Sunday, October 31, 2010

39. British Trade Dollar 1902B with Chopmarks




Country of Origin: Mainly circulated in Straits Settlements and Malay States
Date: 1902
Denomination: 1 Dollar
Weight: 26.95g
Edge: Milled
Dimension: Diameter of 39.0mm
Composition: 0.9 Silver
Population: 30,404,499
Reference: ST KN1
Mint: Bombay
Mint Mark(s): Incuse "B", appeared in the middle point of the trident.
Category: Trade Dollars
Extra Note: The obverse shows the standing Britannia with a trident and a shield in front of a sailing ship, a symbol of trade. The case of the value of name in Chinese, Yi Yuan and Malay, Satu Ringgit means One Dollar, in flower ornament. Both sides are bordered by Mäanderband.


     This is a badly circulated British Trade Dollar dated 1902B in my collection. Bought it at a price of only RM40, I really think that was quite a good deal for me. Even the condition of this coin is not so appealing, but at least I am confident that this is a genuine piece. A lot of counterfeited pieces exist in the market for selling, even the prestigious auctions sometimes are vulnerable!

   And beside that, the chopmarks are just too cute. See those markings on the coins? Those chopmarks are small punch marks or counterstamps applied to coin, mainly by Chinese traders through whose hands is passed. The chopmarks serves as indication that the coins are genuine and of full weight and fineness. And most of all, the chopmarks gives historical value to the coin. Should I add my chopmark to this coin?

   Sadly I can't decipher the meaning of the chopmarks nor trace it of its origin. Is there any catalogue listing all the chopmarks found in trade dollars?

   I had asked the dealer to decipher the meaning of the chopmark. He said the chopmark to the left of the right hand of Britannia means "debt". Is it true?

6 comments:

nucoins said...

Chopmarks by F.M. Rose, 1978

cheers!

mnfaj said...

Thank you Nu!

Anonymous said...

Hi mnfaj,
On a lighter note,
today’s RM/USD exchange rate 3.0935
latest silver price US24.89/oz
Coin’s ASW 0.7798 oz
Therefore, (3.0935 x 24.89) x 0.7798 = RM60.04
Haha, sure’s worth more than you paid for.
Countermarked coins were once shun by collectors and regarded as damaged coins.
But the recent growing interest in exonumia has cause a big surge in demand for some of these coins.
Haha, maybe yours could be next.
And thanks a lot for the info too, Nu.

mnfaj said...

Looking back at it, actually the seller had paid me RM20 for buying his coin. Haha.

Then I guess a BTD in any condition will never has a price lower than RM60,considering silver value in it?

Anonymous said...

Guess it’s a matter of one's perspective.
Some experts prefer bullion coins because of good liquidity.
These coins can be exchanged with banks for cash anytime.
Whereas numismatic coins do not even if they contain precious metal more than the current bullion value.
Buyers cannot be found immediately if one in need of urgent cash.
But then over the long term, and based on past records, value appreciation of numismatic coins tend to fare much better than bullion.
LOL…Don’t really know much ourselves but these are some of the info that we have read in some of the websites.
But personally prefer numismatic coins to bullion, if have to choose beween both.
Happy Collecting, mnfaj.

Anonymous said...

anybody please help:

I thought of buying the following auctioned banknote but not sure..

Rare 1898 Straits Settlements 100 Dollar Banknote S/N: 00009

Click to view the Rare 1898 Banknote in Auction
or copy and paste the following link on your browser.

http://www.lelong.com.my/rare-1898-straits-settlements-100-dollar-banknote-s-n-00009-109562419-2012-06-Std-P.htm

I am new to this, anybody please advice me online here...

Thanks

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