Isle of Man 1988 1/2 crown KM-238
This specimen was part of lot 21101 in Stack's Bowers ANA Auction (Denver, CO, August 2017), which sold for $2,291.25. The catalog description[1] noted, "ISLE OF MAN. Five Piece Proof Set, 1988. Authorized mintage of only 5,000 sets, but according [to] the Krause book only 611 sets were issued. With case of issue and certificate of authenticity." The Isle of Man lies in the Irish Sea between Britain and Ireland and remains a British dependency. It is famous for motorcycle racing and tailless cats. Token coppers were issued for the island in the eighteenth century but large production did not commence until 1971. About 1980, the island fell under the domination of the Pobjoy Mint, which has minted and marketed dozens of NCLT commemoratives. This denomination was also minted in platinum.
Recorded mintage: 5,000 proofs + 6,375 uncirculated, not all of which were sold.
Specification: 15.55 g, .999 fine gold, .500 troy oz AGW.
Catalog reference: Fr-B50/B55; KM-PS48 (set), KM 238.
- Friedberg, Arthur L. and Ira S. Friedberg, Gold Coins of the World, From Ancient Times to the Present, 9th ed., Clifton, NJ: Coin and Currency Institute, 2017.
- Michael, Thomas, and Tracy L. Schmidt, Standard Catalog of World Coins, 1901-2000, 47th ed., Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2019.
- [1]Ponterio, Richard, Kyle Ponterio and Chris Chatigny, The August 2017 Denver ANA Auction: Ancients, Selections from The Richard Stuart Collection & World Coins, Santa Ana, CA: Stack's Bowers LLC, 2017.
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