Sunday Special - France 10 Francs

France

10 Francs

1940

Pick #84

G

Value: $0.25 

Here's another Sunday Special! This one is from France.  France is one of those places that everyone wants to visit at least once in their lifetime.  I've had the pleasure of living there for some time and traveled everywhere except for.... Paris. Don't get me wrong or anything but I avoided Paris for one reason, I wanted to save it for another time.  Paris is immense and there are so many museums and art galleries to visit that to go to Paris, one or two days just doesn't do it justice.  Now, in furtherance of my reason not to go, I took a class on the art, architecture and the metropolis itself when I was in university.  The knowledge that I gained from class prompted me to think that I should go to Paris as just a one week trip so I could enjoy the grand boulevards, cafes, art and people that make Paris the city it is today.  Now, in terms of my travels through France, I lived in Lyon, in a little suburb called Tassin-la-Demi-Lune, been to Strasbourg, Colmar, Mulhouse, Dijon, Beaune, Annecy, Chamonix, Valence, Avignon, Frejus & St. Raphael, Cannes, Antibes, Nice, Menton & Other smaller French Riviera Cities.  Out of all of the cities that I visited, Lyon had the best food and people, Beaune had the best wine, Dijon the best mustard, Strasbourg the best sauerkraut, Chamonix the best mountain views, Annecy the prettiest city view, Frejus & St. Raphael the best beach town, Nice the best fun town, Cannes the best celebrity and yuppie area and finally Menton the best small town atmosphere.  I absolutely love France, among other countries around the world.  If I had to live in any country in Europe, it would be France.  Anyways, enough of my travel rant, here's some insight on this note!

This note, being that it is French, is quite beautiful.  Out of all of the notes produced by all the different countries during the early 1900's-.  The artwork is extravagant and extremely detailed.  Although the artwork is superb, the quality of their notes are sub-par.  The paper used is usually extremely thin and flimsy, but the trade-off is that the note is really a piece of art.  This note holds true to that generalization.  The paper is flimsy but the artwork is really nice!  You find this quality of every French note produced worldwide and in all of their former colonies.  Indochina, for instance, used the same paper for the majority of their notes and the artwork was very beautiful. Not much to say about this note other than the fact that the front of the note depicts Minerva and the reverse has a sitting woman.  Still a very pretty note! 

Sunday Special - Russia

A week ago, I had promised one of my viewers a post on Russian coins.  So as promised, but a few days late, here it is! These were the only Russian coins that I pulled from the dealer bin 2 months ago, but the only reason that I pulled them out was because of their weird denominations.  The three coins are denominated in 3 Kopeks and 15 Kopeks.  That's a pretty odd denomination.  In the numismatic world, it's pretty rare to find something denominated in 3's and 15's unless you're talking about pre-decimal coins from the U.K. and it's former and current colonies.  Granted it's more unusual that you find these denominations in decimal denominated currencies. 

The obverse is typical of coins from the Soviet era, the coat of arms flanked by sprigs with the reverse having the value flanked by sprigs.  Really its a matter of function over form here, a simpler design is easier to mass produce as opposed to a more intricate design.  You find designs like these in other current and former communist countries; it's cheaper and serves its purpose. So here are the stats:

Russia (Former USSR) - 15 Kopeks
Date: 1978
Mint: N/A
Y#131
Weight: 2.5g
Content: Copper-Nickel-Zinc
Catalog Value: $0.20-0.40 (F-VF)

Russia (Former USSR) - 3 Kopeks
Date:1985 & 1982
Mint: N/A
Y#:128a
Weight: 3.0g
Content: Aluminum-Bronze
Catalog Value: $0.15-0.25 (F-VF)

I'm Back!

Hello All!
So, after a number of set-backs in the last few weeks with the cherry on top being my laptop frying; I'm finally back again! The computer that burned out on me was a Gateway NV52 laptop, I checked all the components on it and found that the mainboard (motherboard) burned out.  This isn't the first time this has happened, but with the way technology is these days, I opted to buy a desktop.  Anyways, the new desktop is fabulous, run quick and is more powerful than the last heap of junk from Gateway.  This one is a HP Pavilion P7-1235.  AMD A8 Quad-core APU, 8gb of RAM, 1tb HD, with other bells and whistles.  It was a great buy at only $350 so I couldn't pass it up, now I'm just getting used to the keyboard that came with it!

Anyways, I was able to salvage my data from the last computer and transferred it over to this one via some SATA cables.  The most important data pertaining to this blog were my pictures.  I had saved a few hundred photos of coins that I was going to post, and now I've got them back! I will begin posting... NOW!

Stay tuned for a special Sunday edition of Pockets Full of Change!

Computer Fried!

Hello all, I would be posting some nice coins right now had it not been the fact that my computer fried the other day. I purchased another one but it's currently being shipped to me at the moment. Until I get my new computer, post will have to be postponed. Sorry!

Friday Free Finds - Gold Plated Statehood Quarter

This Friday's Free Find is the coin on the right.  It's a 2008-P Oklahoma Gold-Plated Statehood quarter. I got this from a co-worker by accident and they had no idea what it was.  Here's the story; a lady that works with me collects dollar coins, so I told her that when I had enough, I would trade them for a roll of quarters, or $10's worth.  So on Monday, I had $10 worth of dollar coins and she gave me a Brink's plastic roll of quarters.  I immediately took a look at all the rims of the quarters and spotted the gold-plated quarter.  At first, I thought that it was a foreign coin, or maybe even real gold itself, but not to get my hopes up too much, I tried to low-ball it and just say that it was a foreign coin.  So I opened up the roll and saw that it was actually just a gold-plated statehood quarter.  Although it is quite rare to find such a coin in circulation, especially with it's distinctive color, they are somewhat common.  This is the second plated coin that I've found in circulation, the first one was plated in chromium.  It's only worth a dollar as the plating isn't very thick, and it's really just a novelty item as opposed to being a real collectors type of item. 

Additionally, that 1995-D quarter in AU condition was also found in my change this week.  It's becoming harder and harder to find finer specimens of the former quarter in circulation.  The rim is still sharp and the copper looks untouched.  Either way, it's getting saved!

Happy Free Finds!

Thursday Terminology - Coin Dating

Coin dating can be quite confusing.  In North America, especially in the United States and Canada, coin dating is quite easy as we date things using the Christian Era (AD) system, and it seems that many countries around the world have also adopted this style.  But then there are those few countries that don't adhere to the Christian Era dating system and many are left scratching their heads wondering what that confusing number really translates into.  So instead of writing down all of the different dates, I will explain them to you. I will be using the abbreviations used in the Krause Catalogs.  I will not be posting every calendar ever created, that will take too much time.

Christian Era (AD) - No explanation needed, the current year is 2012 if you were wondering!  AD stands for Anno Domini, and not after death.  The Christian Era calendar also goes by the name of Gregorian Calendar or Western Calendar.  BC however stands for Before Christ or if you live in Canada, British Columbia.

Muslim Era (AH)  (Islamic Calendar / Hijri Calendar) - Current Year - 1433 AH.  The AH stands for is a Latin abbreviation for Anno Hegirae.  This dating system is used to commemorate the emigration of the Prophet Mohammed and his followers to the city of Medina in AD622, which would be year 0.  This is a lunar calendar which is used to determine the proper time for the Haji (or pilgrimage to Mecca) and to determine Ramadan, the annual fast. This dating system is used primarily in predominantly Muslim countries.  Sometimes you will see a dual system of both AH and AD calendar years presented on coins and currency in these countries. 

Solar Year (SH) (Iranian / Persian Calendar) - Current Year - 1391 SH . The SH stands for Solar Hijri.  This dating system is the official Calendar system of Iran and Afghanistan.  Sometimes you will see the use of AP which is the Latin abbreviation for Anno Persico.  It is one of the oldest calendar systems in the world and one of the most accurate.  The Solar Year calendar is also used to predict the Haji and Ramadan, much like the Muslim Era calendar.

Monarchic Solar Era (MS) (Iranian / Persian Calendar) - Current Year - 2571.  This is a now defunct calendar system, formerly used during the reign of the Pahlavi Dynasty of Iran.  The last Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza, changed the calendar in 1976 to replace the Solar Year calendar to commemorate 2,500 years of Persian Monarchy.  A few years later, the last Shah passed away from cancer after he was deposed during the Islamic Revolution in Iran.  It is exactly the same as the Solar Year calendar except the year is different.

The next set of Coin Dating will be on next Thursday's Terminology Post! So Stay Tuned!

Wednesday World Coins & Currency - Russian Empire 5 Kopeks

Images Courtesy of Heritage Auctions via Numista

I wanted to do a little change-up this time and expend some time on a coin that I wish I had in my collection.  To many, this is just a large copper coin minted during a time when the Russian Empire was probably at it's height of global influence and power.  In actuality, this is an extremely large copper coin.  It weighs in at over 53 grams or pure copper with a diameter of  41mm.  It's about as thick as 3-4 quarters stacked together and at the time it was minted, it was a high denomination coin.  Nowadays, 5 Kopeks is negligible, in fact the current Russian monetary system has no coin currently produced for this nominal denomination.

The reason why I chose this coin for my first "Wish List" post is due to a few things.  First, the coin is huge and a very heavy coin.  Second, it's old and was minted during the reign of Catherine the Great.  Thirdly, it's a relatively inexpensive coin from the 18th century; about $50-150 depending on grade.  The fourth reason is quite sad, I saw this coin on the shopping network during the coin show, and they were selling this for around $150.  A bit overpriced, but they said that they had found a hoard of uncirculated 5 Kopeks in Russia just recently.  Whether you believe the story or not, the coin is pretty cool, and had I not watched the Coin Show on the shopping network, I probably would've never even seen this coin.  I will buy one someday, but until then, I will just have to marvel at it's opulence via my own blog! =(

Happy Thursday, when it should've been posted yesterday! =P

Tuesday Treasure Trove - Netherlands (Dutch) Coins!

1.

Netherlands

½ Cent 1912

VG – KM#138

2.

Netherlands

1 Cent – 1880

VF – KM#107

3.

Netherlands

1 Cent – 1881

VF – KM#107

4. 

Netherlands

1 Cent – 1942

 XF – KM#170

5.

Netherlands

1 Cent – 1969

UNC – KM#180

6.

Netherlands

10 Cents – 1941

XF – KM#173

7.

Netherlands

10 Cents – 1942

XF – KM#173

8.

Netherlands

10 Cents – 1942

XF – KM#173

9.

Netherlands

10 Cents – 1943

XF – KM#173

10. 

Netherlands

25 Cents – 1941

XF – KM#174

11.

Netherlands

25 Cents – 1942

XF – KM#174

12.

Netherlands

25 Cents – 1948

XF – KM#178 

13.

Netherlands

1 Guilden – 1967

XF – KM#184a 

14.

Netherlands

1 Guilden – 1979

XF – KM#184a 

 

 Hello Bloggers and Readers! Here's an exciting post on some more coins that were picked up in my huge coin hoarding quest! I haven't found much lately in terms of freebies, nor have I been able to purchase any coins, but since I still have about 200 more coins to post about, I will leave you with these 14 coins that I found to be quite interesting.  

The first three coins are the ones that I find interesting.  They are old and only cost be 4 cents each, actually, every coin depicted here only cost me 4 cents a piece, but cost aside, these are quite old.  The first coin, the 1/2 cent, I found buried at the bottom of the dealers bin.  It was at the very very bottom and was neglected, so I bought it and gave it a home.  It has some damage on it, but even so, it's worth about 50 cents.  Many of the zinc coins are in pretty descent condition and therefore, fetch a far better price at around $3 each for the 10 and 25 cent pieces.  Here's another example of a Dutch WWII 10 Cent piece from my fellow bloggers website if you're interested http://mycoinbox.blogspot.ca/2012/09/1942-netherlands-10-cents.html 

It's a shame that these coins are now extinct and not in use anymore due to the introduction of the Euro Monetary system.  You can't even exchange the former coins anymore as that window of opportunity has now passed! Who knows though, maybe the Euro will collapse and they will reintroduce these coins again! FINGERS CROSSED!