numismaticexploits

Berlin World Money Fair 2017

With the closing of the weekend, one of the main numismatic highlights on the calendar here in Europe comes to an end. The Berlin Money Fair is a chance for many companies, mints, and precious metal refineries to showcase their work to the world. Be it upcoming releases for the year, or updates on new techniques in the production of such pieces. Over the three days the fair is held, guests and visitors are able to purchase samples and pieces well before being released to the general public. Such as the new £1 coin set to be released in the UK this March, referred to as being “the most secure coin in the world” by the Royal Mint.

Each year a special guest is touted as the main highlight for the weekend, and this year the South African Mint gained that honour. Along with the Rand Refinery, speakers from both institutions gave talks on the SA Krugerrand, as 2017 marks the 50th anniversary of this well known coin. First minted in 1967, the Krugerrand has gone on to be one of the worlds most coveted bullion coins for both collectors and investors alike. A total of 52 million oz of gold has been minted into coins since it’s first inception.

Along with special guests, each year a member of the industry gains a lifetime achievement award. This year, the award went to Yu Min who is the senior designer at China’s Shanghai mint. Holder of many Coin of the Year awards, he is the mastermind behind the gold and silver pandas, China’s answer to the South African Krugerrand. Another favourite of collectors worldwide, particularly for their whimsy depiction of the animal, and differing design each year.

Finally, another feature of the fair is for the German Mint to showcase it’s new collectors coin. Last year, they revealed a 5 Euro coin with a blue polymer ring with a facsimile of the planet Earth on the reverse inside. Designers of the coin said it reflects the beautiful fragility of the planet we reside on and how the ozone is just a thin layer protecting us, a sentiment which sounds a tad too artsy for me, but the coin itself does look pretty nice in my personal opinion. This year, continuing the theme of the environment, they have showcased a new 5 Euro coin with a red polymer ring. This coin will be the first in a series of five, and will represent one of climate zones on Earth. The first coin represents the ‘Tropical Zone’. I will let you read the designers thoughts about what the image represents by clicking the link above. It still sounds a bit too artsy for my liking. I also much prefer last years design…

First Steps.

Now that the new year has started and we approach the end of January, it is time to share my first attempts at buying interesting items for my collection. Now although I only started the blog recently, I had intentions to possibly start last month (Dec 2016). Thus, I will be combining the results of what I got into this one entry instead.

The first thing to cover (pun not intended) is a first day cover of the new 50p piece being brought into circulation here in the UK. It is to commemorate the 950th anniversary of the battle of Hastings, a significant turning point in my country’s history.

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I will admit, I am not a fan of first day covers and actually relish the search amongst my pocket change for special issues like these. Buying them straight off, even though they are in fantastic condition, feels a little like cheating and cheapens the whole adventure of finding them. What twisted my arm in this respect was that the company selling the coin also included a special offer. For just the price of the first day cover, which was £10 at the time, they also included a solid silver recreation of one of William the Conqueror’s coins. I personally think the coin itself is ugly, further reinforced by the fact a large ‘COPY’ is engraved in the centre of the coin on the side not shown, but being offered free when it is valued at three times the price of the one I am buying….well count me sold! I mean owning silver is not a bad thing is it?

My next purchase was a small collection of 19th and early 20th century coins. When I first saw them for sale I knew I had to have them. There were coins dating from early to mid 19th century I had not seen before, as well as some coins from countries I just don’t own a lot of. The picture below shows a small smattering of the coins I myself thought were the more interesting of the lot.

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My favourite pieces had to be the three coins on the top right of the photo. These are 8 Maravedies pieces from Spain. I like them due to their unusual design on the reverse of the coin, as it is something I have not come across before. The interest was sparked further by the fact a female ruler present on the coins also, something I did not know Spain had had, which led me to go delving into a history fact finding mission. I love finding something which causes me to go and find out the reason behind it, especially when I learn something new, which brings me to this next photo. These small coins were included in the collection above, and had me completely confused when trying to work out where they were from. The fact they were very worn didn’t help much. The mixture of Britannia on one side, and Greek lettering on the other had me immediately think of Cyprus. However, I thought wrong and it led to a dead end.

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After an hour of searching and exhausting options through endless google searches I managed to pinpoint the provenance of these coins. It turns out that they hail from the confederation of Ionian Islands which were controlled by the British after the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 until they were finally reunited with Greece 50 years later.

The last of the items I purchased was a large bulk collection of coins, mainly dating from the early to mid 20th century. It included many pre-decimal coins from Britain (silver coins included), as well as no end of US one cent coins. I also feel I could buy a small log cabin somewhere in the wilderness of Canada with the amount of 1 cent coins I got too. However, I also got coins from a wider variety of places. From the Falkland Islands, to Japan and Singapore. From Russian kopeks to South African rands, and everything in between. The variety was truly astounding, although a vast majority I have already got examples of. The one coin which stood out from all this though was a single US one cent coin. The reason it stood out is because it is the first example of this type of coin to feature Lincoln on it. Dating from 1909 and designed by Victor Brenner, it replaced the Indian Head cent. Although the design on the reverse changed in 1959 to the Lincoln Memorial, the figure of Lincoln remained, and continues to do so today.

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The start of something new…

So with this post I begin what is, to me anyway, something entirely new and different. My aim is to share my fascination and joy of numismatics, with you, my readers of this blog. Each month I aim to post ramblings and possible diatribes on my latest acquisition, with information about any interesting coins or banknotes wherein. As I post facts and information regarding the pieces I collect, I hope to spark other people to get involved with this much loved hobby.

Now, although I have been a collector for many years, and even studied the subject in a historical context at a university, I still consider myself very much an amateur. So feel free to follow me on my adventures and we can learn new things about this subject through my failings and successes. So look forward towards the end of this month for my first real blog post where I will share with you my first attempts into becoming somewhat professional…or at the very least better informed!