What Does “Don’t Accept Any Wooden Nickels” Mean?
“Don’t accept any wooden nickels” is a colloquial expression meaning “Don’t get tricked” or “Don’t let yourself get fooled.”
Wooden nickels were a popular advertising...
Condition Rarity – When to Look for It, When to Be Leery of It
By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes .....
(n.)
The term condition rarity can refer to two things:
) A coin that is considered rare because of its exceptional state...
MS64 : The In-Between Coin Grade
By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes .....
MS64 (or MS-64) is an in-between grade in the Sheldon Grading Scale commonly used by coin collectors and dealers that splits...
Selvage – A US Paper Money Security Feature
(n.)
The term selvage refers to the extra paper around the edge of paper money before it is cut – sometimes used as a security...
Terminal Point and How It Impacts Certified Coins
By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes .....
(n.)
The "terminal point" is the highest possible grade where the cost of submitting a coin...
Spurious Set – Collecting Coins by Theme
(n.)
As used by coin writer Susan Headley, a spurious set is any set of coins that lack a true relationship to each other except...
Guilloché – The Intricate Web Pattern on Paper Money
By Charles Morgan and Hubert Walker for CoinWeek Notes .....
(n.)
Guilloché (pronounced “GEE-uh-shay” with a hard g) is a word borrowed from the fields of...
Ligature – An Element of Coin Engraving Design
A printing, engraving, and general design term, a ligature is a combination of two letters into a single unit in order to appear more...
Oct-1-En-3-One – Why Do Coins Smell That Way?
Why do pennies and other coins smell that way? Oct-1-En-3-One (also 1-octen-3-one) is the chemical responsible for the dull, metallic smell we associate with...
In God Is Our Trust – Paper Money Inscription Explained
“In God Is Our Trust” is a motto emblazoned on a federal shield that is located in the bottom right corner of the $20...