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Orion
6th February 2011, 11:00 PM
(note: 'junk silver' is pejorative, as fiat money is the junk, therefore I have abstained form using it)

Aristotle, in Politika, enumerated four criteria for money: that it be durable, portable, fungible, and intrinsically valuable. Needless to say, the physical properties of silver make it durable, portable, and intrinsically valuable. However, fungibility is something that should be addressed:

If I were to present to a coin dealer a rock, claiming that it had one ounce of silver inside of it, I would be laughed out. In the context of barter, a coin that is not known to be silver may as well be that same rock, and subject to at best a risk premium, or at worst non-acceptance. In such a scenario, I would know precisely how much silver is within the coin, and can assure the other party of its value. The seller, on the other hand, is concerned with not only whether the coin is as described, but also whether it is fake, and whether he can turn around and spend it with someone else i.e. whether it is fungible.

My concern about 90% coin silver, especially for Washington quarters and Roosevelt dimes, and to a lesser extent Kennedy halves, as with other coins is that they are not necessarily known to contain a set quantity of silver. This is what make coin silver with both weight and purity printed upon it, or even purity alone, superior. The coin can be put upon a scale, and the weight can be multiplied by the purity in order to calculate the quantity of silver within the coin. Having the weight printed upon the coin will make it even more fungible, as it helps to verify authenticity when the coin weighs within a few percent of what it is supposed to.

Numerous Latin countries minted silver with both weight and purity upon their coins, but the most common that I have found are those of Panama and Venezuela. Panama minted their coins to the same standards as those of the US, even adopting 40% halves and base metal coinage at the same time. Venezuela was a member of the Latin Monetary Union, and thus minted their coins to the same standards as those of France. One silver bolivar is about 5 grams of 83,5% silver, or 0,1342 troz AGW, and ¼, ½, 1, 2, and 5 bolivar coins were minted to this standard, thus making them an alternative to other, more expensive fractional silver bullion.

With that, here is the kind of coin silver I am holding, save for a few Mercury dimes:
http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/3764/dsc02039.png

MrSilverAG
7th February 2011, 02:50 AM
nice coins ! thanks for the information. being a stats / numbers geek, the more data the better so I too appreciate weight and purity being clearly marked on my silver

hoarder
7th February 2011, 04:03 AM
There is less certainty of purity in a privately minted round than government issued currency. I've got rounds from at least a dozen different mints, some sterling some marked .999. I hope they are what they claim to be. I know my 90% is 90%.
The consequences of counterfeiting government issued currency is far more severe than lying about the purity of a private round.

My concern about 90% coin silver, especially for Washington quarters and Roosevelt dimes, and to a lesser extent Kennedy halves, as with other coins is that they are not necessarily known to contain a set quantity of silver. This is what make coin silver with both weight and purity printed upon it, or even purity alone, superior. All 90% US coins with a visible date are more certain to be 90% than any private rounds are certain to be .999. A Franklin half dollar is no more certain to be 90% than a 1964 Kennedy. Just because some people may be ignorant about which dates are silver and which ones aren't does not make Franklins more pure.

1970 silver art
7th February 2011, 04:16 AM
Welcome to GSUS Orion and thanks for sharing. I have been a believer that you should buy what you like because it makes buying silver a lot of fun IMO.

madfranks
7th February 2011, 08:04 AM
I think that if the times change and pre-65 US silver coinage begins to be bartered with or spent, it won't take people long to learn exactly what the silver in them is worth.

But I too like those old foreign silver coins with the weight and purity stamped on them. I have a few from Venezuela like the OP mentioned.


5 grams of 83,5% silver

milehi
7th February 2011, 06:22 PM
The Mexican .999 silver Onza/Libertad also comes in 1/2, 1/4, 1/10, and 1/20 sizes, and are marked .999.

Antonio
7th February 2011, 06:34 PM
WTSHTF I`ll be there with a file in one hand and a bottle of acid in another.
China makes nice Morgans out of some gook tin alloy that looks exactly as silver.
You can tell that it is lighter than Ag though.

Orion
7th February 2011, 08:39 PM
The Mexican .999 silver Onza/Libertad also comes in 1/2, 1/4, 1/10, and 1/20 sizes, and are marked .999.


The premiums on those are ridiculous.



WTSHTF I`ll be there with a file in one hand and a bottle of acid in another.
China makes nice Morgans out of some gook tin alloy that looks exactly as silver.
You can tell that it is lighter than Ag though.


Thus why electronic scales are a must. I keep two extra: one for large amounts, and one for small amounts, plus batteries.

Grog
8th February 2011, 09:34 PM
I have been a believer that you should buy what you like because it makes buying silver a lot of fun IMO.


And it makes it more likely that you will hold onto your purchase. :)

gunDriller
12th February 2011, 06:18 AM
(note: 'junk silver' is pejorative, as fiat money is the junk, therefore I have abstained form using it)


circulated silver ?

nice pics !