Ebay Auction, all I can say is wow! Shill bidding maybe

[HighlandTiger]

Just noticed this auction that has just finished, 

 

14 x 1910 shillings, 2.35 ounces of silver......£441 plus £5.95 delivery.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/one-shilling-coin-/191564977143?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2c9a2993f7

 

But I've also noted in the last week this seller has managed to sell the following

 

5 silver half crowns for £546 

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/silver-half-crowns-/191564976293?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2c9a2990a5

 

7 shillings for £142

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/silver-shilling-coins-/191564984207?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2c9a29af8f

 

14 x sixpence for £212

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/silver-sixpence-coins-/191564981931?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2c9a29a6ab

 

26 x sixpence for £334

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/silver-sixpence-coins-/191564979728?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item2c9a299e10

 

Now either I'm missing something or there are some daft people with too much money out there :

[Danny-boy]

Even with shill bidding, at those prices surely he'd be winning them all himself and just accruing fees?

Something fishy going on.

[sovereignsteve]

My first thought was money laundering but if you were going to do something like that, you'd probably be in sovereign money.

Edward silver is worth quite a lot and those 1910 shillings looked in good nick, they are booked at £165 in unc grade.

The Edward half crowns can go for hundreds in EF or unc grade.

Some of the other auctions might be a bit over the top but in general so high quality coins there.

[barney]

There is nothing fishy its the conditon of the coins to me they look Extremeely fine to Uncirculated, a  1910 shilling EF is worth about £80,

so 14x80= £1120  i think they were a good buy

 

 

Dam Steve, im  going to have to practice my one finger speed typing

[FriedrichVonHayek]

Looks as if he has just cleaned them and left them on the kitchen roll to dry off

[watchesandwhisky]

Iv seen edwardian half crowns (albiet exceptional strikes) going for over $2000 at american coin auctions:0

[sovereignsteve]

There is nothing fishy its the conditon of the coins to me they look Extremeely fine to Uncirculated, a  1910 shilling EF is worth about £80,

so 14x80= £1120  i think they were a good buy

 

 

Dam Steve, im  going to have to practice my one finger speed typing

It's nice to someone else appreciating good old UK sterling coins.

[Murph]

They look so shiny that they must surely be cleaned. No matter how well kept coins are, even if they came straight from a mint cardboard tube(assuming they used those in 1910) they would still show signs of tarnishing after 105 years.

Wouldn't that put off many collectors?

[Pipers]

I would never pay for those coins they have been cleaned. My Grandfather collected old coins he would never clean them imagine getting a 300 year old coin and cleaning it! Think about it Perth mint coins in caps tarnish after 5 years slightly and there is nothing wrong with that. So how can a coin that is over 100 years old look clean. RM proof 1950 sets red look like they are falling apart and the coins look awful this has happened the last 5years on the majority of them, does this mean they are worth less than 6 years ago?

Maybe its just the old coin collector s who would,t clean coins to make them shiny.

[Ares]

Ah, wandering back to the clean v unclean debate

[HelpingHands]

If King World News saw this ebay lot they would do a piece entitled

 

'Somebody is paying almost any price for junk silver because they know it's going to the moon this week'

[sovereignsteve]

They look so shiny that they must surely be cleaned. No matter how well kept coins are, even if they came straight from a mint cardboard tube(assuming they used those in 1910) they would still show signs of tarnishing after 105 years.

Wouldn't that put off many collectors?

I'm not so sure.

There are two potential problems with old coins; natural toning and accumulated dirt/everyday crap.

On a well circulated sterling coin, the latter will predominate and because the normal use will have worn off any mint lustre, it is perfectly safe to clean off any crap, as long as no abrasion is introduced, it will not do any damage and should not lower the value.

With an uncirculated coin, it is not unusual to see a perfectly shiny finish with some toning. It is clearly unacceptable and stupid to try and remove this toning.

It is difficult to tell from the photos as they all have a brownish tint, but if you look closely you can see evidence of toning on the edges of some coins. The shiny finish on the first couple of auctions looks natural.

Without close inspection it is difficult to see if any have been un-naturally cleaned to enhance the shine. This would be obvious and reduce value.

Personally, I would spend that kind of money without better close-up photos to try and spot any cleaning damage.

[FriedrichVonHayek]

I would be highly sceptical of someone on ebay having so many fantastic examples.

One or two perhaps maybe plausible but not that many.

I think they have been cleaned.

[Hookythestacker]

Those pictures are nowhere near good enough for those prices, combined with the vague dates, sparse information and text speak I'm surprised those lots realised what they did, some obvious problems even with the poor quality pictures. A bit of private feedback amongst the bidders, I wouldn't have touched these but maybe somebody took a chance or had prior knowledge of what was in the lots.

[sovereignsteve]

I would be highly sceptical of someone on ebay having so many fantastic examples.

One or two perhaps maybe plausible but not that many.

I think they have been cleaned.

Definitely sceptical, but could be just a long-time collector or a job lot from same.

Cleaning not a big deal with silver; if they are of such good grade with little if any wear, they will realise good money. However, trying to get top dollar for any uncirculated ones will need better pictures or sight seen. Any undue cleaning will then be apparent.