Spink Archives - INSIDER

COINEX UNEARTHED: EXCEPTIONAL FINDS FROM A THOUSAND YEARS OF HISTORY

London , 30th September – 1st October 2025 This September, Spink’s much-anticipated Coinex sale promises not only several high-calibre collections but also a showcase of exceptional artefacts and other detecting finds spanning a millennium of history. These are relics not only of monetary value, but also of profound cultural significance. From the age of Viking […]

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A WORD FROMOUR CHAIRMAN

Misc

Dear Friends and Collectors, As every summer in August, I am writing these few words from my holiday house in France. Being away from the office is a good place to reflect on our business activity and hobbies. It is also a time when heat waves are affecting the northern hemisphere, leading to massive forest

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HISTORICAL DOCUMENTS, AUTOGRAPHS AND EPHEMERA

Misc

Spink London, 16th September 2025 Napoleon Bonaparte’s Attempted Conquest of Syria and Egypt In the wake of the French Revolution, the establishment of the first French Republic and the growing influence of an ambitious military strategist and Commander, Napoleon Bonaparte, France looked to expand its global influence. In particular, Bonaparte sought to diminish the might

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KING WILLIAM’S WATCH

Misc

Grandson of Charles I, nephew of Charles II and son-in-law of James II, William III (1650-1702) was the last Stuart King of England and possibly its most underrated monarch. A fearless military commander who, like his Norman namesake, led a successful invasion of England, William was also a skilled politician, diplomat and collector, with a

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THE MUISCA RAFT AND THE LEGEND OF EL DORADO

Banknotes, Misc

“The raft not only represents a suppressed culture and a forgotten ceremony, it also marks the beginning of a story rivalling the legend of Atlantis: El Dorado, the fabled lost city of gold.” The reverse of the Colombian 2 Pesos Oro banknote proudly depicts the Balsa Muisca, a votive artefact sometimes referred to as the

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ALL THE WAY FROM AMERICA

Coins, Misc

A HENRY VIII CUT COIN “The metal detecting bug bit me hard after I found my very first Civil War minnie ball. I remember clearly when I pulled it out of the dirt, seeing this small but powerful instrument of death.” I will begin by sharing my interest in metal detecting and how it came

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THE COINS THAT NEVER WERE: SURVIVORS OF THE 2019 BREXIT “MELTDOWN”

Coins, Misc

“THE UNTOLD STORY OF A REAL LIFE NUMISMATIC “GOLDEN TICKET” “Few however could have predicted the rapidity by which general currency usage would decline domestically, and with it the once-dependable staple of their entire business.” The second decade of the 21st Century is a chapter that few in Britain will forget. From the “Pasty Tax”

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THE FIRST RESERVE BANK OF NEW ZEALAND BANKNOTE ISSUED

Banknotes, Misc

“The Number One” For much of the 19th and early 20th centuries, New Zealand’s monetary system was shaped by the now-unfamiliar practice of private trading banks issuing banknotes for public circulation. The Union Bank of Australia, established in 1840 in Petone (then known as Britannia), was the first trading bank in New Zealand. Over a

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MILITARY TELEGRAPHS IN BRITISH BECHUANALAND

Misc, Stamps

THE UNAPPROPRIATED DIE ERA: 1884-1885 Figure 1 -Unappropriated Dies – Die Proofs, 1872While proofs of 19 duties were prepared for use for varying Great Britain revenues, the eight duties shown above were those appropriated for the Military Telegraphs issue in 1884 “In essence De La Rue prepared a set of dies for each value desired

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IN THE SPRING-TIME, THE ONLY PRETTY RING-TIME

Misc

‘IN THE SPRING-TIME, THE ONLY PRETTY RING-TIME’ (AS YOU LIKE IT, ACT V, SCENE III) HISTORIC FINGER RINGS AT SPINK, LONDON – APRIL 2025 There’s something a little bit different amongst the lots of the latest Spink Coin sale, in the form of two historic finger-rings. Both are astonishing, recent metal detecting finds which, after

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