1. The error is know as a “Cluster coin” or "Bonded coin".
(See coin #5 in this
auction)
This particular coin sold for $10,925.
Bonded coins are created when the feeder system, which supplies blank planchets to the coin press, malfunctions and jams. When this occurs, a struck coin is not properly ejected and another planchet is fed into the collar and is struck. This struck coin will land on top of the previously unejected strike. These coins will then crush and bond together. This may happen multiple times as more coins bond.
Note: The die is never capped during this event. Just more planchets rolling in to be smushed (Paul term) onto the the stack of planchets.
2. The error is known as a “MAD coin”.
MAD = Misaligned die
Note the rim on the obverse is missing on the left side of the coin, but is full on the reverse. The obverse die was misaligned at the time of strike making the obverse off-center while the reverse is correct.
(See the first quarter on this
infamous site.)
3. Although dated 1783, the coin was most likely minted in 1820, in England, at the SOHO mint. (The coin shown is not a restrike.)
Lady Liberty was not standing until 1875. Instead, the figure typically used on an American coin was the goddess Columbia. (Columbia was a big deal in early America... even our capitol is built on land named after her.) But, this coin was not made in America. The figure for Great Britain was Britannia. As PetesPockets55 points out, you can read the coin's history (as we think we know it) at the
University of Notre Dame website.
But here is a quote from that site:
"This figure was first used as Britannia on Soho company coinage of 1797. However in the present context with the liberty cap and the legend above her which reads "UNITED STATES"
I suspect she is meant to
represent Liberty." (Underlined bold is mine.)
You might see some similarity to the coin below made in England:
4. Indian states: Kuchuwan (feudatory of Jodhpur)
In name of Shah Alam II (1759-1806)
1 Rupee
- 1203H.jpg (51.62 KiB) Viewed 11791 times
Dated: 1203H (Lunar Hejira), or 1789 AD [just below centre on obverse, left image]
Also: Year 31 (year of emperor's reign) [bottom of reverse, right image]
At first glance, the date is clearly 1203H (Lunar Hejira), and by the formula posted on
CreoUnity : Date AD = Date LH – (Date LH / 33) + 622, you receive the 1789 date.
To cross-check this date, add the year 31 from the reverse of the coin to the year Shah Alam II took reign (1759+31=1790).
This makes sense because the Lunar Year is not 365 days and after 31 years would have lost 341 days, or almost one year.
5. Fuld die pair : 259/445a
I'll just quote PetesPockets55 here:
An article in The Philadelphia Public Ledger, early March of 1863, said the cents were "universally" hoarded and said there was a 20 percent premium attached to the cents and this expression even showed up on some tokens of the period.
Store owners would give a 20% discount on items if paid in true American coinage, which was actually copper-nickel, instead of the highly circulated tokens of the time.
