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| Ancient Coin: reference to any
coin issued before A.D. 500. |
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| Blanks: pieces of metal intended for coinage
but as yet unstruck. |
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| Border: a protective periphery either of
radial lines or beads within the raised rim of a coin. |
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| Brilliant: untoned, without tarnish
or oxidation, preserved with original cartwheel (frosty) or
proof-like lustre. A copper coin is considered brilliant if
it retains full original red. A silver, nickel or gold coin
is usually considered brilliant in the absence of toning or
oxidation (although it may have some spots or light toning hues
about the periphery) and its original lustre is considerable
intact. |
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| Bullion : precious metal in a
tradable form like a bar, plate, ingot; occasionally struck
into a coin or jewellery. |
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| Bullion Coin : coin with little numismatic
value sold for its precious metal content and traded at the
current bullion price. |
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| Circulated : a coin used commercially
and therefore suffers wear and tear; a used coin. |
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| Coin : a piece of metal intended
for use as legal tender and stamped with inscriptions and exact
monetary value. Issued by an authority (often a government or
bank) that guarantees its weight and purity. |
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| Commemoratives : coins issued by the government
to celebrate and honor important events, anniversaries, etc.
They are extremely popular among collectors. |
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| Currency : refers to coins and
paper money that are legal tender. However, many people use
the word currency for paper money only. |
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Denomination: face value of a
coin or paper note; exact monetary value marked and
considered legal tender. |
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| Device : the main design, such as portrait,
shield or heraldic emblem, on the obverse of a coin, token or
medal. |
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| Die: an engraved metal punch used to strike
coins. |
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| Edge : it is the depth / surface perpendicular
to the obverse and reverse, regarded as the third side of a
coin; not to be confused with rim (raised border of coin). Edges
can be plain, lettered and milled (with repetitive device). |
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| Face : the front of a coin or currency note,
usually the side with signatures, honorary emblems, portraits,
etc. |
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| Face Value : the value of a coin or paper
money as imprinted or marked on that unit. |
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| Field: flat, undetailed part of the surface
of a coin between the raised designs, including the date. Quantity
of the field is very important to numismatists as an aid to
grading coins. |
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| Fine Gold : unadulterated pure gold. |
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| Fineness : degree or grade of purity of precious
metal, either in monetary or bullion form. Most forms of precious
metal require an additional metal to provide a durable alloy.
Often stated in terms of purity per 1,000 parts: i.e. .925 fine
silver coin has 92.5% silver and 7.5 % other metal. |
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| Flow Lines : microscopic linear
marks on a coin surface caused by the movement of metal under
striking pressure. |
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| Frost : an intense lustre (not mirror-like)
caused by striking a coin with sandblasted dies, often used
in reference to proof coins. |
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| Hairlines
: tiny scratches on a coin, caused by cleaning or poor
storage, an abundance of which can reduce the coin value. |
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| High
Relief : a coin with deep concave fields due to highly
raised designs. High relief coins require extra pressure to
be fully struck and are difficult to stack. |
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| Legend: the main inscription
on a coin. |
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| Lettered Edge : edge of coin
with inscription around it. |
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| Low
Relief : a coin with shallow, relative flat field. |
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| Lustre
: brightness or brilliance of a coin’s metal.
Coin lustre is affected by wear, handling, polishing of dies
or planchets, exposure to Chemicals, humidity and temperature
extremes. |
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| Mint
Mark : a letter or symbol indicating the mint of origin. |
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| Numismatics
: the science, study or collecting of coins, paper
money, tokens, medallions, orders and similar objects. |
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| Obverse
: the front or face of a coin, which bears the principal
design or device, often as prescribed by the issuing authority,
i.e. Coat of Arms. |
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| Proof : distinct with an almost
mirror-like surface, proof coins are made from carefully selected
coin blanks that have been highly polished and a high-quality
die. This achieves perfect strikes with even impressions and
distinct designs. Each coin is struck twice or more. |
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| Proof-Like : a coin that received special
minting treatment and a mirror surface prized by collectors,
but with minor imperfections due to the minting process. |
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| Relief : any part of a coin’s design,
which is raised. |
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| Reverse : the back of a coin, usually opposite
from the portrait or date. |
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| Rim : raised border around the circumference
of a coin, not to be confused with the edge. |
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| eries : related coinage of the same denomination,
design and type, including modifications and varieties of design. |
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| Sterling Silver : silver that
is .925 fine or possessive silver content of 92.5%. |
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| Token : a piece of durable material
specially marked and unofficially issued for monetary, advertising,
services or other purposes within restricted circulatory zones. |
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| Uncirculated Set : set of one of each coin
issued for circulation, usually in a series. Also called “Uncirculated
Mint Set”, or unofficially a “mint set”. |
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