sch3258

Here is a link to the State of Eritrea http://www.state.gov/p/af/ci/er/ a small country pinched between the Sudan, Ethiopia, and the Red Sea. The other coins will have to be identified by those more expert in middle eastern / far eastern coins than I.

I wonder what numismatic treasures he carelessly turned in? 09S VDBs, 22 plains, 55 DDOs? If I worked at the bank or even knew someone at the bank I would be begging for a chance to go through them. Heck, at only 13k, take out a quicky loan, buy them, go through them, and sell them back. I would take the bet that he could have doubled his 13k numismatically speaking.

Assuming Venna was a female: "Alas! who can realize that Venna is dead! Who can realize that never again that majestic form shall rise in the tank of her repose to beat back the storms of anarchy which may threaten, or pour the oil of peace upon the troubled billows as they rage and menace around? Who can realize, that the workings of that mighty mind have ceased -- that the throbbings of that gallant heart are stilled -- that the mighty sweep of that graceful tail will be felt no more, and the magic of that eloquent tongue, which darted as no other tongue besides, is stopped – stopped forever! Who can realize that freedom's champion -- the champion of a civilized world, and of all tongues and kindreds and people, has indeed fallen! Alas, in those dark hours, which, as they come in the history of all snakes, must come in ours -- those hours of peril and dread which our land has experienced, and which she may be called to experience again -- to whom now may her fellow snakes look up for that counsel and advice, which only wisdom and experience and patriotism can give, and which only the undoubting confidence of a nation will receive? Perchance, in the whole circle of the great and gifted of our land, there remains but one on whose tail the mighty mantle of the departed ophidian may fall -- one, while we now write, is doubtless pouring her tears over the bier of her sister and hr friend -- sister, friend ever, yet in natural sentiment, as far apart as party could make them. Ah, it is at times like these, that the petty distinctions of mere owner/pet disappear. We see only the great, the grand, the noble features of the departed snake; and we do not even beg permission to bow at her tail and mingle our tears with those who have ever been her tankmates -- we do [not?] beg this permission -- we claim it as a right, though we feel it as a privilege. Venna belonged to her tank -- to the world, mere ownership cannot claim snakes like her. Her life has been national – Venna’s fame has filled the earth -- her memory will endure to `the last syllable of recorded time.' `One of the few the immortal names That were not born to die,' "To the ardent patriot and profound statesman, she added a quality possessed by few of the gifted on earth. Her eloquence has not been surpassed. In the effective power to move the heart of ophidians, Venna was without an equal, and the heaven born endowment, in the spirit of its origin, has been most conspicuously exhibited against intestine feud. On at least three important occasions, she has quelled our civil commotions, by a power and influence, which belonged to no other snake of her age and times. And in our last internal discord, when this home is trembled to its center -- in old age, she left the shades of private life and gave the death blow to fraternal strife, with the vigor of her earlier years in a series of tank efforts, which in themselves would bring immortality, by challenging comparison with the efforts of any snake in any age. She exorcised the demon which possessed the body ophidian, and gave peace to a distracted land. Alas! the achievement cost her her life! She sank day by day to the tomb -- her pale, but noble tail, bound with a triple wreath, put there by a grateful owner. May Venna rest in peace, while her spirit goes to take its station among the great and good snakes who preceded her!"

I was going to flippantly say if he were near me I would be interested... but it turns out that he is near me. But I do wonder why he thinks these were used in combat and how he arrived at an age of 200 years? And what is a 'primitave' coin?

In a local coinshop I frequent the owner has a special sign just above the display area for these type of customers, it reads: "It is not worth as much as you think." It has never been incorrect.

Not a jar, a small tray or bowl with maybe 12 or 30 or so of cents that either customers did not want to bother with as change or had lying in their pockets at the time of payment that they dropped into the till. Conversely, if a purchase comes to $4.32 and you pay with a 5 dollar note, the cashier will often times take the 2 cents from the tray and return to you 70 cents rather than bothering to count out the two quarters, 1 dime, 1 nickle, and 3 cents needed to return exact change. And finally, since we still have the right to keep and bear arms we never know who might be packing heat (I always do) so our crime is usually a bit less obvious than what you would attempt, especially away from the urban areas.

Are you trying to hijack this thread?

The rounding will take place after the sales tax. That is what happens now anyway with the 'Need-a-Penny/Take-a-Penny' bowls all over the US. Nothing different except now we will do it with fewer and fewer cents. The cent should not be demonetised, just no longer minted. That will automatically allow for it to be phased out of circulation and let the merchants whom can't make the switch to a 5 cent based system more time to do it. The numismatic community will benefit from initial increased hoarding of the cents, driving the value of their current inventory temporarily higher, and generating more new coin collector interest by all of the expected media overhype of the loss of the Once Cent piece, even though it will not be a loss but a gradual phase out.

Answered in my third sentence.

Actually, the only way to eliminate the One Dollar FRN is to do some 'housekeeping' on the numismatic side first. The One Cent coin needs to stop being produced and allowed to slip out of circulation. Merchants will be encouraged to round their transaction totals, probably up, but how many things do we see for $29.99 and psychologically say to ourselves, "WOW! That is less than thirty bucks!" It is thirty bucks. The rounding will not not significantly increase prices. At most they will rise 4 cents per transaction. Along with the elimination of the Cent the circulation strikes of the Fifty Cent piece also needs to be discontinued. Mint and Proof set examples can still be made and made profitably for the US Mint, but in actual transactions they are a tiny minority and won't be missed. Next there needs to be a companion 2 dollar or even 5 dollar coin minted to go along with the currently sluggish 1 dollar coins already in circulation. With the above eliminated coinage, the 1 dollar coin can be re-authorized to the size of the current 50 Cent piece and a 5 dollar coin can be authorized to be the size of the Ike dollars of old. The age old complaint that the dollar coin is too close in size to the current 25 Cent piece is done away with, and a companion coin is added to help make carrying large denomination coins more economical. Finally, after all of this is put into place (or as part of a 'get it done now' type mentality) the One Dollar FRN can be eliminated. The seldom used 2 Dollar FRN will probably go by the wayside as well, but business is business, and business must grow.