Rare Australian 1930 Penny and other Collectables

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Shipping

AUSTRALIA :

Purchases within Australia will be charged a MINIMUM SHIPPING FEE of $10.00 and will be sent by Registered Post.

Additional insurance is optional at the buyer's expense.

Larger lots may incur an additional charge.

OVERSEAS :

Overseas purchases will be charged a MINIMUM SHIPPING FEE of $35.00 and will be sent by standard International Post.

Additional insurance is optional at the buyer's expense

Larger lots may incur an additional charge.

If we are unsure of the bona fides of a successful bidder we may request identification such as a Passport Photo or Drivers's Licence that matches the Credit Card details registered with Invaluable before we despatch an item.

Both Australian and International packages are traceable in transit and may require a signature on delivery.

Welcome to Smalls Auctions Sale 168. I was reminiscing the other day with a colleague who told me that I had missed an important milestone. I know I get into trouble every year for missing my Wedding Anniversary but that comes around in September, so I knew it wasn’t that. After many random guesses he reminded me that my very first job selling coins was with the Sydney Dealer M.R.Roberts way back in January 1977. For the life of me I couldn’t recall the exact date I started but I do remember it was around the time of the Granville Train Disaster which happened on the 18th January and claimed the lives of eighty-three ordinary people setting out on their way to work. It’s events like these that stick in your mind. I would have sworn black and blue that it was also around the time of the death of Elvis Presley, but a quick Google search tells me that that was in August 1977, so it appears that after 45 years of selling coins and other collectables my memory is no longer infallible - if it ever was. I mention this ‘Anniversary’ because it then got me thinking how many Australian 1930 Pennies I had sold through the years. Certainly quite a few for ‘Bob’ Roberts who ran weekly advertisements offering 1930 Pennies for sale alongside his coin column in Sydney’s ‘Sunday Telegraph’ newspaper. The 1930 Penny can lay serious claim to being the World’s most recognisable coin rarity and like the ‘British Penny Black’ in the stamp world it has enjoyed cult-like status since it was first noticed in pocket change in the 1940s. Records show that they were never officially struck and so its publicised discovery set off a treasure hunt in the Australian population looking for that elusive penny that traded at the time for a year’s wages. In his heyday Bob claimed to be the biggest coin dealer in the World bar none - and in his parallel universe he probably believed it. I rolled my eyes when he brushed off emissaries from the Perth Mint in the mid-80s just as they were starting up their numismatic enterprise with the claim that he had more than half a million mail order customers and didn’t need their business. He also refused to take credit cards insisting on cash payment or reluctantly personal cheques. More than once I visited customers with Bob whose cheques had subsequently bounced. I do remember on one occasion we ran out of 1930 Pennies for sale and so we offered instead an off-metal gold strike of the GB 1935 Jubilee Crown with an incredibly small mintage of just thirty pieces. Of course, it didn’t have the public profile of the 1930 Penny and when Bob jetted off overseas his parting comment was that it was a waste of an ad, but we may as well give it a shot as the space was already booked. We ended up with two potential buyers who arrived at the same time - but the one that scored the coin was the one who plonked cash on the counter retrieved from a well-used Gladstone Bag. I later learned that he was a runner for Sydney’s then Mr Big of organised crime who had taken up a penchant for collecting but more likely saw the purchase as an opportunity to launder some of his black money. The runner went on to spend up big for ‘Mr Big’ over the next few weeks on all manner of rarities we had in stock and perhaps it was the naivety of youth, but I genuinely thought I was a super super salesman as I stuffed more and more cash into the shop safe. Bob of course had kittens on his return when he was greeted with a cascade of cash tumbling from the safe and then had a second litter when I introduced him to my new customer. Bob operated in different circles to me and was quick to recognised him and, more importantly knew who he worked for. How their relationship flourished I cannot tell you as I had a falling out with the ‘King of Coins’ shortly after and left his employ and we became sometimes bitter business rivals. We reconnected in his last years, and I was proud to attend his funeral out of respect for the guy that gave me my first serious job - and I only tell the story today with Bob having departed this mortal coil thus burying any possible repercussions. Bob obviously couldn’t give the eulogy, but I’m guessing he had a hand in writing it. For those in the know, who had worked alongside him in the 70s and 80s, it was pure 'Bob the Showman' having one last go of ‘taking the mickey’ out of the soulful mourners. The oratory would have done Walter Mitty proud. But what do you ask has these ramblings got to do with Smalls Auctions Sale 168? Well, I can certainly say that the 1930 Penny we have on offer in our Sale is in the top tier of coins that I have sold. As an educated guess I would think I have handled sixty plus coins through the years, or about 4% of the estimated 1500 coins struck, and this coin would rank in my top ten. I have also inspected hundreds of coins at Auctions viewings, and I would place this coin firmly in the top twenty of coins overall. A problem free 1930 Penny in good Very Fine grade is indeed a rarity, and this one with a wealth of extra fine detail is one to behold. If you are an aficionado of third-party grading it would sit on the cusp of an EF40. So, if you have always coveted owning a 1930 Penny, and you never found one in your pocket change, then perhaps this is the coin you have been waiting for. Smalls Auctions

Buyer's Premium
$0-99: 20.0%
$100-499: 20.0%
$500-999: 20.0%
$1,000-4,999: 20.0%
$5,000+: 20.0%

Conditions of Sale

VAT and taxes: The Buyer's Premium is inclusive of the Australian G(oods) & S(ervices T(ax) incurred by our service.

Shipping Terms: AUSTRALIA :

Purchases within Australia will be charged a MINIMUM SHIPPING FEE of $10.00 and will be sent by Registered Post.

Additional insurance is optional at the buyer's expense.

Larger lots may incur an additional charge.

OVERSEAS :

Overseas purchases will be charged a MINIMUM SHIPPING FEE of $35.00 and will be sent by standard International Post.

Additional insurance is optional at the buyer's expense

Larger lots may incur an additional charge.

If we are unsure of the bona fides of a successful bidder we may request identification such as a Passport Photo or Drivers's Licence that matches the Credit Card details registered with Invaluable before we despatch an item.

Both Australian and International packages are traceable in transit and may require a signature on delivery.

Buyers Premium: All purchases are subject to an all inclusive 20.0 % Buyer's Premium on the hammer price.

Tax Details: Taxes, Duties and Customs Charges that apply in the country of delivery are the express responsibility of the buyer.

Please notify us if you require a specific description on the outside of the package for customs purposes.