An 1875 Indian Cent With Some Interesting History Attached .

I think it's past time we got over the whole "counterstamped coins are just damaged" nonsense and started to treat them more as historical artifacts with stories to tell, which is why I love reading ExoGuy's stories.

While I thoroughly agree, there will always be many collectors who simply/unknowingly regard c/s's as PMD coins. Consider that, if we all shared the same inherent knowledge, there'd be little need for forums like this, eh what?

I've long regarded c/s'd coins as the Rodney Dangerfield of Numismatics; this, as "They (generally) get no respect." Savvy collectors know otherwise. The reason I pen these posts and write articles is to raise collector awareness.

There's a flip-side for c/s buyers like me. Similar to the error and variety collectors out there, my knowledge and study of these gives me an advantage when buying, A few years ago, I was outbid on a four-figure c/s that was stamped during the Civil War years; this, being an era, post-1850's, wherein the fad of c/s'ing coins had come to a virtual stand-still. Had an article I penned on this issue not been published a year or so earlier, I might have won that coin.

I've noticed a trend on ebay, wherein more and more sellers are seeking pie-in-the-sky prices for unattributed c/s's, a,k,a, "mavericks." Some months ago, I spotted a very desirable c/s with a $750 BIN. After some back-and-forth communication with the seller, I purchased it for a third of his starting price. I educated him on the piece's value, citing past auction prices realized.

For any newbies or collectors who better want to comprehend what factors determine the worth of c/s's, I'd recommend reading the below CCF thread that I previously posted. IMHO, it's an eye-opener .... Knowledge is king!

http://goccf.com/t/454669

very cool topic. thanks for posting this.

The last piece I bought was a Vanderslice silver mug. It holds a cup of liquid and weighs 200 grams. People often bought them as christening gifts, though they're more like small tankards than baby cups. The San Francisco silversmiths fit in with my interest in the Western gold and silver rushes, along with the CC and early S mint coins, and the gold fractionals.

The retail marks don't interest me much. To me, a Shreve or Vanderslice stamp on a Gorham spoon is only a curiosity because of the East Coast origin. Much of the true SF silverware came out of the Cerro Gordo mines (not Comstock) as a byproduct of lead refining. They helped establish Los Angeles as a city.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerro_Gordo_Mines