Any coin collectors out there?

I need help if anyone out there collects. My dh's grandmother left my kids a bunch of coins and I am having trouble even finding out where to look for two of them.

One is a coin with a stylized lion on front. A man and a shield, also with a lion on it is on the back. It's silver with 1640 stamped on it. I found a reference to it and a picture from an old newspaper in Massachusetts saying one like it was found off shore from a ship wreck. I've searched Spanish coins and English coins to no end and found nothing.

The other is very decorated with a cross on the front and tons of scroll work. I can't even tell what the back is because it has so many scrolls on it. It weighs more than the coin above with no markings or words at all on it.

Neither of them are perfectly round. The one with a cross on it looks like it was smelted then something pressed into it with edges going everywhere.

How would one decided where to look for coins where you don't know where they came from? I can scan them if it would help.

Oh, and if someone could enlighten me to what FR-255 is and how it relates to silver certificates I'd be most pleased.

Thanks for any help what so ever. My boys are wanting to do some research into this and I would like to help them along. I'm pretty sure they are worthless but it would be fun for them.

I'm a numismatist (coin collector) !!!

However, I can't help you from those descriptions. I suggest you go to your nearest book store (eg Barnes & Noble, Borders, etc.) and check out their coin collecting/hobbies section. You will find a number of excellent resource on coin collecting. Take your coins, find one of the good guides with pictures and then find yourself a nice quiet place to sit. All should be revealed.


I believe that FR-255 refers to the Federal Reserve that issued the certificate.

I found a dealer in Alabama that goes to my old church who is gonna help me. I just got off the phone with him. I am going to go to the book store as well. Is the Red Book a good book to have for coins? I think I remember someone mentioning that one. I found a ton of coins after I posted. So I guess a book would be a good thing to have.

Not sure I want to keep all these things. I now have dh's grandmothers entire household goods sitting in my house and I'm trying to either thin it out or decide what to keep. Not as fun as it sounds lol.

Thanks so much for the help.

The Red Book is an excellent guide. Probably the best. I buy the new edition every few years.

Good luck.

Just as a suggestion, you might want to browse the coin collecting section of Ebay. It can give you some good guidelines. I don't really suggest buying from there unless you are really sure about the seller and I don't suggest you sell there until you really know what you have.

Send them to me, I know this Nigerian guy that claims he's the best font of coin knowledge in the world, I'll send them to him!

Tread carefully.