Charliemouse

It's a valid point. I do not have any old proof sovereigns, so I cannot go further back. But I can compare modern proof coins from other mints, even if it isn't like-for-like.

Agreed. The frosting gets more 'frosty' as time moves forward (and more holes), but the definition of the face and detail gets worse. What is especially noticeable is that, with the 1984, I could not keep the whole face in focus because the relief was so much higher. The later coins, especially the 2015, are flatter and easily focused.

I think we are now arguing semantics (not where I wanted this thread to go, but there). They are defects only in that they are imperfections, not intended or part of the design, but artefacts of manufacture. Of course no coin is going to be perfect, so by that definition all coins have defects. Other possible definitions of 'defect': It can be seen unaided. It can be seen with a certain magnification (such as graders do). You can see it and care about it. All of these definitions are subjective, as different people have different eyesight, skills and standards. That's why I put the word 'defect' in quotes.

1984 1986 2015

Exactly my point. I am just interested in what these 'defects' are and how they happen.

I do buy 69s because I can get real bargains. But when you grade something new and it comes back 69, it's marginal whether it was worth the time and money. The market only seems to want 70s.

Sadly, the world we live in now is one where visible perfection isn't good enough. It has to be perfect at 5x to get that precious 70 grade. The step down in value to 69 is ridiculous.

Take the image of the Panther's jaw, picture 4. The entire image is about 1.5mm wide by 1mm tall. The frosting hole is just visible to the naked eye if you look for it. In contrast, the Yale's tongue in image 5 is about 1mm long, so that image is about 5x3mm. You can tell it is zoomed out as the frosting appears finer. To be clear, I am not complaining about these. Plenty of other threads for that. None are visible without very close inspection. I am more interested in sharing the images and learning.

I've had these coins for a while now. In some cases, I wish I'd looked at them as closely sooner. They are not returnable any more, but that's really not the point of this thread. I would be very interested to know the likely cause of any of these marks / 'defects'. All the pictures were taken close to minimum distance, approx. 15-20mm. That gives a magnification around 300-500x. Definite signs of a shifting die between impressions. A few typical frosting holes. Not much wrong here. Ripples in the fields I find very attractive, and can sometimes be caught when the angle is just right with the SLR. Again, obvious die shift, plus a strange 'bleeding' effect. Also maybe some milk spotting or minor discolouration on the left. 'Big' gaps in the frosting here. Amazingly, very difficult to spot with the naked eye, this looks quite horrible with the microscope. Almost like the surface is flaking off. These look like very small impact marks not visible to the naked eye. But might be fibres caught in the strike. Also some very fine trails in the fields; I guess a cleaning issue with the die leaving imperfections in the surface. Bit messy here. Looks like foreign bodies in the fields, causing a mark to spread out. Some different type of discolouration here.

I'm certain I have seen it. Will find some interesting examples, and probably create a new thread to discuss.

Such detailed description. Such a lovely coin. That, sir, is a belter.

Digital Microscope I've been playing around with this today. Will be very useful documenting the condition of coins and identifying defects. Not the prettiest photos, but at this scale no speck of dust goes unseen.

2023 Royal Mint 2oz Silver Proof - Six Decades of 007 - 1970's (take 2) This is a good one! I've looked over it carefully, and can see no faults.

I wish you'd shut up sometimes. Seems like they followed your suggestion. 🤣 There is no doubt that's an ugly dragon. There are many other dragons, even this year, that are far more attractive than that. But it is in keeping with the design of the symbols outside Hampton Court Palace. There very little modern design aesthetic here - very 'crude'. Need I remind you of the Tudor Yale, that looks like it fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down.

In principle I like to go for the larger one. They are lower mintages, but ultimately (long term) that means value. But they are harder to shift, and a bigger risk up front. The GE's have been very hit-or-miss, so risk is a strong consideration. Bet the 5oz is lovely in hand though.

I hope you pay your postie's medical bills.

Just my standard 3 light setup. It's all white light at 5000K, so the colour is coming from the coin. I just play with the angles until it looks pretty. 😊

1997 £2 gold proof One of my all-time favourite coins.

I don't usually photograph the whole thing, mainly because you lose a load of detail with the wasted space, but also I don't want to show the serial unless I'm selling it. Although, I forgot to title the last two photos. Will fix.

2012 Perth Mint 1/4oz Gold Proof Lunar Year of the Dragon Just digging out all my photos of my lunars, especially dragons. (Spoiler alert: I have a lot of photos.)

2012 Perth Mint 1oz Silver (colourised) - Lunar Year of the Dragon

2002 Half Sovereign

Not had too much new shiny lately, so I thought I'd catch up photographing some of my earlier purchases. Plus, a lot of these are heading towards the NGC, so I wanted to photograph them before they are entombed. 2011 1/4oz proof gold Britannia Definitely needs a bit of a spit and polish. One of my favourite designs, and nothing seriously wrong with it.

I am collecting the series in 2oz silver and 1/4oz gold proofs. I may try the bullion coins. Let's see. I very much like the general design. There are several nods to the Bond fans, gun barrel, the 007 logo from the era being celebrated, and the names of the decade's films in micro-text. I would have made different choices on the vehicles for 70s and 80s. Wet Nelly is probably the most iconic, but they've already done it in the previous Bond series. And I thought the Acrostar was a poor choice - I'd much rather had seen the V8 Vantage with skis.