brg5658

While not theoretically "coins", here are three Civil War Tokens from my collection.

I guess it depends on what your interests are, but I have always found the Spanish Colonial pieces to be very compelling and historically interesting. In particular, the large silver 8 Reales struck around the mid 1700s through the mid 1800s are interesting -- as they were legal tender in the USA until 1857. Some can run a bit more pricey (I have a couple in the $400-$500 range; you can find MS pieces in the $2K-$3K range), but you can also find well worn but nicely detailed examples for around $150 or so. I have an example minted in Peru in 1806 graded VF by NGC that is just a joy to look at in hand.

They show up for sale on Heritage in about 2-3 of their annual large auctions, and occasionally in their weekly auctions that end on Thursdays. They are also frequently available on eBay, but you have to be patient for a nice piece, and I'd stay away from the "shipwreck" examples with pitted surfaces and damage. I only own three pieces, but I found two on eBay and one on another coin forum buy/sell/trade. Do a Google search, and a little research online and you will be able to find lots more information. I am by no means an "authority" on the series, but they are some of my favorite large silver coins. I'll leave you with my images of my favorite example -- an 8 Reales minted in Lima Peru in 1793 with some lovely toning and a great amount of detail.

Cheers,

-Brandon

Wonderful coins. I like the photographs too. Thanks for sharing them with us.

My pleasure. Thanks for the warm welcome here also. I'm quite fond of world copper that is Brown or Red-Brown. I love the mellowed and lovely tones that copper takes on as it ages. Here's another coin in my collection that fits nicely in this thread. I'll post a few more as time permits.

-Brandon

Here are a few more in my collection that I have photographed recently:

Here's a recent coin I picked up in a Heritage auction.

Based on those two images, I would say it looks like machine doubling. A true doubled die would have less "shelf" look to it. I hope that helps. I'll wait for other opinions.