1943-S Steel Cent

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This is not the $1 million dollar copper 1943 cent. Instead this is the normal zinc-coated steel cent issued because there was a copper shortage during World War II. Copper and silver version were made accidentally and sell for hundreds of thousands to $1.7 million for a unique 1943-D copper cent.

 I have been hearing about the rare and valuable 1943 penny since I was a kid. They used to advertise in the TV Guide that only four copper war cent have been found and you may rich if you find the fifth. Of course I searched for years and finally at my first job I found one in the register and kept it. I was young and not an expert collector so as soon as I found it I tried cashing it in. Hoping to get at at least $100,000 you can imagine my disappointment when he said $0.10.

Now I am older and understand that the error version is very rare. Most have been found and rarely go to auction. Many fakes exist and while weight is a good way to show fraud most are so expertly made that only a professional grading service can tell.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Cent  / United States
Year: 1943-S
Mintage: 191,550,000
Metal: 100% Steel and plated with Zinc
Value: $0.40 in F-12

If you notice on certain spots on this coin the zinc is wearing off and the steel is getting exposed and rusting.

Do you have a cent and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

1989 South Africa 2 Rand

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I would prefer a Krugerrand but this worn 2 rand is the highest face value South African coin I own. Although this little coin seems a bit suspicious. It is a bit warped and some design elements are missing. Could it be a fake?
 

It weighs 5.45 grams which is 0.05 grams lighter than normal. Still this is within normal range especially if worn. Would it even be worth faking? It is equivalent to a U.S. quarter even back in 1989 I doubt it had a stronger purchasing power.

The front says SUID-AFRIKA 1989 SOUTH AFRICA and the banner in the arms should read EX UNITATE VIRES. The ALS initials are there.

The back has an impala and 2 RAND but the ALS initials are not there. The bulging back has made the details less than sharp. Poor impala has no eye, it is kind of creepy.

The edge seems like a normal alternating segmented 2 Rand even has a coppery hue to it when angled right. So I am leaning towards real because there is nothing conclusive that it is a fake.

Here's the stats for this coin...
Type/Country: 2 Rand / South Africa
Year: 1989
Mintage: 65,233,000
Metal: Nickel Plated Copper
Value: $0.24 in AG (almost-good) same as currency exchange

Do you have a South African coin and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2003-P Canada Quarter, New Effigy

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When you have a living person on a coin that seemingly will never die you have to upgrade every few years. 2003 was one of those upgrade years when they changed the mature Queen to the new older Queen. Not exactly elderly but more grandma-like. They did away with the crown and dropped in a wrinkle or two.

 The reverse stayed the same with that iconic caribou.

2003 saw two caribou Canadian quarters. The first had the older design which was the younger queen, the second had the newer design which has the older queen. To make it easier they are referred to the old effigy and new effigy. I have yet to find the 2003 old effigy because it was made in a lower quantity about a 1:4 ratio in favor of the new effigy. Below is the old and new side by side, a 2001-P and 2003-P.

Here are the official names of all the portraits of the queen on the Canadian quarter:

• Laureated Portrait (1953-1964)
• Tiara Portrait (1965-1989)
• Royal Diademed Portrait (1990-2003) 
• Uncrowned Portrait (2003- ) 

Here are the stats...
Type/Country: 25 Cents-New Effigy /Canada
Year: 2003-P
Mintage: 66,861,633
Metal: 94% Steel, 3.8% Copper, 2.2% Nickel
Value: $0.25 in EF-40

Do you have a Canadian quarter and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

1976 Somalia 5 Senti, Crowned Arms

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There are two versions of this coin. One is very rare and the other is extremely common. Guess which one I got? That is right the common version. Not surprising I got it back in 2005 from a $3.00 eBay lot. Those thing are almost always cherry-picked.

The rare one has a five within a circle but the common type has a crowned arms with lion supports.

JAMHURIYADDA DIMOQRAADIGA SOOMAALIYA
جمهورية الصومال الديمقراطية

senti 5 سنت
1976 ١٩٧٦

This like most of the Somalian coins are Food and Agriculture Organization (F.A.O.)  issues and promote good food and agricultural practices. Somalia has a long history starting at least as far back as 9000 B.C. They were mostly fine until Europeans came in and since they left Somalia has been struggling with power hungry rulers and religious fundamentalists. 

Most of there coins are just worth metal value but in 1976 a 5 senti was issued in small amounts that did not contain the crowned arms. In uncirculated it is over $200.00 compared to $0.35 for the one with the crowned arms. It is not known how mant were made but since they do not come up much in auction I think less than a few hundreds.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 5 Senti / Somalia
Year: 1976
Mintage: 18,500,000
Metal: Aluminum
Value: $0.10 in Very-Fine

Also found a 1970 Canada cent in my change but again that has been .

Do you have coin from Slovakia and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2004 $20 Bill, EB-L

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Low serial numbers are very collectable but there is a limit. The high serial number notes I mentioned recently have no extra value for a simple reason, they are not collected. All serial numbers are equally unique but people do like that whole 1, 2, 3, etc. so they tend to be the most wanted and thus it increases value.

Is this note low enough?

00003138 is not considered low by most unless crisp-uncirculated it really has no extra value. About a ten percent premium is placed on bills with preceding zeroes that fall between 1001-9998. This bill does fall into the "Fancy Note" category. Extra value is given if they also are either sequential, repeating, or many other cool looking number combinations.

First! Now that is a phrase every internet fan knows well. Well having the first note is ideal for collectors also. Trading for a lower serial is often done because the lower the number also means the bill is older. A 2004 $20 bill with 0000001 as the serial number could bring about $2,000.00 or more depending on grade and auction. With the regular 2004 series you have 66 chances of finding that rare note.

Here's the stats for this bill...
Type/Federal Bank: $20 Note- D.C. / New York
Year: 2004
Printings: 1,081,600,000
Printed: May 2005
Run: 1st of 4 from EB00000001L - EB06400000L
Value:  $21.00 in VF 

Do you have currency and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

Coined For Money: Round-Up Sept. 17-23, 2012

The theme of this week's news round up seems to be the value of things. Or maybe it could be called the greatest finds but either way the stories this week are worth millions. So what is the lesson to learn from these stories is appreciate what you have now and stop trying to predict the future.

A Russian field of diamonds found in the 1970s could be worth trillions of carats. Although they are mostly industrial diamonds it is still enough to lower the value of diamonds by half but it won't be exploited.

Baseball guy buys a 1943 copper cent for $1 million and still as enough to buy more.

A 69 year old hoarder who was dead in his home for at least 3 months left behind $200 in the bank, $12,000 in cash, $165,000 in stocks, and $7,000,000 in metal value of gold and coins. Probably $14 million in collectors value and it will be left to the county to give it to a cousin that did not care to check in every few months.

Finally found a 1947-D nickel which is neither rare or valuable but still elusive, well not anymore.

1994 Slovakia 10 Halierov

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My one and only Slovakian coin and no coincidence it is the most common. Another one of those demonetized coins from a country that has existed then did not then existed again. 

Aluminum and the size of a U.S dime it has SLOVENSKÁ REPUBLIKA 1994 (some mark) Z on the front. On the back is 10 h and a church steeple. Lots of religious symbols on their coinage. Still the coin seems a bit plain now that they are part of the Eurozone the coins have less variety but still are heavily influenced by these older examples.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 10 Halierov / Slovakia
Year: 1994
Mintage: 89,130,000
Metal: Aluminum
Value: $0.05 in Very-Fine

Although the Slovakian coin is from the vault I did find a 2009 Canadian dime but I did find another a few months back so no need to repeat.

Do you have coin from Slovakia and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2012 Cent, Die Breaks

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Die breaks or die cracks either way it happens when the die used to press the coin starts to crack and eventually completely breaks. Alert mint employees should notice the tiny cracks before that happens stop production, recycle the error coins, and replace the die. A great article from Coin World shows how the U.S. mint is trying to eliminate Die Breaks using a visual check list. 

The front is normal without any hint of error.

At least three major cracks with a large cud on the the top of the shield and a long crack from the rim over the O going towards the center of the coin. There are a few minor cracks on the shield and a few of the letters but they are very small.

The die crack must have been deep because the longest break is very pronounced. It sticks out from the coin above any other design element. 

I also love the fact they call the error checking poster "2011 PENNY TYPICAL DEFECTS" showing that penny is an official term for cent coins. From that chart I can see two if not three of the areas on my coin had breaks exactly where they predicted.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Cent / United States
Year: 2012
Mintage: about 2.2 billion to date
Metal: 97.5% Zinc, 2.5% Copper
Value: $0.01 in AU but...

While I would not place any extra value on die breaks I have seen them being sold for about $2.50 on average in high grade. I did not find any 2012 cents online with such obvious cracks so this one may be worth more if indeed the mint is making greater efforts to eliminate errors.

Do you have an error cent and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you. 

1990 Singapore Dollar

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The Singapore dollar is doing well against the Yen and other Asian currencies. Even in circulated condition the exchange value is outpacing the collectors value. Typical of most dollar coins it is golden, has edge writing, and is thicker than normal coins.

The front has the date, coat of arms and Singapore written in four languages, SINGAPURA 新加坡 SINGAPORE சிங்கப்பூர்.

The edge is reeded and has REPUBLIC OF SINGAPORE for extra security.

The reverse has a periwinkle which I imagine is bluer in real life.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Dollar / Singapore
Year: 1990
Mintage: 37,608,000
Metal: Aluminum Bronze
Value: $0.82 in Very-Fine

Do you have a dollar from Singapore and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you

1987 Canada Dollar

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1987 saw the first Loonie issued and it was totally an accident. Okay not totally an accident the Canadian government did redesign the dollar coin to make it lighter, smaller, eleven-sided, and a different color. What they did not intend was to change the voyageur reverse of the previous year. Something happened to the master dies and they disappeared in transit. To thwart possible counterfeiters a new reverse design was used, the majestic loon.

The most common of all the loonies they flooded into circulation. They circulated along with the Canadian dollar bill until the dollar bill was withdrawn in June of 1989. Since then dozens of commemorative designs were issued for circulation and collectors.

Currently the new 2012 Canadian dollars have laser etching and a new composition causing troubles in the vending machine industry. Still globally the Canada dollar is doing great and is still higher than the American dollar.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Dollar / Canada
Year: 1987
Mintage: 205,405,000
Metal: Aureate-Bronze Plated Nickel: 91.5% Nickel, 8.5% Bronze
Value: $1.03 in Very-Fine

Do you have a dollar from Canada and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you

1947-D Nickel

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That took long enough. About 25 years have passed looking through most of my change to find this 1947-D nickel. Heck it was only in 2009 when I found my first 1947 nickel. Like I said back in 2009 they are not that rare or valuable but random gaps are bound to happen to any change collector.

 
1945 is the last year that the U.S. nickel placed the mint mark on the reverse above Monticello. Starting in 1946 the mint mark was moved to the reverse again. A smaller amount of the 1947 Denver and San Fransisco nickels were made but still nothing extreme. It should have circulated better.

Going down the top ten list of circulated nickels I am missing is telling:

• 2012 P, D
• 2011 D
• 2010 D
• 2009 P, D
• 2005 D, Ocean in View
• 2004 D, Keelboat
• 1956 D
• 1955

Denver is tough to get and also newer coins. Coins sixty years or older also come around less often as the years pass. Those 2009 nickel hoarders should start releasing them because I really want to find one before 2069.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 5 Cents / United States of America
Year: 1947-D
Mintage: 37,822,000
Metal: 75% copper 25% nickel
Value: $0.15 in Fine (F-12)

Want to know if your nickel has more than face value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

2004 $20 Star Note, EE-*

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Had this one sitting around for a few year but it still is not flat. Sometimes I press them in books but if I think I might use them or hope to upgrade the note for a higher grade I just leave them as I found them. I put it aside because it was a star note unfortunately a common one.

To remind everyone a star note is a replacement note that the government issues when regular notes are damaged. Instead of replacing the exact serial number new numbers are issued and the damaged notes are replaced. To indicate this change a ★ (star) is added to the end of the serial number on modern notes.

The value is based on how many were printed generally less than 640,000 has real value. Over that number and they become common with about ten percent premium value.

Here's the stats for this bill...
Type/Federal Bank: $20 Star Note D.C. / Richmond
Year: 2004
Printings: 3,200,000
Printed: May 2003
Run: 2nd of 2 from EE03200001* - EE06400000*
Value: $22.50 VF(this one is less)

Yes this is one of the few notes that was printed before its series date, still not special though.

Have you found a $20 bill and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question

Coined For Money: Round-Up Sept. 10-16, 2012

Quiet week for coins but big real world news dominated the headlines.

Remembrance ceremonies on September 11 were as moving as ever.

This on ABC news story about a Vermont store owner who stopped using pennies will give back change rounded up to the nearest nickel. At most he will lose 4 cents per transaction. If he had 100 customers a day per month that all gained 4 cents he would lose $120 a month about $1,440 a year.

Iraq is getting new coins for 2013 there is a network strong enough to distribute it.

I featured the rarely seen in circulation Eisenhower dollar.

1987 Saudi Arabia 50 Halala

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Also known as a 1/2 Riyal this is another one of those coins that gives little hints about origin if you cannot speak the language. The biggest clue is the palm tree over two crossed swords, all reform coins from Saudi Arabia have that symbol.

The sparse design goes with the Muslim belief that you should not make an image of something that is impossible to make by hand. So swords can be forged and trees can be grown from seeds. People on the other hand are sacred according to them so their images are forbidden. Granted as recent events show some people do not believe having a different opinion is correct and would rather be hypocrites and harm others.

Coins often reflect the best a culture has to offer. They generally do not show the whole picture as with Third Reich coins or Confederate money. Here is hoping that everyone is safe now and in the future. A coin commemorating world peace would be great. 

Here's the stats for this coin...
Type/Country: 50 Halala (1/2 Riyal) / Saudi Arabia
Year: 1987 (AH 1408)
Mintage: 70,000,000
Metal: Copper-Nickel
Value: $0.30 in VF (very-fine)

Do you have a Saudi Arabia coin and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

1974-D Eisenhower Dollar

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The Eisenhower dollar was a short series of coins that lasted only eight years from 1971-1978. The front was designed to honor President Dwight D. Eisenhower and the back commemorated the Apollo 11 mission. The size was the same as the Morgan Dollar except slightly lighter since it has no silver in this copper-clad version meant for circulation.

This one is a bit worn on the back so the eagle appears to be eyeless. You may also notice that on the Earth the United States is very large so accuracy was not a priority even when using the Apollo 11 badge as a template. Also eagles cannot live on the moon

There are some famous Doubled Die varieties for the entire Eisenhower series but this one does not look like the 1974-D Master Die Doubling. Instead it looks like a strike doubling but it if you think different leave a comment.

There were a few errors made from the 40% silver composition blanks so if you do have a 1974-D dollar check the edge for that copper streak..

Here's the stat for this coin...
Type/Country: 1 Dollar / United States
Year: 1974-D
Mintage: 45,517,000
Metal: 91.67% Copper, 8.33% Nickel
Value: $1.00 in VF-20 (about $0.20 in metal value)

Oh let me add I got this and another as change about 10-15 years ago, they were given to me as fifty cent pieces. I tried to explain they were dollars but apparently she already got them as half dollars so she was fine in paying them forward as halves since the register would balance at the end.

Do you have a dollar and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

Option 4? Let it Grow

An update to my previous post about Unreachable Cents that were on top of a traffic box. The three cents left on top of the box have now grown to four.

I posted about my choices: 1. Be shameless and just go for it., 2. Ignore it and keep some dignity., or 3. Go all ninja and try to secretly get them. Well someone gave a 4th choice, Add some of your own pennies. See if a large collection begins.

Apparently someone was reading that added option and one more cent was left behind. I still have not found a moment of quiet to get them but at this rate it may go up to ten cents by the end of the month.

Notice any other differences from the first photo? 

Besides a sunnier day the side graffiti has been updated. I guess the local tagger keeps freshening his/her mark. First it was black, then blue, then silver, and now white. Now if I can can a picture of that thug I would be happy.

Back to the cents it would be interesting to see if they keep breeding but the tagger will force the cleaning of the box soon. Dang I like staring at those coins it is relaxing when I am stuck data archiving all day.

1989 Canadian Dollar

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The loonie is a successful dollar coin from Canada. Granted when you spend half of your time wearing bulky clothes and mittens then having big change is great. The bikini clad beach goers of California do not seem equipped to have tons of dollars in large coins jingling around their barely there outfits. (My knowledge of Cali and Canada all stems from sitcoms.)

It looks very much like the U.S. versions in size and color although the shape and metal is different. Maybe because I spend too much time solving engineering efficiency problems but I do not see how this coin is better than a bill for the user. Yes it is many times more efficient for the producer but not the end user.

Even in this tough economy I have seen youngsters hit the ATM then buy something and refuse the change without even counting it. Today I noticed that tip jars have increased everywhere and that most people keep the $5 and up bills and then drop the rest of the change into the tip jars. Crumbs is the last place I saw this happen five times in a row.

Does America want change? Apparently not if the change is too heavy. (sounds political but it is not)

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 1 Dollar / Canada
Year: 1989
Mintage: 184,773,902
Metal: Aureate-Bronze Plated Nickel: 91.5% Nickel, 8.5% Bronze
Value: $1.03 in Very-Fine

P.S. Sorry Canadian Loonie for not focusing on you but I will next time. This one was common and not much to say.

Do you have a dollar from Canada and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you

Honor The Rebuilders

As always on September 11 it is time to talk about and remember the events on that tragic and evil day back in 2001. It has been 11 years and 8 times I posted something about it while most everyone else moved on.

At least 20 Muslims conspired to kill as many Americans as they could on 9-11-2001. They brought terror and destruction based on their extremist views. Yet we rebuilt and as a working engineer I can gladly say WE and mean it.

I opposed a park or large memorial since all current memorial parks are places where the homeless, children, and the people who just don't care like to hang out. The memorial plaza was opened as a reservation only place. School trips started coming and despite the signs that say no throwing coins into the pool they did. They also threw garbage like bottles and paper. It is typical that time passes and the hurt is less, well not for me.

This year the remembrance ceremonies begins at 4:30AM eastern time and will mostly just be the reading of the names. I will pause many times to remember. The new tower is nearly complete and hopefully many more to come.

2004-A $20 Bill, GF-B

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High serial numbers have no special value but they can indicate fraud. For general circulation current U.S. notes do not go higher than 96,000,000. Higher serial numbers are intended to be used on uncut sheets or other special notes available for sale at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing Money Factory Store.

Many times people ask about "cutting errors" where the bills they have has two or even four bills on a regular size note. When I ask for the serial number it is almost always 96000001 or higher. Unfortunately I have to break the bad news that these are real uncut notes that someone cut at home to try and make a valuable error. Once an uncut sheet is cut at home it loses nearly all value.

There are a few exception to the 96-million rule. Pre-1985 the rule was 99,200,000 was the highest used in circulation and some 1985 and 1988-A series $20 bills had both as this period was the transition time.

Here's the stats for this bill...
Type/Federal Bank: $20 Note- Fort Worth / Atlanta
Year: 2004-A
Printings: 364,800,000
Printed: September 2005
Run: 14th of 15 from GF89600001B - GF96000000B
Value: CU(crisp-uncirculated) $22.00

Do you have currency and want to know its value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.

Coined For Money: Round-Up Sept. 3-9, 2012

Never send your rare quasi-illegal coins to be verified by the government. Seriously stolen property should never be sent back to the people it was stolen from for verification. That is like in a bad neighborhood when someone robs you then their kid comes around and tries to sell you back your own stuff.

A judge agrees that 10 gold 1933 $20 coins, possibly worth $80 million, belongs to the government and not the people who found them.

Coin-flipping season began Wednesday, also known as football season. The outcome of these coin flips are bound to cause disputes especially with high school refs in charge. 

While researching my 10 Ruble Bill I found a cool Russian money website.

India's coin shortage is getting odd with candy as change and a huge increase of fees for small businesses to get coins. I can see a Skittles commercial in the future.

1997 Russia 10 Roubles Bill

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This has been featured before but that was six years ago back when I first got it from a nice tourist. Since then the value has not grown but I did learn about all its great security features.

Nice note it has a bridge across the Yenisey river and a chapel tower of Krasnoyarsk. On the reverse is the Krasnoyarsk hydroelectric station dam.

 Some micro printing of the number 10 and ЦБР10, each in normal and negative print.

Held up to the light you clearly see the metallic security strip which is partially visible on the reverse. Then the two watermarks, one of the number 10 and the other of the chapel again.

Yet that is still just a a fraction of the security features which include micro-printed designs, see through designs that match up elements to the front and back, fibers, UV and IR light designs, holographic ink, embossed writing, raised  ink, and hidden tilt shift designs. For a more detailed summary check out this great Russian site CBR.ru.

U.S. notes also use many of these security features and like the Russian notes still are highly counterfeited. Knowing how silver and gold circulating coins were often faked when they were in use it is no surprise the paper money also faces that same problem. What I do not know is plastic money faked in countries where it is common?

Type/Country: 10 Rouble / Russia
Year: 1997(2004)
Printings: Unknown
Run: Unknown
Value: $1.25 in XF

Do you have bills from Russia and want to know their value? Leave a comment/question and I will do my best to find out the price and history for you.