Owner Comments:
A note on values…. Don’t trust Krause. The Standard Catalogue of World Coins is a really good reference; it is an essential tool for studying most foreign coin sets. However, the values listed are sometimes…. a bit off. For example, Krause lists the value of the 1306 pattern faluses in Uncirculated condition at between $2600 for the 2 falus and $3000 for the quarter falus. However, in my experience these can be obtained for significantly less. The most I paid was $1400 for the half falus. The rest of them I won at auction for between $450 and $700 – a fraction of what Krause suggests they are worth. The problem is, these coins are so rare and sell so infrequently that putting a value on them is nearly impossible. If an auction is well publicized or from a major auction house, there is a chance that it will earn a higher hammer. The highest price I paid, for the 2 falus, also happened to come from a Stephen Album auction. He’s a specialist in Islamic coins, and thus his customer base is going to be more competitive for rare coins like this. The rest of the coins I bought from Heritage, which, while it has a very large customer base, might not be as dedicated to the specialized nature of these coins.
When preparing to buy a rare coin, the price guides are a good start. However, you must then search actual sales (recent sales are best). Heritage Auctions, and several other auction houses, have thorough archives with searchable lists of all previous sales. This is an incredibly valuable tool – while a published book may only update its values once every few years, the auction archives will show you every completed sale (and often, will show unsold lots as well). This advice applies to any coin purchase you may consider – whether it be an incredibly rare Moroccan pattern coin, or an incredibly common date US silver dollar.
As for the coin itself! This is a beautiful coin. The surfaces literally shine, with attractive red poking out around mellow brown. The strike is weak in places, but the larger format allows more detail to fill the nautical anchors and ropes them around the edges. A beautiful, rare coin!