Saturday, February 19, 2011

The Collectable Clash


I like die clash markings.  No getting around it, I’m fascinated by the “extra design elements” on the coin.  There isn’t a date in the Victoria series that doesn’t have a visible clash on some coins.  I can’t keep them all, so what’s collectable?  For me it’s the unusual ones.

I stumbled on clashes by accident.  I wasn’t looking for them but they just started to pop out at me.  Knowing where to look is the key to finding cool ones.  Knowing where to look comes from knowing how a clash occurs .  Let’s explore that first and then move on to the cool stuff.

We all know how dies clash together, the planchet fails to show up between the dies when the striking motion occurs.  This can impart design elements from one die to the other.  The operative word here is “can”.  Even if design elements are transferred, they can be polished out of the dies or just plain worn out with use.  So what do I mean by the phrase “can be transferred”? 

Thinking this through a bit leads us to consider the designs on the dies, and what happens when they come together.  First, the dies design elements are mirror images of what we see on the coin.  Second, what is raised on the coin is incuse on the die.  When the dies strike a planchet with appropriate force, the metal on the planchet flows into the incuse areas of the dies creating the raised elements of the coin.  When the two dies come together without a planchet in between, there are 3 possible outcomes:
1.       Field to field - Since no design elements are present, no design is transferred
2.       Design to design - Since both elements are incuse there is nothing to transfer
3.       Design to field – Ah, now something happens.  The field from one die flows into the incuse area of the other die creating a raised element in the field of the first die.

Since the resulting new element is a raised spot, or high point, in the field on the die, it will impart an incuse element on the coins produced after the clash of the dies.  The results are the markings I look for.  The real cool ones I keep. 

So what is there to look for and where do you need to look?  Since the design elements of a die are mirror images of what is on a coin, we need to think in mirror image to visualize the impact areas on a coin.  Look in the fields of the coin for these incuse design elements.  The two overlay graphics below will help you peg the areas to look for and what design elements you can expect.  You will often need to tilt the coin back and forth against a fixed light source in the same manner that you would check for luster.  This will cause a clash to “pop”.  Start looking for cool die clashes to add to your variety collection.  You’ll be surprised at what you will find.

I had originally published the photographs of clash examples used below in the CN Journal , Vol. 53 Number 2, March 2008.
Potential reverse element locations on the obverse side of a coin due to a clash. These will only be in the fields.

Potential obverse element locations on the reverse side of a coin due to a clash. These will only be in the fields.
Reverse bead clash between head and obverse bead line.  This is fairly common.
Obverse head clash just under the bead line. This is fairly common.
Throat and chin clash.  Note how it wraps the 6.  These are less common.
Forehead and nose clash on the right, bun clash on the left.  These are less common.
E and T clashes.  E sticking out of the forehead, the T from the nose and lips. These are fairly scarce.
Obverse beads and lettering in the leaf and vine line.  This particular one is quite scarce.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Variety of the Month – 1899’s

I hadn’t thought that much about 1899’s until several of us were working on the large cent variety section in the Charlton Standard Catalogue of Canadian Coins, 65th edition, 2011.  All the cool action for this date is on the reverse, and all of it is associated with the final 9 in the date.  Three 9/9 over-punches can be easily seen with a 10 x loupe.  Two are dramatic and the third more subtle.  All are collectable and considered reasonably scarce but not rare.  Expect to pay a modest premium, perhaps up to double trends, when you find them in stock from knowledgeable seller.

The first 9/9 shows evidence at the bottom left and is the remnant of at least two previous attempts at placing the 9 before finally settling on its original position.  This is the most dramatic offset of the three different examples of 9/9 for this date.

The second 9/9 shows evidence directly below the 9.  This is a single re-punch.

Finally the third more subtle 9/9 shows on the right at the bottom.  This is clearly the least amount of offset for the 9/9.

In addition to these, the font style of the final 9 can be different as well.  The final 9 can be much thinner, shaped a bit different and generally more delicate than the first 9 in the date.  This one is fairly common. This I’ll let you discover on your own, the others are pictured below.  

These original photographs were first published in A Charlton Standard Catalogue, Canadian Coins, Volume One, Numismatic Issues 2011, 65th Edition., W. K. Cross editor, and are published here with permission.

Happy Hunting!
Figure 1: 9/9 shows below to the left.
Figure 2: The 9/9 shows directly below with a nice offset
Figure 3: The 9/9 shows modestly at the bottom right.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Cherry Picking According to Jack.......... (Collecting Griffin Rarities)

It’s really hard to be a Canadian large cent variety collector without knowing about Jack Griffin.  Jack was a long time collector and researcher from rural southern Ontario.  He was meticulous about documenting the detail he saw on various coins in his note books and on his 2x2 holders.  In 1992, Jack’s work was published with the assistance of Brian Cornwell as “Some Die Varieties of the Large Cents of British North America and Canada”.  This monograph listed almost 1,000 different die varieties spanning 1858-1920 for Canadian material and including Provincial ½ and cent issues as well.  This original work is hard to find but it is out there.  A couple of years back The Charlton Press republished the work in 3 separate monographs including photographs of a number of the varieties to aid in identification.

To be sure, Jacks work was not a complete variety catalog and he never sought to promote it as such.  The fact that the title says “Some” indicates that the publication of his notes was a snapshot in time.  His work did however serve to jump start variety collecting which had stalled after Hans Zoell’s efforts of the 1960’s.  New varieties are discovered all the time.  The definitive work on this is not yet written.  There are currently several researchers that are systematically picking away at uncovering and documenting die varieties. 

The top three questions on any variety collectors mind, in no particular order, are;
  1. What is it?
  2. How difficult is it to find?
  3. What’s it worth?
Without making further comments on the limitations of the publications of Jacks work, he addresses the first two questions but not the third.  He documents his observations and gave each die variety a rarity rating

Griffin’s rarity scale was 1=very common to 10=extremely rare.  For reference here, 4=scarce, 7=almost rare, 8=rare.  He never used level 9 or 10.  Jack listed a mere twelve die varieties at rarity 7 and a further six at rarity 8.  The following table sums up what Jack felt were Canadian large cents with a rarity rating of 7 and 8 between the years of 1858 and 1901.  I personally use Turners more up to date reference for the 1858’s and 1859/8’s.  Several of these were featured in the 65th Edition of the Charlton Standard Catalog of Canadian Coins.

Just for reference, Jack lists the rarity for a 1859 DP#1 as a 6, the 1859 DP#2 as a 4 and the 1884 Obverse one as a 6.  Happy Hunting .

Rarity
Year
Comments
8
1859
Small date with a slight 5/5. ONE CENT looks smaller
7
1859/8
1 in the date is re-punched and shifted left
7
1859/8
Narrow 9/8 with a slight 5/5 as well
7
1859/8
Narrow over wide.  8 re-punched and 5 re-cut
7
1859
Tall slim 5 over shorter 5 with a great amount of offset. O in ONE is re-cut
7
1859
The N in CENT is re-cut showing at the top and bottom
7
1859
The T in CENT is not filled in at the top, also at the foot



8
1881
Single serif N in CANADA and REGINA, same style as in 1876
8
1881
Die clash of obverse beads on the reverse in the leaf 8 and 9 position
7
1890
Die clash of reverse 0 under Victoria’s chin and beads under bust truncation
8
1893
9/9/9