1998-P 10C MS(PCGS#5195)

1998-P 10C MS (PCGS#5195)

August 2011 Chicago ANA - Rarities Night

Lot Description: 1998-P Roosevelt Dime--Group of Bonded Coins--As Struck (Uncertified). 72.3 grams (approximately equal to 31.85 dimes). A spectacular modern Mint error, and among the more dramatic and enticing examples we can ever recall having seen! A hefty group of approximately 32 distorted dimes bonded together as a result of a malfunction of a coinage press. Arnold Margolis and Fred Weinberg in their book <em>The Error Coin Encyclopedia</em> explain that this type of Mint error occurs when successive blanks are fed in to the coinage press, yet due to a malfunction do not eject, but rather become bonded mechanically into a single distorted stack -- usually much smaller than that offered here. According to Margolis and Weinberg, these types of errors avoid quality-control screening when the Mint ships large quantities of uncounted and unwrapped coins to banks that have their own counting and wrapping facilities. Since face value is estimated by weight in such cases, bonded coins and other types of Mint errors may escape detection. Bonded coins rank among the rarest and most desirable types of Mint errors, and inevitably make for fabulous displays and enthralling conversation pieces. A truly fantastic error “coin” suitable for an advanced cabinet of such “freaks,” as they were commonly referred to by numismatists a century ago.