1970 Gold Penny, Recommended Gold Coins, 1814 Half Eagle

Welcome back to Something About Coins! I've summarized articles about a golden penny, three gold coins to buy right now, how to examine coins, and what an old but original coin should look like.

Can you believe a counterfeit penny made of gold? I found a couple of articles on this one. A Brooklyn woman noticed an interesting penny in her change not long ago. The gold was starting to show, so she kept it and then looked up "gold penny" online later. Actually, she forgot about it until she found a 1924 Mercury dime and researched both coins. She found a press release about a special penny that artist Jack Daws put in circulation at LAX airport in 2007. Daws had metal smiths make an 18-karat gold penny, dated 1970 with no mint mark, twice as heavy than a normal penny and slightly smaller. It said anyone finding the golden penny should contact his Seattle art dealer at Greg Kucera Gallery. After weighing the coin and matching up all the indicators to the coin she had found, the woman from Brooklyn called the art gallery the next day.

If you're looking for gold coins from a real mint for your investment portfolio, here's an article recommending three gold coins to buy. They are the one ounce Canadian Maple Leaf, the Australian Kangaroo Nugget and the American Buffalo gold coins. The article recommends these coins specifically because they are 24-karat, and because they are popular worldwide. It says to look for coins with the lowest premium to the international gold spot price, which is no more than 5% premium to spot.

Michael Fazzari explains what and where to look for damage when examining coins. It can be disappointing when modern coins get damaged in counting machines. This is a great article with lots of useful tips. For example, develop a specific technique when examining, start on the obverse, divide it into sections and examine each part separately. Then start tipping and rotating the coin in the light, and check the edge, rim, and letters. To illustrate counting machine damage, Fazzari uses Presidential dollars and finds a scrape across the jaw on the portrait and circular trace wheel damage near the rim.

Doug Winter carefully describes the look of an original early coin in his market blog today. He took an 1814/3 half eagle graded MS62 by NGC, and he described its natural color and coloring as well as its glow and luster. The coin had a coppery-orange color with dark areas in the obverse field that got deeper in places toward the edges. There's a good deal of luster in a circular pattern that swirls when the coin is rotated. Cleaned or doctored coins lack color gradation and the cartwheel pattern luster.

Thanks for visiting, and I hope you'll come back tomorrow!