Ætheling Posted August 13, 2005 Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 Anyone every tried collecting coins by their edges? I see a whole variety of different types of edge lettering and a whole plethora of milling styles. Chevron, wide, narrow, diagonal, plain, alternate block of plained and milled, milled with superimposed incuse legends, incuse letter edges, relief letter edges, curved (wire) type edges, flat edges. The funny shaped edges of some of the euro coinage. The weirdest edge i've ever come across though has to go to the George III Soho Coinage, it looks as if the reverse of the coin was struck on one planchet and the obverse on another and then they were both stuck together! There must be literally dozens and dozens of variants, it'd be a new way of collecting! Also related to this, are there any copper coins with milled edges? All i ever seem to see are plain ones. I have been looking though. I can understand why early coins were not milled, simply because milling was introduced to stop people clipping coins. Not much point clipping a copper coin as it wasn't really worth it and thus not worth bothering to apply milling to. However in these modern time of milled clad coinage (which really doesn't need it but it's customary) perhaps milled copper coins do exist? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gxseries Posted August 13, 2005 Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 I think I started that topic here: http://coinpeople.com/index.php?showtopic=437 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ætheling Posted August 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 Ah but that was different, you were asking why milling was done. I'm asking has anyone every thought to collect coins based upon these variations in edge types? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gxseries Posted August 13, 2005 Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 I thought I said the question "What interesting Coin edge designs do you know?" in the topic, and I just wrote a paragraph of why such edge design existed those times. Nevertheless, I left those Russian coin edges images up there, so you can always take a look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ætheling Posted August 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 You do know how to kill a good post don't you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gxseries Posted August 13, 2005 Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 Hey, I do understand the importance of coin edges, in fact, I am one of those types of people who just hate slabs because their edge designs can't be seen well enough. Nevertheless, I guess not too many countries do it often nowadays because it is just not worth it. The most any country would do is to edge mill + text inscription and nothing much more fancy than what it was done in the 19th century or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conder101 Posted August 13, 2005 Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 Sure there are copper coins with milled or reeded edges. In the US series there are the 1793 chain an wreath cents with the vine and bars (vertical milled) edges, there is a 1797 half cent and a 1795 large cent variety (S-79) with reeded edges, there are many differnt Conder tokens with vertical or obliquely reeded edges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ætheling Posted August 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 Even saying that you'll note even on modern coin milling differs hugely from area to area. From |||||||||, to | | | | | |, to ||||| ||||| i've often wondered how many types there is. This is not to mention the milling i'm used to seeing ///////// Although >>>>>>>> also exists. British gold guineas switched from ///// to >>>>> in an attempt to make guinea filing harder to commit, because chevrons are harder to re-engrave than diagonal milling is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ætheling Posted August 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 Sure there are copper coins with milled or reeded edges. In the US series there are the 1793 chain an wreath cents with the vine and bars (vertical milled) edges, there is a 1797 half cent and a 1795 large cent variety (S-79) with reeded edges, there are many differnt Conder tokens with vertical or obliquely reeded edges. I've never had the pleasure of seeing any of those in the flesh, but at least i'm aware of their existence now. So i learned something from this. Although i should have thought about Conder tokens, although they completely escaped my mind when i posted the original question. It's not often i see them you see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ætheling Posted August 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 And British 10ps and 5ps seem to have a weird milling. Looks like rows of camphered edged oblongs all lined up. Whereas the wired edge variants look like squares instead of oblongs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtryka Posted August 13, 2005 Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 There are many interesting edge lettering designs on Mexican coinage, and most can be had for a song. I just reached into my pitcher of foreign coins and pulled out a 1980 Mexican $20 with "Independencia y Libertad" on the edge. That coin is technically worthless, though you can probably find them in junk boxes for less than a quarter. I also pulled out a 1995 Singapore $1 with reeding and edge lettering, not sure of it's value though. My favorites of course are Saint-Gaudens' $10 Indian with 46 edge stars from 1907-1911, and 48 stars from 1912-1933, and of course his $20 with "E Pluribus Unum" on the edge. It just seems funny to me how edge lettering and other design aspects have survived on modern base metal coins probably mostly for aesthetics (who is going to shave nickel from a Mexican $20?), though I suppose the anti-counterfeiting aspects still serve a purpose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ætheling Posted August 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2005 It amuses me too to see how it's survived. Although gxseries argued that countries don't take pride in their edge milling any more, i dunno about that. The edge milling on the 2004 £1 coins is interesting as it is on the £2 coins. I think for the 100th anniversary of .-.-.-. (morse code) and radio (i think!) they had an interesting edge design also. (I forget i haven't seen one in a long time). I don't keep upto date with the modern stuff as much as i should. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gxseries Posted August 14, 2005 Report Share Posted August 14, 2005 I am most certainly not saying that "ALL" countries are not taking pride in their edge design. My point is that, quite a fair bit of countries used to take pride in their edge designs as it was one of the ways to thwart people to shave off metal, which was at that time a mean of calculating the value & denomination of the coin, which I believe AEtheling has mentioned about it in the other post. (as well as the mint profitting expense) http://img117.echo.cx/img117/5492/rusbookedge038hm.jpg This is part of the list of the Russian coin edges, certainly pretty fasinating as some of them were made more than 250 years ago, but so far I have only come across 4 different types of edges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gxseries Posted August 14, 2005 Report Share Posted August 14, 2005 This is some of the "better" edge designs that I have, From the top, 1825/4 10 kopek coin, with a dotted edge with some mechanical problem when it was fed into the machine, Middle, 1763 2kopeks overstriked over 1762 4 kopeks overstriked upon another previous year. Netted edge. Botton: 1736 1 ruble, with some dinosaur feet imprint design (ok, that's absurb), some leaf imprint design. I left out the most typical designs which is the common milled edges and inscribed text. Examples would be |||| //// or \\\\ or interrupted milled edges. Such edge designs according to my opinion is pretty common up to now in quite a few countries. 2 Euro coins most certainly have them, but this was nothing compared to what was done at least one hundred years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trantor_3 Posted August 14, 2005 Report Share Posted August 14, 2005 Also related to this, are there any copper coins with milled edges? Sure there are, many of them... I have in front of me: Euro country, 2 cent (one groove all along the coin) Zimbabwe, 1 cent, 1980 (very fine reeding_ South Africa, 1 cent, 1965 - 1990 (very coarse reeding) South Africa, 2 cent, 1965 - 1990 (very coarse reeding) OK, technically those are not copper coins.... the first is a copper plated steel coin and the other are bronze And I know there's much more as I had more of them. But those probably had either ships or birds on them and those I sent to a fellow member here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gxseries Posted August 14, 2005 Report Share Posted August 14, 2005 Russia had an earlier start with their copper coins which was either an orn, netted edge cord edge or inscribed edge around 1728 or so if I remembered right. It was then in 1867 when Russia finally standardized copper coins to reeded edges Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ætheling Posted August 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2005 Hey i like those milled Russians! Certainly thought provoking this thread. Looks like the Russians gave alot of thought into the edge designs. All the British ever did was /////, >>>>>, and ------- (upto 1816), then ||||||| or | | | | | from (1816-1990) it was only after this period that they started experimenting with different kinds of milling, fancy patterns and such. Before we never really gave much thought to it. Plain edges with inscriptions are littered here and there from 1662-present. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccg Posted August 14, 2005 Report Share Posted August 14, 2005 The early post-war Japan ¥10 have reeded edges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian Posted August 14, 2005 Report Share Posted August 14, 2005 I've never had the pleasure of seeing any of those in the flesh, but at least i'm aware of their existence now. So i learned something from this. Although i should have thought about Conder tokens, although they completely escaped my mind when i posted the original question. It's not often i see them you see. I know I know....jetons aren't really coins, but since many of them in fact ended up being used much the same way as money (pre and post revolution) i'll mention them anyway... especially the ones made during the period from 1832 - 1915. During that period all silver jetons carried an incused symbol on the edge (a bit like a hallmark / assay mark), sometimes coupled with the word ARGENT but not always. The symbol used is linked to specific time periods, for example 1832 -1841 a symbol that looks like an alladin style oil lamp is used (lampe ancienne). Some jetons were restruck in different time periods. Thus you might find a jeton with a date on it of say 1840, but the edge symbol of a bee (abeille) indicating that it was actually minted during the time frame 1860 -1879. Dependent upon the issuer of the jeton (an insurance company for example) there might be a number of restrikes using the same dies but with planchets edge marked when actually struck. Collectors of these pieces do collect them by the different edge marks (also known as poincons). Michael Caine never actually said `not many people know that' . In this case, I fear that not too many people want to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ætheling Posted August 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted August 14, 2005 You know me too well Ian. Though i must say i still find it all very fascinating. Here is an aspect of numismatics that has largely gone totally unnoticed, except amongst certain specialist fields, like Jetons, and my you are getting gripped by those aren't you Ian? It is nice to know what is out there though, interesting how they put the issue date of those on the edge, alot like the Spanish coins that were dated with one date but put the real date of issue in the stars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverDollarMan Posted August 15, 2005 Report Share Posted August 15, 2005 Can anyone tell me the official name of the edge on a $10 Indian? TIA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtryka Posted August 15, 2005 Report Share Posted August 15, 2005 Man, that's an excellent question! It's not a lettered edge, as they are raised stars. Hmmm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conder101 Posted August 16, 2005 Report Share Posted August 16, 2005 Probably "ornamented" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tiffibunny Posted August 16, 2005 Report Share Posted August 16, 2005 I never have tried collecting by edges, but it's a cool idea. I have plenty of different ones. For that type of collection though, I would think you would want a new type of holder that would show off the edges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gxseries Posted August 17, 2005 Report Share Posted August 17, 2005 Most certainly That's one of the reasons why I hate slabs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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