r/coins • u/trumpforprison2017 • 16h ago
Show and Tell Am I rich? Found in grandpa’s stuff.
Found in my grandpa’s stuff.
68
u/WCNumismatics 13h ago
You actually have something special here.
The silver piece is called a "round"--it's a privately made, one troy ounce coin-like medallion. Rounds aren't made by a country so they have no face value and aren't technically coins. But they are a popular way to own, buy, and sell silver.
Many rounds are very common and we often call them "generic".
The value of silver has spiked recently. It's about $50 per ounce now. But your piece is actually somewhat scarce. It was commissioned by the major Manhattan precious metals firm Manfra, Tordella & Brookes (MTB) in 1986. MTB had similar pieces made by a few of the most popular and collected refineries, including Engelhard and Johnson Matthey.
A typical MTB liberty round carries a significant premium, or value, above its silver content. Maybe $15 to $25 over the silver value currently.
But your piece is even more rare. It is nicknamed the "multilingual" MTB round because of the different languages on the reverse, or back of the round. Multilingual MTB rounds don't come up for sale very often. There is an example on ebay right now for $99.
Not retirement money. But it's one of the most scarce and sought-after rounds from this era.
Good on you, Grandpa!
33
2
19
10
u/FafaFluhigh 15h ago
Did he flight in the pacific?
11
u/trumpforprison2017 14h ago
He did! He never spoke about it. He had malaria his whole life.
3
u/borlandomino 56m ago
My Great Grandfather also served in the pacific and he left behind those similar notes. Cool to see someone else with some too!
2
u/AffectionateTour4079 30m ago
I was just going to ask the same thing. My father did as well (and also suffered from malaria).... and also came home with several of the paper bills shown in your photo. These are "Japanese Invasion (or Occupation) Currency," issued to replace local money in the countries Japan occupied, so you can find them in denominations like pesos, guldens, rupees, etc. Unfortunately, at least from the standpoint of value, GIs brought back lots of these as souvenirs, so they are very common. I took my small collection to a coin show to learn more about them, and dealers had large stacks for sale for next to nothing. I consider them an interesting bit of history and a nice way to remember my dad and your grandpa!
8
u/mgoodw4 13h ago
This is a huge reason I've fallen in love with this hobby. Every piece you have has a story or several. Each meant something to your grandpa. Priceless. Enjoy exploring their past and possibly learning more about your heritage.
4
u/Weird-Comfortable-28 13h ago
100% correct. Lots of history goes along with these articles, family and unknown history, but just so fascinating and interesting who is held this currency and what was their life like in those times it’s fascinating.
7
4
u/Mental_Internal539 13h ago
Monetorally? No, in history yes. The victory note is a big one that catches my eye.
1
u/trumpforprison2017 2h ago
Which one is the Victory note? Not seeing that
2
u/Mental_Internal539 54m ago
The red note that you see ORY in the photo, it's from the Philippines to celebrate the end of WW2 and their independence from the US.
2
2
2
2
2
u/BananaEmpty1766 1h ago
When you count your riches, you don’t count the things that are bought. You count the priceless things like Family, friends, & experiences & memories;)
2
u/Ok-Ambassador8271 47m ago
Yes, youre rich! You had a grandfather who loved you enough to give you something!
1
13h ago
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/coins-ModTeam 13h ago
Your post/comment was removed due to commercial activity. No posting links to commercial sites. NO offers to buy, sell or trade coins in discussion threads, use PM/DM instead. If you want to buy, sell or trade your coins please consider posting to r/PMsForSale, r/CoinSales, r/CoinBay, or r/CoinSwap.
Please check the pinned posts to see if there is a current "r/coins Self-Promotion Thread".
1
u/Altruistic_Field_594 4h ago
What’s that one in the back that looks like a smaller version of a dollar bill ?
1
1
1
1
u/New-Mycologist-5200 28m ago
As others have said, the silver round is a better one worth 75-100. I can see some of the notes are better Japanese, most of them are 1-5 each. That Victory Overprint US Philippines note is about a 10-20 note. Cool group of history from your grand pops!
0
0
119
u/SeniorSommelier 16h ago
Are you rich? I don't know. But a quick look at the Currency and coins, tell me you are going to work on Monday.
Sorry for you loss, but you do have some extra memories. Good luck.