925 (Sterling) Silver... What's the deal?

VRS

VRS

Well-Known Member
Silver Stacker
I've got a sterling silver salver somewhere that weighs around 1.5kg - I can't help but think that given the majority of stackers are purists that 925 is viewed as the poorer cousin of 999+

So, being born & raised with 925 but only ever having bought & sold the 'better' stuff (see - I do that automatically now lol!) I'm still trying to get a handle on who in Oz buys 925?

There are some fantastic 1kg proofs out there from Europe or just regular 1kg 925 coins - especially the Euro commemoratives - but whist I'd love in theory to OWN them the 925 bit puts me off!?! Bizarre, but there y'go...

Does anyone buy Sterling coin here for investment or is it just the Europeans who do that?
 
50 Euro 1kg First Anniversary of the Euro - there's a coin & proof with gilded face - coin around GBP550, proof around GBP 1400? Monnaie de Paris... I was thinking about getting a substantial souvenir of a currency (note the specific term) which will soon be an ex-currency... ;)
 
VRS said:
50 Euro 1kg First Anniversary of the Euro - there's a coin & proof with gilded face - coin around GBP550, proof around GBP 1400? Monnaie de Paris... I was thinking about getting a substantial souvenir of a currency (note the specific term) which will soon be an ex-currency... ;)
Click to expand...

ask THUCYDIDES79, his particular in Euroup field : )
 
there are different varieties of the mexican onzas -

the casa de moneda depicts what is probably some sort of coin press or refining apparatus on the obverse and scales on the reverse - it is .925 however the coin weighs over one ounce so that the coin contains the same 1 troy ounce of .999 as its later .999 cousins. so it has the best of both worlds.
 
I stack a lot of 925 silver..If I can buy ASW at below spot..I like the $10 Australian state coins and I like central American countries like Panama, Belieze..I really like balboas especially the $20 ones that weigh in in at 3.89 ozs asw. I have bought a lot of sterling silver sets from the Cayman Islands, Trinidad etc.. Most are from The Franklin Mint in the USA.

When I buy some sets at below spot, I get all the other non silver coins for no cost but they are proof and some are really beautiful to look at even thought they are nickel/copper.

Regards Errol 43
 
Thankyou guys - I hear a lot about buying - not too much about selling - maybe its a regional thing - apart from 999 bullion everyone in Europe seems to go for 925 - ESP uk. Odd...
 
the only sterling coins in oz that fetch a premium are the 800 50c peice ;)
 
nicwinner said:
VRS said:
50 Euro 1kg First Anniversary of the Euro - there's a coin & proof with gilded face - coin around GBP550, proof around GBP 1400? Monnaie de Paris... I was thinking about getting a substantial souvenir of a currency (note the specific term) which will soon be an ex-currency... ;)
Click to expand...

ask THUCYDIDES79, his particular in Euroup field : )
Click to expand...


Thanks Nic,

However he is talking about them big coins - and i dont know much about Euro hummers.
 
A quick websearch about "1kg coin sterling OR 925" brought as the first hit... THIS thread :D I did not known that these existed at all. The French 50 coin seems to have a huge premium (found it for ~1700) probably du to its low mintage. So it's certainly not intended for stacking, but only for collectors.

The other euro commemorative coins indeed have been an interesting option for stacking. Here in Germany, we have a 7% tax on coins and 19% on bars, and thus, in late 2010, the 10 commemorative coins ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euro_gold_and_silver_commemorative_coins_(Germany) - slightly out-dated) have been the cheapest way to buy silver. Whenever there was a new issue, people have been driving from bank to bank and "bought" as many of them as they could. Well, they did not really "buy" them - just swapped a 10 note with a material value of ZERO into a 10 coin with a material value of about 10 :cool: . Of course, this was a perfect deal: Even if the silver price had dropped to 1/oz, nobody would have made a loss: 10 are 10. But now, their material worth is about 13. (That's why in the end, these coins became increasingly hard to get, and in 2011, they reduced to silver content to 625, and finally to zero: The latest one consist of copper-nickel... )

Of course, thre are always purists who appreciate a 9999 coin higher than a 999 coin, but sterling silver coins are IMHO a nice way to preserve wealth, they may also carry a premium, and are usually in a small, handy unit, and in the case of the Euro coins, they have a built-in stop-loss of 10. Many good reasons to stack them.
 
Sterling is good for some things, so good for flatware etc. as it is more wear resistant than pure silver but doesn't require the hardness of 50% but even for circulating coins it is too soft, look at any of the well circulated 1910-1920 silver coins and most of them are slugs.

I can't see why it would be made into coins when it obviously doesn't work. So the only reason is for the mints to charge you higher prices for less silver content.

Bearing in mind that most modern "numismatics" are crap and will not hold their value or ever be highly sought after this is a wonderful marketing ploy to part you with your hard earned money in exchange for the 21st Anniversary of the Wiggles box set.

On the other hand I find that pre decimal coins are a more "honest" form of sterling and I am more than happy to add that to the stack, particulalry as the premiums have long since worn off.
 
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