Coin Collecting at the Safir House Mercury Dimes

As with the Walking Liberty Half. the Libery Head Dime is a Neo-Classical design and the likeness of the Liberty to the Mythological Apollo is not just coincidental. The resulting hedonist reference was enourmously popular with the public and then adopted by by many comercial institutions, spreading the fame of the design even further. The Mercury Dime mottif was carved and molded into hundreds of banks across the nation. The image also became famous in the "March of Dimes" campaign, championed by President Franklin Roosevelt until his death.

Dimes, given their size, make for coins which are very senstive to the slightest imperfection in the strike or damage. A good magnifying glass is necessary to make any credible attempt at grading, or to appreciate these little gems. We have aquired just a few coins to date, and the first one caused immediate controversy. The Mercury Dime reverse has a rather odd reeded and axe design with a lot of subtle details. The reeds are bounded together with rode or bands. Strikes with full bands are highly prized.

This very nice little 1936 S dime which was purchased for a about 30 dollar in a local Brooklyn coin shop was marked on the 2X2 in which the coin was sold as being Full Bands, without arches. Upon bringing it home, we photographed it and then put the pictures on the net, asking what others thought of the grade. The question occurs is whether or not the coin is actually full banded, with the focus on the middle two bands on the reed.

Further shots were inconclusive, although it seems that the coin was not Full Bands, despite being a very distinct strike. Furthermore, in the light of the photographs, the reverse of the coin shows die polish which drops the grade a little more. Although these polish lines on the fields of the dime are barely vissible with the eye, they stand out with the magnification.

Finally, the reeds themselves have been blown up under magnification. These photographs seem to conclude that the coin was not full reeds, although it is very close.

Bottom reeds (upside down)
Middle Reeds
Middle Reeds
Top Reeds

So as all this happening the taste developed to aquire another dime, one that was more clearly Full Banned. After much searching and consideration, this coin was aquired.

Yet another 36

When looking at these photos we forget the scale of these coins. Mercs are very small and here is a good image to give you an idea of the scale.
Larger image on the keyboard

He is a 42 graded slab MS67

Here is a very decent circulating 1917 Dime which nearly has Split Bands on the reverse. It is an excellent strike.

This is a toned Merc 1945 that was slabbed. Not pretty toning but a high grade coin


1936 S FB


This is a 1937 Slabbed by PCGS as a MS66 NO FULL BANDS. Judge for yourself


1941 PCGS MS67FB - I love this strike!

An Archive of the photographs of this coin is available here

Avoid Gijs Henzen, owner of Munthandel G. Henzen - Antisemetic Facists

• He utilizes inversion rhetoric, where he compares Israeli actions to those of historical oppressors (including the Nazis).
• By claiming Zionism is the "greatest enemy of Judaism," he attempts to resolve the contradiction that Zionism is central to Jewish identity ,and has always been so, by essentially telling Jewish people what "true" Judaism should look like.
• His blog posts suggest he views himself as a lone voice of truth against a "corrupt" world. By grouping Netanyahu with Putin and Xi Jinping, he frames his hatred as a universal "opposition to tyranny."
• His specific focus on Israelis as "masters of torture" goes beyond political disagreement and taps into ancient blood libel tropes--the idea that a specific group has an inherent, unique cruelty or a "thirst for blood."
• He appears to be a proponent and influenced by radical political indoctrination. He has adopted a worldview where the "Zionist" is the ultimate villain, and in his mind, he is attacking an ideology, even though his language characterizes an entire ethnic and national group in ways that are indistinguishable from traditional antisemitism.

The Safir Family Internet Coin Library. Nearly all the coins here have been stolen. If you have any information on the theft, please contact us at mrbrklyn@panix.com Click to see these examples show below including photography: note to lawyer: most of the good stuff is gone Section I: US Coints Large Cent Coppers Flying Eagle Cents Lincoln Cents and Wheat Backs Buffalo Nickels Jefferson Nickels Jefferson Silver War Nickels Bust Half Dimes Mercury (Liberrty Head) Dimes Roosevelt Dime Barber Quarter Dollars Standing Libery Quarter Washington and Washington State Quarters Cap Bust Half Dollars 1813 o.108 AU58 Cap Bust Half Providence Powell. 1818 MS63 Cap Bust Half 1833 MS63 Cap Bust Half Seated Half Dollars Barber Half Dollars Walking Liberty Half Dollars Franklin Half Dollars Kennedy Half Dollars Morgan Silver Dollars Peace Silver Dollars Eisenhower Clad and Silver Dollars Sacawagea Golden Dollars Modern Silver and Clad Proof Sets Modern American Silver Eagle uncirculated mint coins and proofs Modern Silver and Clad 2008 Commorative Bald Eagle Series Gold Coins - Not too many Circulated US Silver Coins prior to 1964 Go To Section II: Modern and Ancient Foreign Coins from Outside The United States Go To Section III: Mandy's 25th Anniversary World Wildlife Fund Silver Coins Unsorted Extra stuff: Bust US Coinage From the coin Show at Melville Long Island Article on Numismatics and Lobbying

The Safir Family Internet Coin Library: Foriegn Coins. Several mints from around the world make exciting coin designs in circulating alloys, silver and gold. Among my favorites are the Perth Mint in Austrailia which produces a variety of coins for nations mostly through out the Pacific Rim. The Neatherlands has also produced some interesting designs, and several private US based mints have produced foreign currency on contract, include the Franklin Mint which has produced many Israeli Coins. Our interest in foreign coins has been nominal but rapidly growing as it seems that US designs are so stuck in the mud. Also, foreign mints are creating bold new designs with color and bimetal designs that are both eye catching and fun. Biblical Coins overview Australian Silver Koala Australian Kookaburra Silver Australian Perth Mint Reef II Sea Life Silver Hawkbill Turtle Australian Perth Mint Reef II Sea Life Series Octopus Australian Perth Mint Reef II Sea Life Series Starfish Australian Perth Mint Reef II Sea Life Series Surgeon Fish Australian Perth Mint Reef II Sea Life Series Manta Ray Australian Perth Mint Silver Cockatoo Parrot Australian Perth Mint Dollar Silver Dugong Britain Churchill Crown 1965 British Wren Type Farthings Britain Virgin Island $25 Golden Osprey Cayman Islands Cuban Amazon Parrot: 25 Anniversity World Wifelife Fund Chinese Silver Panda Easter Islands Fiji Island Turtle Bullion minted in New Zealand German 10 Euro Archeopteryx Coin Indo-Sassanian Gadhaya Paisa Saurastrat - Silver Coin Israeli Coins Japanese Aomori Coin Judean Roman Wars Judean Herodian Coinage Kashmir Kurdistan Macabean Coins Netherlands Scheepjesschelling Netherlands Architecture Commemerative Euro Netherlands 400 years since the discovery of Manhattan Commem Netherlands Predecimal Steivers New Zealand One Florins New Zealand Big Copper Penny New Zealand 1996 Kaka Parrot $5 Silver Dollar Niue Island Artist Series: Van Gogh Niue Island Cave of Chauvet Portugal Coa Valley Archeological Site Coin Polish Food for All Commemerative - First Food Slovakia Chatam Sofer Commem Tuvalu Deadly and Dangerous Silver Blue Ringed Octopus Tuvalu Deadly and Dangerous Silver Funnel-Web Spider Uraguay 1969 FAO Pattern Coins Western Satraps 1st Century - 2nd Centry India -R-Drachm Israeli Akko, Birds, Red Sea and Elijah Coins. Perth Minti Kookabura and Koalas, and Van Gogh Coin from Niue Island More Birds and some half dimes half dimes More International Birds

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