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 Replies: 21 / Views: 1,992 |
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Rest in Peace
United States
3730 Posts |
Good story.
I can't really come close except to say that I had, then lost a 1942 dime. AU. Years later I found another. Also AU. 1942 is my birth year, so it was special to me.
Not too many 1942 coins floating around anymore. Must be getting older.
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
9409 Posts |
They say coins are made round, to go 'round. This coin certainly came back 'round to you. Good story. If you ever lose it again, let me know. I'm sure I could find some more in the till at work. LOL Steve  |
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Valued Member
United States
157 Posts |
Hello empfan1:
Where you working at this same place at the time you lost the coin? If so, then it would have to be a remarkable coincidence for the coin NOT to be the one you lost.
Perhaps when you opened your wallet for some reason, the coin fell to the floor, to be found later by a co-worker and stored somewhere.
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1091 Posts |
Well, you first kept it for "Good Luck" and it has returned to you. That IS lucky.
Some information about that luck coin.
1977 20cent Australian
Obverse design of Queen Elizabeth the 2nd by Arnold Machin
Reverse design of Platypus by Stuart Devlin
Minted in Camberra, Australia
Compostion 75% copper, 25% nickel
Weight 11.31 grams
Size 28.52mm
Mintage 41,272,000
This design started in 1966 when Australian currency changed and went to decimal. The Young Queens portrait goes from 1966 to 1984. Then an older portrait was used between 1985 and 1998, and older again since 1998. While the Platypus design has remained the same to the current year.
Space Invaders affects Australian coinage.
The demand for this 20c coin went through the roof in 1980, 81 and 82 with the introduction of the "space invaders" arcade games that were new and very popular at the time, creating a huge demand for the 20c piece. (Production soared to over 265 million in 1981.) Yes, it was 20c a game here, not a quarter. Anyway, after the games stopped being popular, there was no demand for new 20c pieces and only 2,700,000 pieces were made in 1985, and then only made in mint sets in 1986, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, and 93 (the guides are in error for 93 saying there was 1,498,500 made, should be corrected in the next edition.)
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
9409 Posts |
Edited by triggersmob
06/05/2006 03:19 am
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1529 Posts |
The good old platypus...... Here is additional information to what Toast has provided. 1981 was the crazy year in which a humungus mintage was strucked,in round figures, 165,503,000 by the Canberra Mint, 50,000,000 by the Wales Mint and an additional 50,000,000 by the Canadian Mint thereby creating a collectors delight/nightmare with the different varieties etc....eg a BU three and half toed platy by the Canadian Mint will cost in the vicinity of $150.00 Mintages in the 3 succeeding years was also huge, 76,504,000 in 1982;55,113,000 in 1983 and 27,820,000 in 1984. Ironically, the ones of 1983 and 1984 are coveted by collectors as a result of a meltdown of almost the entire population by the Mint. For over three years now, I have been chasing a roll of either the 83 or the 84 Twenty Cents without any success. Both have a BV of $300.00 but I am willing to pay more (so will many others) to get my hands on a roll. No circulating 20 cents platypus were minted in the years from 1986 to 1992. The only platys that were strucked in those years were for the Mint sets. The lowest mintage of circulating platys were in 1993 where only 1,498,500 were strucked. Rolls of this year has a BV of $100.00. |
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1529 Posts |
Oophs.....overlooked your query triggersmob...sorry. 240,000 platys were strucked for inclusion in the 1988 Mint sets and a further 10,000 was strucked for the Coin Fair Mint sets. Retail of the sets that I have seen going off ebay are in the vicinity of $25.00 to $30.00. |
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Valued Member
United States
187 Posts |
What a neat story. And you do tell it very well!!!
Jerry
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Pillar of the Community
United States
604 Posts |
I like Auusie coins I have a 20 cent from 1964 I think I have to check But its a beauty I tell ya that  |
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
9409 Posts |
Hey Buffaloboy, If you have a Aussie 20 cent from 1964, it is a fake. Decimal currency started 1966, before this it was pounds, shillings and pence. Steve |
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Moderator
 Australia
16831 Posts |
quote:
Originally posted by cladking
Stuart Devlin designed this coin and dozens of others of the finest coins in the modern era. The early versions of this issue are scarce in uncirculated condition. Demand was non-existent until the early '90's but now there are a few collectors for these. Some of his other designs are far scarcer and can be had for almost nothing.
In an interview just printed in the Australasian Coin & Banknote magazine, Stuart Devlin himself descibes the platypus 20˘ as "undoubtedly the best coin I have designed". Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. - C. S. Lewis
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New Member
 United States
45 Posts |
Thanks everyone and thanks for the info about the coin. It's nice to know a little about it since I was lucky enough to get another one back  . To Daniel J. Goevert, no I wasn't working here at the time, I lost it somewhere in Monterey, Ca. I'm working some 50 miles north of there now. That's what's so cool about finding another one after all these years. |
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1091 Posts |
OK, the percentage of 1977 20c coins out of all the 20c coins minted is approximately 0.3%, So after finding an Australian 20c coin the odds of it being a 1977 is 1 out of 330.
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New Member
United States
45 Posts |
Whoa![:0], I guess that would quit literally be the odds, But do those odds apply to finding one in Australia or to finding one in the U.S.[:p] ? P.S. sorry for the late reply Edited by empfan1
06/11/2006 3:51 pm
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Pillar of the Community
Australia
1091 Posts |
Whoops, I doubled checked my figures and found I made a mistake. The correct percentage of the 1977 coin is 3% not .3% so that changes the odds.
So, a random find of an Aussie 20c would be a 1977 coin is 1 in 33.
The odds that the first two Aussie 20c coins you come across are BOTH the 1977 coin is 1 in 1089.
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Posted 06/04/2006 8:50 pm
