Open your penny jars and start digging through your couch, the 18th annual Penny Harvest is underway and kids need your change. Nearly 500,000 students from across the country have begun scouring for loose pennies and going door-to-door asking for spare cents. But the pennies are not for them, they’re for charity. And best of all, Penny Harvest teaches children about their value in working together, sharing and contributing to society.
From now until Thanksgiving, students between the ages of four and fourteen will call themselves Penny Harvesters as they collect millions of pennies from family, friends and neighbors. All collections are then one hundred percent donated in the form of grants to non-profit organizations student leaders select. From helping the elderly to protecting the environment to over a thousand other worthy charities, the students make the call to where the money goes.
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The Perth Mint of Australia released today a unique series of silver coins celebrating the 2009 Year of the Ox. The Australian Lunar Series II coins incorporate innovative editions of $1 Coloured Ox, $1 Gilded Ox and $30 Gemstone Ox. The silver dollars contain one ounce of 99.9% pure silver. The $30 Gemstone edition weighs a full kilogram and includes slightly more than 32 ounces of the lustrous precious metal, plus two citrine gemstones.
In Chinese culture, the Ox symbolises determination, patience and dependability. One of 12 animals associated with the ancient Lunar calendar, the Ox is said to influence the lives of people born in 2009.
The 2009 Australian Lunar Series II reverse design depicts the ox, as well as a calf, standing on grass with hills in the background. ‘Year of the Ox’, the Chinese character for ‘ox’, and The Perth Mint’s ‘P’ mintmark are also inscribed.
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The U.S. dollar regained strength Thursday against other world currencies, and that — along with a drop in oil prices — drove gold lower. New York silver and gold futures fell 0.2 percent and 2.2 percent, respectively. Platinum, however, shined and jumped 1.7 percent.
December crude-oil lost a portion of Wednesday’s huge gain, dropping $1.54, or 2.3 percent, to close to $65.95 a barrel.
December silver dropped 2 cents to end at $9.79 an ounce.
January platinum gained $14 to settle at $830.60 an ounce.
Gold for December lost $16.50 to close to $738.50 an ounce.
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(Fallbrook, California) – The Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG) and PNG member-dealer, Kevin Lipton, are jointly offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the recovery of rare coins and paper money stolen from Lipton’s Beverly Hills, California offices. The unknown thief or thieves took more than a quarter-million dollars worth of numismatic items during a break-in on Sunday, October 19, 2008.
"Anyone with information that can help solve this crime is urged to contact Detective Max Subin of the Beverly Hills Police Department at (310) 285-2158, or call the PNG at (760) 728-1300," said PNG Executive Director Robert Brueggeman.
Among the items stolen is an uncut sheet of six $10 notes from The First National Bank of Branchville, New Jersey that is believed to be unique.
Seven MS-66 Saint Gaudens Double Eagles, graded by PCGS or NGC and each with a CAC sticker were taken: 1924 PCGS serial numbers #50241932, #06607136 and #50251605; 1926 PCGS #50135319; 1927 PCGS #21671348 and NGC #56810901; and 1928 NGC #65499304.
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Mike Byers has published the newest quarterly edition of Mint Error News Magazine. Issue #25 brings the very latest in mint error and variety coin news and information.
As always, the magazine offers excellent photos that direct the reader right to the substance of coin errors. And the included error coin price guides compiled by Al Levy (alscoins.com) is a must have reference that provides a comprehensive listing of recent eBay closing prices with descriptions, grades and notes.
The cover story for Issue #25 provides high resolution photos of the the latest known proof U.S. coin struck on an elliptical planchet — only three are now known to exist. The most recent is a NGC certified John Q. Adams Presidential $1 Coin. The second discovered was a Proof Jefferson Presidential $1 coin, which Byers showcased in Issue #23, and the first was a proof Utah quarter.
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Four numismatic articles are referenced on CoinNews every Tuesday and Thursday. These articles are not authored by us, but we recommend collectors read them for their unusual or interesting content. Here are today’s articles:
By Laura Hannam, MK News
As the credit crunch hits pensioners across the country one pair have hit the jackpot by finding buried treasure. The finders of a hoard of thousands of Roman coins agree with the words inscribed on them; ‘happy times are here again’. The collection of bronze coins, which may be worth hundreds of thousands in sterling, were discovered in a field north of Newport Pagnell…
Read ‘Treasure hunters set to coin it with Roman haul’ »
By Scott Barman, Coin Collector’s Blog
For us numismatists, Roosevelt initiated the "Golden Age of American Coin Design." Using his bully pulpit, he held the designs of the US Mint’s Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber in contempt and ordered coinage whose designs were more than 25 years old to be redesigned. Roosevelt was a fan of sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens and asked Saint-Gaudens to redesign the small cent.
Read ‘A Bully Birthday’ »
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The American Numismatic Society (ANS) has officially opened its new headquarters in lower Manhattan, New York. The ANS indicates its educational and research facilities are now available to international scholars, students and members of the general public — ANS has one of the world’s largest numismatic libraries and a vast coin collection.
Open as well is the ANS museum and exhibits. The new address is:
American Numismatic Society
75 Varick Street, 11th floor
New York, NY 10013
In addition to the opening, Read the rest of this entry »
The Bank of Lithuania has issued the second proof gold coin in a series of three to commemorate the millennium anniversary of the first written mention of Lithuania — found in a medieval Prussian manuscript, the Quedlinburg Chronicle, on February 14, 1009.
"This is already the fifty sixth commemorative coin issued by the Bank of Lithuania. It reflects the historical and cultural heritage of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania symbolising the prosperity of the State," the Chairman of the Board of the Bank of Lithuania said.
The 100 Litas 999.9 fine gold coin was designed by Liudas Parulskis and implemented in plaster by Giedrius Paulauskis. Struck and minted en mass at the Lithuanian Mint, it has a diameter of 22.3 millimeters, weighs 7.78 grams and is limited to 10,000 pieces.
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A weakened U.S. dollar and an expected Federal Reserve rate cut on Wednesday helped shore up New York silver, gold and platinum futures. Each enjoyed gains of 11.5 percent, 2.0 percent and 1.0 percent, respectively.
After trading hours, the Fed cut its key interest rate to 1 percent, which was inline with most analysts’ expectations. The cut of 50 basis points is another attempt to combat the ongoing crisis in the credit markets.
Lower rates can help feed inflation and depreciate the U.S. dollar, which is normally bullish for gold in the long haul. However, the yellow metal maintained its recent unpredictable pattern and lost much of its earlier morning gains.
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(Fallbrook, California) – The Professional Numismatists Guild (PNG) will conduct its inaugural "PNG Dealer’s Deal" in December in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is the first in a planned series of "new concept" shows.
"There will be both PNG and non-PNG dealers attending, a limited number of collector-guests who will be personally invited by participating dealers, and members of the general public who want to attend," said Gary Adkins, PNG President.
"This first show will have about three dozen dealers and on-site grading services by Numismatic Guaranty Corporation."
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