Why the Carson City Mint Was Abandoned.

Why the Carson City Mint Was Abandoned | West Seattle Coins ...
www.wscbrc.com9/30/13

Interested in learning more about the history of U.S coins and currency, including rare coins, gold coins and silver coins? Come talk with the coin enthusiasts at West Seattle Coins and Bellevue Rare Coins in West Seattle,
Read more...

  Welcome to the Bank Note Den

Here you will find some US Banknotes to illustrate various design elements that existed in our not too distant past. Certainly our Grandfathers used the larger banknotes, which were about 1/3 larger than our current size US Banknotes. Their designs were often very different than what we are used to now.

Read more...

Your Bust Half Dollar Value

Bust Half Dollar Value

The Bust half dollar value for a coin in "Good" condition is at least $50 each. Your coin is very popular, intensely studied and highly valued.

$50 is the just the starting value for the more common Capped Bust variety minted from 1807 until 1839. If you discover you have the earlier Draped Bust variety dating from 1796 to 1807 the value is $160 or more per coin.
Of even greater value, well preserved coins in higher grades above "Good" have the potential to reach hundreds of dollars in value.
Because of condition, the stunning uncirculated Bust half dollar pictured, at auction, would reach over one thousand dollars.
Here is an interesting coin, turn up an 1839-O, and its value is $225 in Good condition. With the bulk minted in Philadelphia, it has the distinction of the only collectible business strike Bust Half minted in New Orleans. Find the "O" mintmark just above the date.

Your Bust Half Dollar Value and What Dealers Pay

Judge the condition of your coins accurately. Other than date what affects your Bust half dollar value the most is the difference from one grade to the next higher grade.   Read more...

The oldest coin in the world

The heritage of ancient coins is a subject that intrigues and delights collectors and scholars the world over. The oldest coin available today was discovered in Efesos, an ancient Hellenic city and prosperous trading center on the coast of Asia Minor. The 1/6 stater, pictured below, is more than 2,700 years old, making it one of the very earliest coins. Made from electrum, a natural occuring alloy of gold and silver, the coin originated in the area of Lydia. It had a design on one side only, a result of the primitive method of manufacture. This ancient stater was hand struck. A die with a design (in this case a lion's head) for the obverse (front) of the coin was placed on an anvil. A blank piece of metal was placed on top of the die, and a punch hammered onto the reverse. The result was a coin with an image on one side and a punch mark on the other.

The stater is a key exhibit in the Department of Coins and Medals of the British Museum, which houses one of the world's finest numismatic collections, comprising about 1 million objects. The earliest issues, thought to date from the reign of Alyattes (about 610 - 560 BC) or perhaps his predecessor Sadyattes - both of the Mermnad dynasty - feature the Lydian kings' emblem of a roaring lion, almost always with a curious knob, often called a "nose wart," on its forehead.

Electrum

Lydia does not have many marvelous things to write about in comparison with other countries, except for the gold dust that is carried down from Mount Tmolus.

- Herodotus, The History, 1.93

Read more...

Coin Rarities & Related Topics: 1943-D copper cent, 1795 Reeded Edge cent, 1811/0 cent, and half cent errors

A Weekly Column by Greg Reynolds
I had originally intended to write this week about a variety of coins that were offered in the recently concluded Southern California auctions by the Goldbergs and Heritage. News regarding auction results, however, has been superseded by a 1943-D copper cent selling privately for a reported price of “$1.7 million.”

So, I will discuss this piece, some of the early copper in the Goldbergs auction, and the 1811/0 overdate large cent that Heritage sold. This column is devoted to copper.
 Read more...

Kennedy Half Dollar Values (1964-Date)

How Much Is My Kennedy Half Dollar Worth?

By James Bucki, About.com Guide

Image Courtesy of: Heritage Auction Galleries, Ha.com

This Kennedy half dollar value guide lists average coin values based upon the condition of the coin.  If the coin shows evidence of wear on it due to being used in commerce, it considered "circulated." If it was never used, then it is classified as "uncirculated." The pictures below illustrate examples of each condition.  Please note: You cannot increase a coin's value by cleaning it. In fact, cleaned coins are worth less and coin dealers can spot a cleaned coin immediately.  Therefore, never, never, never clean your coins.
Read more...

One Red Cent: Curiosity Rover Totes 1909 "VDB" Lincoln Cent on Mars

Coin collectors may have a new unattainable object to dream about — a six-wheeled robot's lucky penny on Mars.
NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity is carrying a 1909 "VDB" Lincoln Cent, for use as a calibration target for the robot's Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) instrument.

Read more...