MickB

They've done alright out of that. I feel sorry for the Cook Islands who have the suffix .co.ck

1986 IoM Gold Proof Angel
Many thanks to @jultorsk for this splendid wee Angel. 
Before the Tower Mint took over with their twee transangel design, the Pobjoy Mint in Sutton produced beautiful Manx coins involving good old-fashioned toxic masculinity.
The world was a happier and better place then.

1937 specimen set in its original red case 
 

At a good price, and more than just two that are better than nice.
 

Hoo kers and alcohol, the rest I’d waste 😉 

Well Im going to buy a milky coin and fart on it until its black as coal! Lets hope I dont follow through before it tones nicely!
Im curious if it will work? Im not repeat not shoving it up my ronson mind!

I bought a QB 2oz Lion from Arshi a few years ago that had this treatment. I quite like the finish on these but not the idea of smelly eggs

I bought a QB 2oz Lion from Arshi a few years ago that had this treatment. I quite like the finish on these but not the idea of smelly eggs

I bought a QB 2oz Lion from Arshi a few years ago that had this treatment. I quite like the finish on these but not the idea of smelly eggs

Just been messing about tonight, bored and beer!!! so? the question is.....
Yay or Nay?

theres another way. Pop em in a jar and I will Donald Trump in it for you after 3 boiled eggs! 

I executed some milky completers same way too. I think even with spots i liked them more. 

I’m thinking nay .. and I’ve had a beer as well 

I just finished the blog /article I had been intending to write.
I only took me a few hours to write, but then I had been chewing it over for a few months, before which I had spent about 50+ years absorbing a lot o knowledge about coins including gold sovereigns.
Although I say "finished", I still consider it as a draft, but here goes (TSF Special Preview):
Gold Coins – Yellow or Red?
Historically, gold coins have contained small amounts of silver, which has helped retain a colour similar to pure gold.
 
In the beginning there was gold
Humans were probably aware of it about 40,000 years B.C., and started using it to make things about 5,000 years B.C.
A major reason why people like gold is its yellow colour, indeed the Latin word for it is aurum. Aurora means dawn or shining dawn. All other metals are grey except for copper which is red.
The first gold coins are generally thought to have been made in Lydia about 500 years B.C., but “Ying Yuan” gold coins were also made in China at about the same time.
The Lydian coins were made of electrum, which is a naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver. Electrum varies in colour depending on the proportions of gold and silver it contains, but it is pale yellow. The more silver, the paler it is.
All gold coins intended for exchange or circulation have been yellow, apart from a few rare exceptions. It is almost certain that if people had been offered payment in gold coins which were not yellow, but red, would have rejected them.
Just recently, someone reminded me that 1869 Sydney Mint Australian sovereigns were made in red gold, alloyed only with copper. I don’t know why. I have not had chance to test one of these, so the published information may be incorrect. Today I noticed one source stating that many Swiss 20 Francs are composed of 90% gold and 10% copper, but this is incorrect as I expected. I tested eight different dates from 1896 to 1935, and all had a silver content, between 2 and 7 parts per thousand, which was enough to make them look yellow, not red.
Wikipedia states that red gold became popular in Russia in the early 19th century, for use in jewellery.
I am not aware of any other traditional circulation gold coins which are red gold, without any silver content. Even Krugerrands, when they were introduced in 1967, contained some silver, and were a pleasant, normal yellow colour for a gold coin. Krugers were the first modern bullion coin, made as a piece of investment gold rather than for circulation. In some recent years, Krugerrands have been alloyed only with copper, and no silver, which means they are now a coppery-looking red colour. This probably does not matter, as they are mainly bought as a convenient, cheap, lump of gold, rather for any aesthetic or collectable appeal.
In recent years, gold sovereigns have noticeably been a rather unpleasant, cheap-looking coppery red colour. While there are a few people who seem to like this colour, I know that many more people doubt and dislike it. Some people were convinced that they were being cheated and defrauded because they thought they had been supplied with fake or imitation coins.
Over the past six years or so, I have tested thousands of coins, using a Niton XRF metal testing and analysis machine, including hundreds of gold sovereigns, fractions and multiples. The model we used is calibrated with precious metals in mind.
The sovereigns we have tested range from 1817 to 2021 inclusive, and we have also tested sovereigns from all seven mints. My experience shows that most sovereigns do contain a small but significant amount of silver, a typical silver content being as little as 0.4%, yet this is sufficient to attenuate the effects of the copper content. Older sovereigns, from 1817 onwards, tend to have a higher silver content than more recent ones, up to 1932. Even the 1925 London Mint sovereigns most of which were struck between 1949 and 1951, are a pleasant yellow, and contain a normal amount of silver for their apparent year.
I have not yet done enough testing or enough research on Queen Elizabeth II sovereigns, although from experience, most from 1957 to 1968 look yellow rather than red. Even many of those issued from 1974 onwards look a pleasant yellow colour. The most recent year tested, 2021, are distinctly red, and are alloyed only with copper, and no silver. I need to test more QEII sovereigns, to be able to form a clearer picture of when the decline in colour quality and silver content set in, although I suspect it has mainly occurred from 2000 onwards.
What puzzles me most is why this has happened.
First, I have been unable to find any specification for sovereigns in any of the various “Coinage Acts” which states the composition of sovereigns other than they should be 22ct gold. There appears to be nothing to stipulate whether the gold is alloyed with copper, silver, or indeed any other metal. Back in the days when sovereigns were struck most years, there may have been some traditions or procedures followed, so that previous years’ practices, perhaps communicated by word of mouth or informal notes, were maintained, and that these included the use of a small proportion of silver. If there were any instructions to use red gold, these may have been interpreted as meaning to use mainly copper, rather than all copper. If we take 22ct gold to contain 91.66% gold, which I will round to 91.7%, then the balance would be 8.33% rounded to 8.3% or 83 parts per thousand (ppt). I have tested a small number of British sovereigns containing more silver than copper, but never any with 83 ppt silver and 0 copper.
When sovereign production resumed in 1957, after a quarter century break, perhaps any unwritten or informal practices had been forgotten, and whoever was in charge of production at the Royal Mint simply sourced or produced 22ct gold blanks, without any concern about the composition of the remaining 83 ppt of admetal. Whether any silver was included was not considered to be of any importance or relevance. “Bullion” sovereigns were produced from 1957 to 1968, and then from 1974 to 1982, with a few gaps. From my rather subjective observations, most of these were reasonably yellow rather than noticeably red. “Bullion” sovereign production restarted in 2000, and has continued every year since. Again, I have not noticed the deterioration of the colour quality of the earlier years of this period, but the most recent years, it has been very noticeable that sovereigns have been red, and those I have tested have had 83 ppt of copper, with no silver. I need to test a quantity of each year from 2000 to 2022 (soon), to try and establish when the worst of this deterioration occurred.
Although we are aware that most people we have spoken to prefer yellow rather than red coloured sovereigns, and we have conducted a very small poll, we intend to poll a larger number of people to obtain more convincing data.
In September 2021, I e-mailed three senior figures at the Royal Mint, briefly outlining the case for returning to the traditional yellow colour by reinstating some silver content. I have received replies from two of them. One informed me understandably that it was too late to implement any changes for this forthcoming 2022 year, but “As part of our ongoing customer research with our customer base we are in the process of review (sic) the market opinion on the colour of the Sovereign, and make an informed decision on this for future launches.” While my interpretation is that this means “no”, there is a glimmer of hope that they will see sense before the 2023 issue. It would be even better to change during the production life of the 2022 issue, and I am convinced this would provide a clear indication of public opinion and preference. It could also be embarrassing for the Mint if people choose to shun the earlier red ones, and the new yellow ones attracted stronger demand. Presently, there will be many people who are ignorant of tradition, possibly never having seen an earlier yellow gold sovereign, and whose eyes may be opened if and when they are easily able to compare.
For the occasion of Queen Victoria’s Golden Jubilee, 1887 British gold coins, including sovereigns, Jubilee head sovereigns from the London Mint had a higher silver content, typically about 12 ppt, and these can easily be distinguished from most other bullion sovereigns by their distinctly more pleasing yellow colour. This was done deliberately for the historically important occasion of her Golden Jubilee. It would have been fitting if a similar change could have occurred for the Platinum Jubilee of our current queen. Alas, it seems extremely unlikely to happen.
To help demonstrate the colour differences, we decided to photograph a new 2021 bullion sovereign using carefully controlled and calibrated lighting conditions and processing.
We needed to decide what to use for comparison. There was no simple automatic choice.
We considered the first modern sovereign 1817, 1887 Jubilee head London Mint, and a few other candidates. Part of the problem was to ensure that each coin was in near identical condition.
Eventually, we chose a 2005 Australian bullion sovereign, produced by the Perth Mint. This was struck from 917 ppt gold, and 83 ppt silver, with no copper. We photographed this coin using identical lighting and processing. We then combined them in one single composite image showing their reverses side by side. The difference is obvious, almost startling, and I believe, very convincing.

TSF members can always let me know which you prefer, if I have omitted anything, etc...

Interesting find: Metal detectorist finds small gold bible near York
 

Today I received this 2021 1/4oz silver Britannia along with the 1914 half sovereign and a 2021 1/10oz platinum Britannia 

Today I received this 2021 1/4oz silver Britannia along with the 1914 half sovereign and a 2021 1/10oz platinum Britannia 

2 oz Seymour Panther finally arrived!
Chunky monkey, love it!

My 2 ounce also came today, quite a high number but glad to have secured the series. Can confirm if the capsule closes all the way it's not genuine RM 🤪
 

New entry

A couple of little silvers and an inflation reminder...

Thanks to @Goldfinga for sending this lovely 2012 sovereign.

Today I received this 2021 1/4oz silver Britannia along with the 1914 half sovereign and a 2021 1/10oz platinum Britannia