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 Replies: 41 / Views: 4,703 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3499 Posts |
Hey everyone, I bought this coin a while back, but I am not certain of the denomination of the coin or any other info other than the date and that it was minted in Denmark for circulation in Norway (since Norway and Denmark were politically fused at this time. Any info on this coin would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! Image:  Norway1655obv.jpg90.05 KB Image: Norway1655rev.jpg86.56 KB Edited by Archraz
06/05/2008 10:31 am
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Pillar of the Community
United States
812 Posts |
It looks like a Norwegian 16 Skilling (1 Mark), KM 32.1. If so, it should weigh 5.57g and be 67.2% silver.
Denmark had a very similar 16 Skilling coin in 1655, but with a different reverse.
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Pillar of the Community
Norway
510 Posts |
Hi I feel qualified to answer this!  The denomination is 2 (II) Marck. At the time the system was 1 Daler = 6 Marck, 1 Marck = 16 Skilling, so this was also worth 32 Skilling or 1/3 Daler. It weighs approximately 11,14 grams, 67,2% silver. The type was made 1649-1669. 1655 is not a particularly difficult year, but none of these are easy to come by these days. This is in fact minted in Norway, to be precise in Christiania - our capital which later changed name to Oslo. Almost all coinage meant for Norway was minted in Christiania 1628-1686. After that production was moved to Kongsberg (also in Norway) because that was where the silver originated from. The lion is a sure sign of Norwegian mintage, the Danish symbol looks quite different (three lions). Edited by Litotes
06/05/2008 11:40 am
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
3499 Posts |
Bilbo & Litotes- Thanks for the info! The coin is very light, I was a bit worried that it may have been too light to be real. It is 33mm wide, so that may be indicative of the denomination. Do you guys know how these coins were struck? How would you grade this coin? I always enjoy getting a second opinion. Also, what kind of value does Krause give for this coin in this grade?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5318 Posts |
If I might add, the "F3" on the obverse stands for King Frederik III, who ruled Denmark/Norway 1648-1670.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
812 Posts |
Well ... I was close, but no cigar. (I suppose I should have looked at where it says "II Marck" very clearly on the obverse!)
It is a 2 Mark coin, which should contain 1/4 oz of silver; KM 33.
My Krause is pretty old (1999); it lists values of VG $25, F $50, VF $120, and XF $220. I'm sure these are higher now.
I'm no expert at grading this series, but I'd say it is probably VG ... no higher than F.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3499 Posts |
Bilbo- 1/4 ounce of silver? Interesting. This coin just feels really light and doesn't sound like it is silver at all. I don't see any signs of casting or other sings that it would be a fake. And plus this coin came with a bit of provenience: Image: Norwegiancoinletter19562.jpg96.83 KB (This letter was in the envelope that the contained the coin) I have no idea who Don or Kennith are, but I do know that I bought the coin from a reputable dealer (who I have been buying from for over a decade) who said that an elderly woman sold it to them. The dealer said that the elderly woman was selling off her late husband's coins. So it appears that this coin was in a collection for quite some time. The coin is too old to be a modern fake. Therefore it must be real, but why is it so light? Edited by Archraz
06/05/2008 3:12 pm
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Moderator
 Australia
16851 Posts |
Quote:
The coin is too old to be a modern fake. Therefore it must be real, but why is it so light? You've left out a third possibility: an old forgery, or even a contemporary counterfeit. Get an accurate weight, that should help confirm it's authenticity. As Litotes said, it should weigh about 11.14 grams of .672 fine silver. Your coin dealer should have a balance that accurate. It doesn't look worn or damaged enough to have lost enough weight to make much difference. As for grade, it looks weakly struck in places, but not too worn. It might be a technical VF or gVF, but probably wouldn't get much above Fine in value because of the strike. 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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Pillar of the Community
United States
3499 Posts |
Sap- that is true. I didn't take that into consideration. Hmmmm. What would that do to the value of the coin? would it be totally worthless as a contemporary counterfeit?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3499 Posts |
well, I just weighed it, and it is 11 grams exactly. I just can't get my mind around it being that much silver though. What other metals compose this coin? Is there a high amount of tin or aluminum or something of the sort. I must admit, this thing does not sound like normal 90% silver, 10% copper world coins that I've dealt with. Who am I kidding, this thing doesn't sound like silver at all. It sounds like tin or something.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5318 Posts |
I doubt that coin would "sound" like a modern US silver coin. Not the same silver content, and I would guess the "ring" of the coin depends on things such as the integrity of the edge and flan it's struck on. Sometimes even modern coins with internal delamination sound "dull". From the photo, I do see colors of tarnished silver. Just a few observations, feel free to correct me!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3499 Posts |
KurtS- I really wish that this were really silver, I really do! It doesn't even ring. It just has a flat, short "dunk" sound. If this is a contemporary counterfeit, then the counterfeiter was a genius because it looks WAY better than even most modern attempts at counterfeiting. For I see absolutely no signs of shoddy craftsmanship or casting. Is it possible that patterns were made in tin or something of the sort at the Christiania mint?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5318 Posts |
Well, my guesses aren't worth much since I don't have any of these coins. Perhaps someone like Swamperbob will chip in their expertise? If it's counterfeit, I hope it's at least contemporary  |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3499 Posts |
KurtS- Thanks for the input! I too wish that a Swamperbob of Norwegian coins would appear and save the day.
Does anyone else have any ideas or input?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1984 Posts |
In my experience the ring test is not infallible. Hammered silver coins can be affected by several factors: alloyed metal, planchet imperfections etc. I personally wouldn't worry too much about it.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3499 Posts |
halfabustisbetter- Thanks for the reassurance. At this point I feel that it really could be either real or fake. Obviously, it is really hard to tell. Though I bought the coin about a year ago, I may take it back to the dealer that I bought it from and let him take a better look at it. We are on really good terms, so I'm sure that he'll be honest with me.
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Replies: 41 / Views: 4,703 |
Norway1655obv.jpg
Norway1655rev.jpg
Posted 06/05/2008 11:38 am
Norwegiancoinletter19562.jpg
