1976 Canada Quarter

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While America was celebrating the bicentennial back in 1976 what was Canada doing? Well nothing they had a centennial in 1967 and I guess they will celebrate their sesquicentennial in 2017. The design is the standard caribou seen on most Canadian quarters since 1937.

This particular 25 cents is a bit rough. The reverse has seemingly started to peel. While I am not sure if this is true lamination or damage it does expose the coin to further damage.

A close up shows the scarred surface and some green. That green verdigris (Copper(II) acetate) commonly seen on copper cents is damaging. I am assuming this is Nickel(II) oxide which on pots, pans, and jewelry are common but not always seen on circulating coins. Polishing nickel prevents this but even in this 100% nickel coin it can take hold when the surface is pitted.

Damaged or an error I think it has no extra value.

Here's the stats for each variety...
Type / Country: 25 Cents / Canada
Year: 1976
Mintage: 86,898,261
Metal: 100% Nickel
Value: $0.25 in G-4

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.

2006 (Colorized) $5 Bill, IB-A

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This is the note that breaks all the rules about series year. The first colorized $5 bill has the series year 2006 but so does the last non-colorized $5 bill. Usually the letter A would have been added or start a completely new series year instead they just changed the serial prefix. Older 2006 $5 bill are H-blocks while newer ones are I-blocks.

The biggest change from non-colorized version, besides the colored background, was the giant purple 5 on the reverse. All the corner 5's were made lighter but the one on the reverse was made huge for ease of use. To me it makes it look like the funny money from a foreign country but that is the way our money is headed.

Still why these design changes did not merit a new series letter probably had to do with laws and politics more than system in place. It is easier to print a quick small run of H-block then ask permission to change the series year. Certain things about currency confuses me too so if you have a definitive answer let me know in the comments section.

Coins are much simpler.

Here's the stats for this bill...
Type/Federal Bank: $5 Note - Fort Worth / New York
Year: 2006 (Colorized)
Printings: 256,000,000
Printed: December 2007
Run: 1st of 15 runs from IB00000001A - IB06400000A 
Value:  $7.50 in CU 

Sidenote: I just realized I have not plucked out a 2009 $5 bill from my change.

Do you have a $5 note 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 Feb. 18-24, 2013

New coins, old coins, and current coins are disappearing and reappearing everywhere. Well maybe not everywhere but in certain locations so read on and find out where you get to join in on the fun.

The Oglala Sioux Tribe is minting the first ever Sioux Nation dollar coin and you can help design it. Contest March 15, 2013 so if you are a coin designer I suggest you give it a try.

Passing through Baltimore then stop by the Whitman Coin & Collectibles Baltimore Expo, March 14 – 17, 2013 and see one of the famous 1913 Liberty V nickels.

South Africa has stopped minting nickels or 5 cents pieces not because of cost but it seems that the market is flooded with them. As predicted the public and private community is getting stuff confused and is banning, rejecting, and not using them causing other problems.

New at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City is the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall and you can buy the souvenir medal too.

Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall Medal

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To celebrate the re-opening of the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH). They are selling many souvenirs. This is the one that caught my eye because of the quality, oh yeah and it is perfect for my hobby. This one is described and sold as a coin but I would call it a medal.

The design is detailed and the overall appearance is high quality. Judging by other souvenirs it was not a unique design and is on everything from coasters to magnets. The front has bison in their natural habitat. The back has the main entrance to the museum.

This is what is known as a custom coin, again it has no denomination or redeemable value so I would call it a medal or medallion. This one was made by American based company Northwest Territorial Mint.

When ordered by the hundreds it has a unit price of anywhere from $7.00 to $8.50 depending on finish and base metal. They use a proprietary brass and alloy system along with something called "Splash Minting" which is never well described. These are thick rounds so basically they get pounded between two dies and a collar. No exact formula is given for copper and other metal content but judging by the lack or red it is lower than most copper or brass coins.

Retail value is $14.99 plus tax but I think it is worth it. As far as I can tell it is only by visiting the AMNH itself can someone get this "coin". The website does not show it for the museum or at the company, maybe an email or phone call can have a personal shopper at the museum help. Visiting nwtmint.com you see plenty of other types of coin related items like true medals, real coins, and silver bullets. Say what you want but I think silver bullets are so cool.

Here are the stats for this...
Type/Country: Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall / United States
Year: Unknown (2012 most likely)
Mintage: Unknown (Seems like about 1,000 cannot be sure)
Metal: Brass Alloy core, Antique Bronze finish
Diameter: 44 millimeters
Obverse Writing: THEODORE ☆ ROOSEVELT ☆ MEMORIAL ☆ HALL ☆
THERE CAN BE NO GREATER ISSUE THAN THAT OF CONSERVATION IN THE COUNTRY
Reverse Writing: AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
Value: $8.50 

Do you have a medal 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.

1973 Small Bust Canada Quarter

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For the centennial of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Canada they decide to make a commemorative quarter. Not satisfied with just a new reverse but they also made a new portrait of the Queen. The former bust of Queen Elizabeth II was made smaller the beads on the border were made bigger.

So how can you tell if your 1973 Canadian quarter is the common small bust or the rare large bust?
Well you can count the beads around the queen. Small bust has 120 beads and large bust has 132. If you do this I suggest taking a clear picture and use some kind of picture editor and just cross-out each bead as you count.

Another way is look at the space between the bead and the rim. If you imagine fitting another bead in that empty space then you have a small bust. If no extra bead can fit in that space then you have a large bust, again photo editing software may help. Look at the example below.

Altered image showing the space between the rim and beads is large enough to place another bead. This is the common small bust.

The final way is just by eye. 1965-1972 were all large bust and again in 1974-1978 were also large bust. Compare these years to 1973 quarters and if the obverse looks the same then you have the rare large bust for 1973. Remember that all those other years were large bust and no small bust were used outside of RCMP quarter.

Here's the stats for each variety...
Type / Country: 25 Cents / Canada
Variety: SB=Small Bust=120 Beads
Year: 1973
Mintage: 135,958,589 including estimated 10,000 Large Bust
Metal: 100% Nickel
Value: $0.25 in VF-20

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.

1990 $10 Bill, F-B

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The oldest $10 note I own. Sure it is only from the 1990 series making it just about 20 years old, it was printed in 1994. Still it is the oldest because I started collecting notes late. Saving notes higher than ones or twos is difficult when you have actual bills to pay.

This is also the first ten dollar bill that contains the polymer security strip and the micro-printing around the portrait. Previous notes that does not have these extra security measures are eventually burned or recycled by the government. That is another reason why I have not found any sawbucks older than 1990.

Even now these notes are becoming scarce in circulation the new colorized versions are replacing them. I cannot recall the last older ten I have seen but it has been a while. The new notes stand out easily with there bright orange tint so I can see how taking the old ones out to burn is easier.

Here's the stats for this bill...
Type/Federal Bank: $10 Note - Washington D.C. / Atlanta
Year: 1990
Printings: 160,000,000
Printed: February 1994
Run: 3rd of 10 runs from F12800001B - F19200000B 
Value:  $10.00 in VF 

Do you have a $10 note 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 Feb. 11-17, 2013

I was part of a Numismatic News article, print and online, about finding 2013 coins in circulation.

Although I found a couple of White Mountain quarter the release ceremony is not until this Thursday. Details below. Check out Coin News for more details.

Date: Thursday, February 21, 2013
Time: 10:30 a.m. ET
Location:
Plymouth State University
Silver Center for the Arts
Hanaway Theatre
17 High Street
Plymouth, NH  03264

Outside the U.S. Egypt is being overwhelmed by people wanting the stable U.S. dollar over other currency because of Egypt's recent political problems. 

Angola is try hard to keep both coins and the new currency, Kwanza notes, without causing a crash.

Bad Doubling!

Die Deterioration Doubling
Let me preview an example of a not true doubled die error.

Die Deterioration Doubling (DDD)
That is what you see above. The die used to the make the coin is going bad and the edges of the design start to flow outward and spread. That causes a doubling and other problems. As the die starts to break down they are polished again and used for a while leaving classic straight polishing lines.

None of this adds value and in high grade coins will actually lower value.

Tilted and repositioned you can see streaks or lines running across the entire coin, these are polish marks.

The back is also full of Deterioration Doubling and the zinc core is partially exposed.

Lincoln's hair has a slight doubling.

The P in PLURIBUS shows the most extreme doubling but every element on the reverse has the bad doubling.

The die deteriorating raises the metal on the design and when pressing the coin it forces more copper out of the way exposing the zinc underneath. the copper plating is very thin and if the design cut is too deep it will show the zinc core.

Again tilting the cent shows most of the doubling and artifacts like streaks and exposed  zinc.

It is like a hill of metal or a drift or pile like after a snow storm.

Even the building has the problem as you can see the zinc coming out on the left hand side.

Among all coins this is common but it is most often seen among the cents in the U.S and Canada. Nickels also sees this kind doubling often since it takes a greater force to make a nickel and the metal flow is great causing faster deterioration.

Let me emphasize these are errors but not valuable kinds. This is just worn and old dies and since it happens often that does not make it valuable. Sometimes called a "Poorman's Doubling" it fools many to think they have something rare.

Should you still collect DDD error coins? I would say no but some extreme examples looks cool and as long as there is eBay there is always a market.

2004 Spain 10 Euro Cent

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Found this one in my change when I first started blogging back in 2005. It is making a reappearance not just for fun but to show the difference between the map changes. The first major change on Euro coins was the map that is on every circulating Euro coin.

Above is the old map which had each Eurozone country distinct and in an exploded-view. For those not familiar with CAD software exploded-view is when something that is connected normally and then separated into its components.

After more countries joined the Eurozone they redesigned the front to include a relief map. Relief maps show land details and not borders. Below is a side by side comparison.

The relief map in my opinion looks better and takes up less space. Is it possible the map will change again? Probably as the Euro is ultimately trying to become a globally coin.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 10 Euro Cent / Spain
Year: 2004
Mintage: 121,857,000
Metal: Brass
Value: $0.15 in Very-Fine

Do you have a Euro 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.

1993 $10 Bill, D-A

Have a ten dollar note and want to know its value? Leave a comment

While I prefer to pluck out crisp bills from my change that is not always possible. I got this one a few years back and it is series 1993 but in worn shape. Still I never had one before so I kept it hoping to upgrade but that has not happened yet.

Along with the deep folds that have worn the ink away it also has red ink on the corners. This red ink is not an error it is local bank ink. When the stacks of money are packed for delivery by banks they take bright red ink stamps and mark each stack with the information about the stack. Info like how much and how many bills, the date ad times packed, and people who received it. This ink is very strong and often soaks throughh the wrapping paper or was purposefully placed on the notes edge.

Here's the stats for this bill...
Type/Federal Bank: $10 Note - Washington D.C. / Cleveland
Year: 1993
Printings: 140,800,000
Printed: April 1996
Run: 14th of 15 runs from D83200001A - D89600000A  
Value:  $10.00 in VF 

Do you have a $10 note 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 Feb. 4-10, 2013

Let us see if how the internet is supporting coins. First they link to wonderful articles, then they create coins that will never exist, and finally they created a great infograph that fools you into thinking you are not being cheated.

Coin Update's Roundup has links confirming that the 2013 White Mountain quarter is being minted in higher numbers. They also kindly linked to my recent find and I greatly appreciate it.

Amazon is introducing Amazon Coins which will be 1 Amazon coin to 1 U.S. cent. Only for the app-store but it may join other private virtual currencies that are trying to take over the internet.

The Canadian cent is still legal but so is rounding.
Basically...

• $0.01 and $0.02 gets you $0.00; 
• then $0.03, $0.04 gets you $0.05;
• next $0.06, $0.07 gets you $0.05;
• last $0.08, $0.09 gets you $0.10;

How much you want to bet someone will try to turn in 3 cents for a nickel. What will happen is that all products will be adjusted to end in  $0.01, $0.02, $0.06, and $0.07 this will cost you a few cents but will reap millions to certain large chain stores.

2013-P White Mountain Quarter

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Released on January 28, 2013 it is circulating so well that over a week later and I found two in my change. White Mountain, New Hampshire is part of the United States Forest Service and the first of the 2013 America the Beautiful series quarters.

To find a 2013 coin this early is great and suggest that this coin may have been minted in vast quantities. The coin is as shiny as a circulated coin can get with only bag marks. Bag marks are the dents and scratches that occur while minting and packaging for distribution and are not considered "too bad".

Another highly detailed reverse causing the front to be struck weak. It features a real mountain called Mt. Chocorua and a bunch of birch tree at a lake shore. Most forest tend to look alike and this being the 16th in the America the Beautiful series it does not really stand out. It is still a great view and the real place must be majestic but maybe a more birch trees and less tree at a distant.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 25 Cents-White Mountain / United States
Year: 2013-P
Mintage: 68,800,000 (estimated)
Metal: 91.67% Copper 8.33% Nickel
Value: $0.25 in F-12

Do you have a quarter from America 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.

2000 Canadian Achievement Quarter

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ACHIEVEMENT or REALISATION
Success in an accomplish although does not the French translate to mean "realization" which is the act of make something real. Slight difference but that does not take away from the great quarter design.It has a simple rocket with a trail of smoke blending into ocean swirls. There is a maple leaf mountain and a background of stars.

My favorite part of this coin is the rocket. It is designed simply but cut deeply. The pyramid shape gives it a feel like it is flying off the coin the rest of design is relatively flat. The only other high point is the large star that seems to guide the rocket. Daryl (Ann) Dorosz was the designer for this March 2000 quarter.

Here are the stats...
Type/Country: 25 Cents-March, Achievement / Canada
Year: 2000
Mintage: 35,135,154
Metal: 100% Nickel
Value: $0.25 in G-4

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 $2 Bill, D-A

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Look what I got last week.

The family in front of me paid with $2 bill because their grandma gave a bunch and said go crazy spending. The cashier was nice enough to let me buy all eleven, I suspect the lack of register space was a factor. I assured her none were special.

So if none are special why did I buy them, well it simply gave me a chance to add and upgrade. Only about five were uncirculated and three of those were types I did not own. The unwanted notes went back into circulation.

This is a COPE note as I described last week. Judging by the serial number this was the last of the Cleveland runs for this series. That does explain its crispness for this 35+ year old note. I like the fact people are still using these notes and hope it continues just for the novelty alone.

Here's the stats...
Type/Federal Bank: $2 Note- Washington D.C. / Cleveland
Year: 1976
Date Printed: September 1976
Printings: 31,630,000
Run: 49th from 15-49 of the D30720001A - D31630000A group
Value: $2.50 in Almost Uncirculated

Do you have a two dollar bill 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.
You might

Coined For Money: Round-Up Jan. 28-Feb. 3, 2013

Auctions and donations all start with a few cents and can grow beyond expectation. This week let us see how we can wisely spend some money.

In April that rare 1913 nickel is up for auction, estimates have it at $2 million or more.

A 1794 dollar coin is now the most valuable/expensive coin ever sold. At $10,016,875 it is just out of my price range but congrats to whatever corporation that bought it. 

Update: we are getting closer, you can remain Anonymous and give $5.00 or whatever.

Help with as little as a few dollars by donating to find a cure for multiple myeloma, use this link to help reach our small goal that we are half way through. Running up the stairs at Empire State Building is our secondary goal, imagine how that feels.

2012-P Denali Quarter

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The last of the quarters for 2012 released on November 5, 2012. The Denali quarter is also one of the most common of the entire America The Beautiful series. Including both Philly and Denver mints the total of 302 million marks a 4 to 6 time larger mintage than average.

A final increase of quarters at the end of the year is not uncommon. Several factors including the seasonal economy, updated low circulation numbers, and mint speculation for the upcoming months causes the boost every year. Apparently as the economy gets better so does the minting of coins.

Denali is an Alaskan park formerly known as McKinley National Park before its expansion. It is famous for McKinley Mountain and huge herds of caribou over large seemingly barren landscapes. Of course they are not barren instead they are a cold climate adapted rich habitat. Denali is also famous for its alleged oil reserves. There maybe up to ten years worth of oil under the park and talks are constant on the best way to access the oil. As other quarters have lost their icon images I hope this one does not suffer the same fate for a several years worth of oil.

Here's the stats...
Type/Country: 25 Cents-Denali / United States
Year: 2012-P
Mintage: 135,400,000 (estimated)
Metal: 91.67% Copper 8.33% Nickel
Value: $0.25 in F-12

Do you have a quarter from America 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.