to Philippine Coin Shortage
Inquirer
Of all things, the Catholic Church and operators of the illegal numbers game “jueteng” have one thing in common—they contribute to the short supply of coins in the economy. “We have enough coins but the problem is the uneven distribution, creating an artificial shortage,” Diwa Guinigundo, deputy governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), said yesterday. He said the “problem” was a result of certain factors—Mass collections, “jueteng” bets and the Filipino practice of saving coins.
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An Overview of Small Dollar Coins Missing Edge Lettering
NGC
When the Presidential $1 coins were first issued in 2007, their design called for lettered-edge inscriptions. For the first time ever, the date, mintmark and required inscriptions were to appear on the edge of the coin. The purpose of this feature, according to the authorizing legislation (the Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005), was to give the dollar coins a distinctive edge as an aid to the blind or visually impaired. Additionally, it allowed for more room of the obverse, allowing for an expressive and artful depiction of the Nation’s past presidents. But edge lettering presented a challenge to the Mint. It was a significant undertaking, considering the number of dollars that would be struck.
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The Differences Between Copper, Bronze, and Brass
The E-Sylum
The difference to me, as a chemist in my former life, is that bronze is mainly copper plus tin (not zinc) in various proportions, and brass is mainly a copper-zinc alloy. For example, cartridge case (brass) cents contained zinc, and thereafter both tin and zinc (like the early bronze small cents). How to tell the difference just by looking? Bronze might appear a bit grainy and dull, without the brighter and shinier appearance of most things brass. Think of yellow brass hardware. Bronze is less stable to oxidation in general and darkens faster than brass. Think statues. Of course, all comparisons depend on the percentage composition of the components. There is really no clear-cut delineation. Once you go to mainly tin, with copper and other elements, you get pewter. And once you go to centuries-long aged medals, there’s likely no visible difference between most bronze and brass.
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Pursuing the Peace Dollar
Numismaster
I think it’s fair to say that if you want to collect silver dollars, large coins that actually contain a significant amount of silver, then the Peace dollar series, minted from 1921 to 1935, is the one to start with. For one thing, a complete collection of all date/mintmark combinations consists of just 24 coins. Only one of the 24, the 1928, is pricy in all grades and thus qualifies as a “key coin.” Relative to such key coins as the 1909-S V.D.B. Lincoln cent and the 1916-D Mercury dime, the 1928 Peace dollar could hardly be called a “stopper.” So, as interesting and collectible as the Peace dollar is, how did it come about? The answer lies earlier than 1921, with the end of the first world war. There was an interest among some for a new coin to commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Versailles that ended World War I.
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Concerns Over Rise In Counterfeit Coins in North Yorkshire
The Northern Echo
Concern has been raised about the number of forged coins being used in parking meters in a town. The number of counterfeit £1 coins used in meters in Richmond, North Yorkshire, in the past year amounts to £1,500, 0.5 per cent of the total amount collected – more than average. However, councillors at Richmondshire District Council are concerned the figure could rise. The car parks in Richmond are operated on behalf of the council by a private contractor, which collects the money and maintains the sites. At a council meeting, it was said the forged coins are never seen by anyone at the council because the contractor has a legal duty to send them to the Royal Mint to be destroyed.
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2010 U.S. Mint $1 Coin and First Spouse Medal Set Available March 26
U.S. Mint
The United States Mint will begin accepting orders for the 2010 United States Mint Presidential $1 Coin and First Spouse Medal Set – Millard Fillmore on March 26, 2010, at noon Eastern Time (ET). The set, priced at $11.95 each, includes an uncirculated Millard Fillmore Presidential $1 Coin and a bronze medal bearing the portrait of Abigail Fillmore featured on the First Spouse Gold Coin struck in her honor.  The coin and medal are encased in a durable plastic card enhanced with beautiful portraits of Millard and Abigail Fillmore, with coin and medal information on the back.
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Shield Five-Cent Pieces Were the First to Include Nickel
Numismaster
The Shield nickel started something big. It was the first nickel five-cent piece—actually composed of an alloy of copper and nickel. The design lasted less than 20 years, but the nickel itself is still going strong after nearly 150 years. The nickel started out as a replacement for the Postage Currency and Fractional Currency five-cent notes issued during the Civil War. Nickels were also used to redeem copper-nickel Flying Eagle and Indian Head cents after production of bronze cents began in 1864. The exchanges continued for years.
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An Interview With Q. David Bowers on Internet Coin Buying
Coin Update News
Bowers sees online auctions as an extension of currently available outlets such as catalogs and convention sales. While the Internet is a new mode to showcase coins, he advises all prospective bidders “to know the person with whom you are doing business.” “In fact,” he adds, “one must be even more careful on the Internet.” Usually I am skeptical of designations by third-party graders such as NGC, PCGS, ANACS and IGC, remembering we should be purchasing coins rather than the plastic designating their grades. Recently, Bowers wrote about that topic in his Coin World column. Like me, however, Bowers is cautious about all the online bidding of raw coins on Internet portals.
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Civility Marks Two-Day Collecting, Metal Detecting, and Museum Conference
Ancient Coin Collecting
The general mood of this conference was that everyone wanted to work together, within the law, to preserve cultural property. That’s a pretty safe stance. The nuances of that position can sometimes create disagreements, but the overarching fact or “bottom line” is that most people do care about cultural property preservation. Over the course of two days, it became increasingly evident to me that the British are on the right path. Their main concern was not ownership, that was clearly defined by law as it is in the U.S., the issue was reporting. With an active and growing cadre of private citizens engaged in the hobby of metal detecting, a country rich in historical objects, like Britain, is constantly at risk of losing important information about the past.
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Dark Gold Thoughts Not Dark Enough
Dave Harper’s Buzz
Back when gold ownership was legalized in the United States on Dec. 31, 1974, there was a lingering fear that the coins that had been illegal to own since 1933 would once again become illegal to own. Advisors told gold buyers to stick to coins like the standard U.S. gold coins struck before 1933 as well as world coins like British sovereigns and French 20 francs of similar vintage. This seemed to be an unnecessary precaution as the age of the convenient one-ounce bullion coins was dawning.
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The Artist In Everyone’s Wallet
The National
Not many artists can say their work is owned by millions. Mohammed al Mandi, however, is among those select few. He is one of the only master calligraphers in the Middle East. His angular designs can be found on every banknote in the UAE and Bahrain, as well as the passports of the UAE, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait. Not only that, he is the artist who designed the interior of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque.
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Famous Roman Coins You Can Collect, Part III
NGC
After having already had an interesting career, Sulla came to prominence while in his 50s, during Italy’s Social War (91-89 B.C.) and the First Mithridatic War (88-84 B.C.). On one occasion Sulla invaded the capital itself to oust members of the opposing party, and soon after, in 82, he defended that same city from an assault by neighboring Samnites. His main platform was to erode the power held by wealthy families and the senate, believing he was more deserving of that authority. Sulla was successful, and established himself as dictator in Rome in 82 B.C. Not long after, in 79, he reluctantly forfeited his authority and soon died of disease. It is with the struggle between Sulla and Marius that we might suggest the “Imperatorial Period” of Roman history began; it would last until 31 B.C., when Octavian defeated Marc Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium. This silver denarius of c.82 B.C. depicts the head of Roma and a scene of Sulla in a triumphal chariot.
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U.S. Mint First Spouse Coins Update
Mint News Blog
The Abigail Fillmore First Spouse Gold Coins will go on sale tomorrow. There will be a maximum mintage of 15,000 coins across both proof and uncirculated versions, with no household ordering limits. Both of these represent changes in procedure from prior releases of the series, which had maximum mintages set at 40,000 and ordering limits imposed for at least the first month of availability. Since the price of gold has remained within the same average range, the proof coins will be priced at $729 and the uncirculated coins will be priced at $716.
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History Shows A Reagan U.S. $50 Note Not Too Likely
Numismaster
The idea of putting Ronald Reagan on the $50 Federal Reserve Note certainly made for an interesting week for our poll question. As you might expect, there were strong feelings on both sides of the issue. Obviously politics divides numismatists as well as the country at large. I expect the proposal to put the nation’s 40th President on the $50 bill will go nowhere. The sad truth about our paper money is simply the lack of change of the individuals on the notes. Throughout my lifetime George Washington has presided over the $1 bill, Thomas Jefferson the $2, Abraham Lincoln the $5, Alexander Hamilton the $10, Andrew Jackson the $20, Ulysses S. Grant the $50 and Benjamin Franklin the $100.
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New Coin Honors Lost Soldiers of Fromelles
Royal Australian Mint
The Assistant Treasurer, Senator Nick Sherry, and the Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, Alan Griffin, have today announced the Royal Australian Mint will next month issue a collectible 20 cent coin commemorating Australia’s Lost Soldiers of Fromelles. “This coin is a continuation of the Mint’s Australia Remembers series, exploring our nation’s war experiences and military history behind and beyond the battlefields,” the Assistant Treasurer said. “The coin design is based on the Cobbers statue which stands in the Australian Memorial Park at Fromelles.” “The design features a circle enclosing an artist’s impression of the Cobbers statue and, to the right, the inscription ‘20′.”
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Brooklyn Artist Leaves Handmade Tokens for the Public
The New York Times
For more than 30 years now, sharp-eyed New Yorkers have been finding them on ledges, windowsills and store counters — poker-chip-size coins that reveal themselves to be something far more mysterious than loose change. The inch-wide ceramic discs, painted in iridescent colors, have the rough, weathered feel of ancient treasure. Each is embossed with a short, cryptic message, a year and two humble letters: “bw.” Those, it turns out, are the initials of Beriah Wall, a Brooklyn artist who estimates he has knocked out hundreds of thousands of these handmade tokens since the late 1970s, quietly dropping them in public places or the hands of bewildered strangers. His latest batch, minted over the last few months, carry the message “Stuck in Brkln.”
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Queueing for Coins in Latin America
Earth Times
In many Latin American cities it’s not unusual for long lines to form in front of banks before business hours. The people standing in the lines tend to be restaurant owners or street vendors who need small-denomination bills or coins to make change for customers of their businesses. They sometimes wait hours just to get a little bit of the precious currency. There aren’t a lot of these bills given over to the banks. When the vendors can’t get them, they have to ask their customers to pay in small bills or in coins. It creates demand, meaning people who have a surplus of small bills can do a good trade.
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