News
An Amateurs Guide to Coin Grading
At South Cape Coins we often get enquiries from collectors who want to know what the value of their rare South African coins are. Unfortunately it’s virtually impossible to give an accurate value without actually seeing the coin in person, or having a high resolution, crystal clear picture of it (which is difficult unless you have a decent camera). Ultimately you need to know or have an idea of what grade your coin is before you can have it valued.
Read more »The Mystery of the Missing Kruger Millions
The legend of the missing Kruger millions (the treasure allegedly hidden by or on behalf of Paul Kruger) has enthralled historians and ‘treasure hunters’ for over a hundred years. The story goes that literally days before Lord Alfred Milner and his troop’s invaded Pretoria in June 1900 at the peak of the Anglo-Boer War, President Paul Kruger ordered the removal and confiscation of over 2 million pounds in coins and gold from the SA Mint, National Bank and gold mines. The reason for this was to keep it out of British hands, and while there is documented proof that money and gold was removed, the mystery lies in what subsequently happened to the hoard of gold and (now) rare gold coins.
Read more »Common Rare Coin Collecting Themes
Rare coin collecting is a fascinating hobby that’s enjoyed by millions of people, young and old, worldwide. Added to this, it’s one that can offer significant investment potential too, if you make careful decisions along the way when it comes to expanding your collection.
Read more »The National Numismatic Collection at the Smithsonian Institute
This is the second blog post in a series that we are doing on the ‘top coin collections of all time.’ In the first post we featured the Louis Eliasberg collection, so when you get a chance take the time to go and read it, it’s a fascinating story of a man who was clearly passionate about this hobby. In this post we’ll cover the National Numismatic Collection of the Smithsonian Institute.
Read more »Uncommon Coin Terms You Need to Know
As with most industries, rare coin collecting is not without its fair share of jargon, and when you first start out it can be confusing trying to follow what other collectors are talking about. If you want to make the most of your hobby, you’ll want to be able to converse on forums and chat-sites, comment on articles and blog posts, and generally interact on an intelligent level with fellow numismatists and hobbyist collectors.
Read more »Louis Eliasberg - One of the World’s Most Renowned Numismatists
Born in 1896, Louis E. Eliasberg was easily one of the most renowned numismatists in American history. To date he is the only known coin collector to have assembled and completed a rare coin collection that included a specimen of each United States coin of every date, metal, denomination and mint mark ever struck, and which was known at that time.
Read more »We Answer 6 of Your Most Frequently Asked Rare Coin Questions
Rare coin collecting can be one of the most satisfying and rewarding hobbies, both personally and financially. When you’re starting out though, there’s a lot of information you need to take in. With this in mind, we answer 6 of your most frequently asked questions regarding rare coins.
Read more »Which Coins Should you Sell from your Rare Coin Collection?
Not all coins are rare and not all coins add value to your coin collection. We look at one type of coin that you should consider selling if you currently own any, the ‘production’ coin.
Read more »Interview with the Sammy Marks Penny Winner
We take a moment to interview Jaco Pieterse the winner of the incredible Sammy Marks Penny competition. Jaco is a real numismatic fanatic. He started his collection at the age of 12 and since then has never looked back. Find out how Jaco got into coin collecting, the first coin in his collection, his most desirable coin, and much more.
Read more »How to Start Your Rare Coin Collection on a Budget
Many would be coin collectors think that starting and maintaining a collection is expensive. Fortunately, this isn’t the case. We look at what you really need to get started and how you can go about collecting your first coins, all on a budget.
Read more »Coin Collecting for Kids
Getting your kids interested in coin collecting isn’t hard to do, especially if they see it as ‘treasure collecting’ to begin with, and of course, rare coins are the original ‘treasure’ of many story tales.
Read more »A Brief Look at Union Coins
Also known as the Sterling South African series, Union coins are highly sought after and represent those minted between 1923 and 1964.
Read more »How to Care For and Store Your Rare Coins
Now that you’ve found your ideal investment coin, or that special specimen that you’ve been trying to track down for ages, do you know what you need to do to keep it in the condition it’s in? We tell you how to care for and store your rare coins in this latest blog post.
Read more »The Story Behind the 1898 Sammy Marks Penny That You Can Win
The 1898 Sammy Marks Penny that you can win in our rare coin competition is valued at R45 000. It’s an incredible prize and the story behind this rare coin and the man himself, Sammy Marks, makes for an interesting piece of history. Find out more about him in this article.
Read more »Which SA Coins have the Lowest Mintage Figures and are the Most Difficult to Source?
One of our fans wanted to know which rare South African coins are the most difficult to source, and which have the lowest mintage figures. We thought we’d turn it into a blog post so everyone can benefit from the information.
Read more »ZAR vs. Mandela vs. Krugerrand Coins
There can be a lot confusion when it comes to deciding which coins would make a good investment. Even if you do only collect coins as a hobby, you still want to make sure that your collection increases with value over time. We look at the three different types of South African coins that are the most popular to collect, ZAR, Mandela and Krugerrands.
Read more »Rare South African Coins that have Sold on Auction
Rare coins often realise more when sold through online auctions due to the simple fact that the target audience is larger and auctions are more accessible for serious investors and collectors. With this in mind we look at four incredibly rare South African coins that have sold for impressive amounts through US online auctions.
Read more »Important Announcement: Counterfeit NGC Holders
NGC has identified and confirmed that a counterfeit replica of its holder has been produced. At first appearance, the holder resembles the NGC holder and its respective brand marks. Upon inspection, variations in the holder, label and hologram make them easily discernible from authentic NGC-certified coins. This announcement includes diagnostic information to identify counterfeit holders. The holder has been seen housing counterfeit dollar or foreign crown size coins. While the enclosed coins are also counterfeit, the label information matches the coin type enclosed.
The label information is copied from actual NGC certification labels, and the certification information therefore will match the NGC database. Most frequently Trade Dollars and Bust Dollars are found, although Flowing Hair Dollars and foreign coins have also been seen. A range of grades is also represented.
Read more »Most Important African Coin Sold
“King of South African Coins”, the unique and historic 1898 Single 9 Pond, sells for a record multi-million rand price and is certified by NGC.
The sale of South Africa’s rarest and most valuable coin, the 1898 Single 9 Pond, has been concluded for an unprecedented multi-million rand figure. The sale, like the prior two sales of the same coin, was facilitated by Mr. Walter Fivaz the CEO of South Cape Coins. The buyer, who wishes to remain anonymous, is thrilled to own such an impressive and important part of South Africa’s heritage. The Single 9 has justifiably been dubbed the “King of South African Coins” and is among the most valuable rare coins in the world.
Read more »Pedigrees - Why They’re Important
When buying a dog, particularly a champion, one of the most important considerations is its pedigree. The bloodline of a pedigree proves a dog’s ancestry and allows the prospective purchaser to confirm that the parents are also champions. A good pedigree certifies the value of a champion. A bad pedigree means the dog is, well, just a dog.
Similarly, in the coin world, pedigrees certify the value of a champion. A pedigree to a “name” collection can add a lot of value. Names like Maris, Spiro, Roper, Taylor, Norweb, Ford, and Garrett are important to collectors of colonial coins. U.S. coin collectors find tie-ins to the Eliasberg, Newcomer, Col. Green, and King Farouk collections especially attractive. Pedigrees from the Bass and Eliasberg collection are valuable to collectors of gold coins. Pattern collectors seek out coins from the Byron Reed, Garrett, and Bass collections. And, the list goes on.
Read more »The worlds first Online Coin Portfolio Manager
South Cape Coins has launched the worlds first ever online coin portfolio manager, allowing you to track the performances of your coins as well as buy and sell coins online either through the market or through the Online Auction House. The release has revolutionised the way people buy, sell and track their coins online. The development has taken more than a year to be completed and incudes a host of features that until now have been unavailable to numismatits worldwide.
Read more »Article on the sale of the Single 9
Great (S African numismatic) investments of the future - July 200
by Scott Balson
JOHANNESBURG - The historic “Single 9” coin, the only example of a 19th Century Zuid-Afrikaansche Republiek (ZAR) coin, was sold for the princely sum of Rand (R)9,8 million in Johannesburg in September 2001.
The 1899 ZAR coinage dies were intercepted by the British in Lourenço Marques and never arrived in Pretoria - preventing the minting of gold coins dated that year.
The Mint Master in Pretoria was then instructed to overstamp the second “8” in the mint date on 130 coins from 1898. However, when the first coin was overstamped it was realised that the punch was too big, and the rest of the coins were then overstamped using a smaller punch.
Read more »The 1892 Double Shafted pond that nearly brought down the Kruger Government
Great (S African numismatic) investments of the future - July 2005 by Scott Balson
Facing an upcoming election and wanting the new coins in circulation to enhance his prestige, President Kruger didn’t wait for the Pretoria Mint to be completed. Instead, he contracted to have the first issue of the new ZAR coins (dated 1892) struck at the Imperial German Mint in Berlin. This proved a mistake, as the dies were cut with two glaring mistakes that insulted the populance and proved quite embarrasing to Kruger and the National Bank. Designer Otto Schultz, following a common practice, placed the initials ‘OS’ at the truncation of Kruger’s bust (image right).
Read more »
Did you know?
The 1898 Single "9" is the most important African coin. Sold by South Cape Coins
Read more »Understanding "No Grade"
Don't get caught out!
A guide to the states of condition that can cause a coin to be rejected for NGC certification.
