• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Possibly Some Thwarted Optimism with the Queen's Beast Series.

0
Revenant

960 views

When I found out that the UK Royal Mint was going to be releasing the Queen’s Beast series a few years ago I got really excited. My mother was always really into family genealogy and the coat of arms and family / clan patterns from Scotland and all of that fun stuff. My family originates mostly from England and Scotland and I’ve always thought the coat of arms was cool. I loved the fact that they were going to be big, thick, 2 oz, high relief rounds and I loved what the artist had done with the Lion of England design, the first coin in the series. I was excited to collect these from the start.

When my wife found out there would be a griffin, she jokingly said that she wanted one of those too - she likes griffins, who knew? (I think it’s a Harry Potter thing or something.)

But that got me thinking.

I decided that instead of building one set for me, I was going to build a set for me, a set for her and a set for each of our kids - we only have one so far with another on the way but I decided I was going to make three more sets because I’d always hoped that we’d have 3 kids. I figured at the time that if we decided to go nuts and have a 4th kid my wife and I could just keep one set and give one each to the kids.

At present those sets are half-finished. I have the first 5 coins and I’m just waiting to place an order for the 2019 Falcons - I’m hoping the dealer I usually go through will put them on sale and let me get a break on the premiums. I guess we’ll see there.

Well, turns out that’s probably not going to happen - the three kids anyway. We’ve found out that there’s likely to be complications and potential complications that put our chances of avoiding another c-section with our 2nd child at only around 35%. If there’s another c-section, the risks to my wife if we have a third child would be prohibitively high. A third child isn’t completely ruled out at this point, but it doesn’t really look good / likely at this point. Those are risks I just don’t like. I work in risk analysis and those numbers are just too ugly looking.

I bring this up in the context of these Queen’s Beast sets because, It’s amazing how it’s the little things that hit you in situations like this. I’ve been mostly fine and accepting of the situation as it has been unfolding for the last three weeks and focusing on supporting my wife but I got choked up thinking about it, I think for the first time really, looking at and thinking about those half-complete sets in their air-tites and what they’re for.

I’m going to go forward with finishing the 5th set. Who knows? life could surprise me, and we could get lucky - I’m certainly not feeling lucky so far but life does surprise me sometimes. The extra set may get sold one day. It might end up being a very nice gift for someone. I’m already buying a 6th copy of each issue and giving to my step-father over time as he also likes coins and he doesn’t really shop for / buy these things like I do but he enjoys getting them and he’s hard to shop for.

Don’t get me wrong in any of this - it looks like I’m going to get two healthy children (which is more than some get) and the odds currently overwhelmingly favor that my wife will at least make it through this pregnancy in good health. I feel very fortunate and grateful for that. Ultimately, I’m not guaranteed that my sons are going to grow up liking this stuff. With my luck, this 10G set I’ve been building for 10 years will go up on the auction block as soon as I’m in the ground because the kids just won’t share my attachment to any of it. Still, a guy can dream, and I have had my hopes up about sharing this stuff with them.

All the same… this kind of bites. We’ll be finding out more about the situation on Wednesday so I guess we’ll see how that goes.

49294854_527741254391306_1888704846144471040_n.jpg

0



10 Comments


Recommended Comments

I feel for you and understand your situation. I pray things will turn around and your Wife and Children will be just fine. On the coin side...THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH HALF OR UNCOMPLETED SETS. I SALUTE YOU!! In your attempt to capture your goals and stride forward like an English Commander on the Numismatic Battlefield...You Sir definitely are putting your Loved ones First and that is HONORABLE, IMHO...I remember those coins and wanted some but never got any, they are important and cool!! Thanks for Sharing and I'm on your side of field....(going to play that Counting Crows Song about "I belong in the service of the Queen" for you...peace

Link to comment

The great thing about collecting is that you can hit ‘pause’ for a few months/years while you sort out other areas of life.

Link to comment
13 minutes ago, Augustus 70 said:

The great thing about collecting is that you can hit ‘pause’ for a few months/years while you sort out other areas of life.

I've definitely done that a few times.

Link to comment
6 hours ago, Numismatic, A.A.S. said:

THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH HALF OR UNCOMPLETED SETS.

I don't have a problem with half or uncomplete sets so much as I sometimes have a problem with WHY the sets are incomplete. A decade ago I started a lot of sets and projects that sounded fun but I didn't have the time or the money to carry them all out and I ended up with a bunch of incomplete projects and none of them had really achieved what I'd wanted them to. If I'd picked one or two and focused on them like I've done with the Netherlands 10G sets one or two of them might have actually turned into something and I'm really wanting to not have that practice continue. At this point I'm really trying to challenge myself to make sure that every purchase actually contributes to a goal I really want to achieve and that I'm not just wildly and randomly chasing shiny things. I'm really challenging myself to be aware of the limits of my resources and scope my projects / goals so that I'm not just spinning my wheels, stacking up slabs but not really accomplishing anything and denying myself the satisfaction of actually achieving a major goal. 

Link to comment

Understood Revenant, I've seen collector's start a series with buying the more common cheaper coins, usually in higher grade, then start to dwindle down as they get tougher dates and never buy the keys or wait till the last holes to fill are the keys and settle for lower grades if complete them at all. A look on eBay or even most auctions will show how many keys and semi-keys are missing from sets and folders. In my experience, the earlier I conditioned myself to start with keys first in a set and use patience the better my end result (when I was collecting by sets/series). That said, it was easy to get side tracked by other coin projects...you see an opportunity with another coin or series and I can't pass it up and in the meantime I'm waiting for an opportunity in the current series that isn't coming so I branch out. Sometimes then with funds applied, shortly there after the coin I was waiting for comes up and I've lost the financial upper hand. Left with several unfinished sets, etc...it takes a lot of commitment and FOCUS..all while life is happening at the same time. Been there in the past and know the feeling, that's why your post/journal entry hit home with me so much....peace

Link to comment

Definitely good points all around. I find it useful in some respects to make have two or three sets that I'm working on more diligently but keep it limited to no more than that if possible. One of those projects can be like the 10G set where they're rarer and harder to come by. The other set can be easier, where coins are perhaps cheaper and / or more available. One set can function more as a long-term project where the other is more of a near-term thing. I think that helps balance things out. I think it can also work well to pair a smaller, shorter set with a larger, longer set, again to pair long-term goals / projects with short-term projects.

I've gotten lucky enough to find the 1887 and 1888 key-dates for my 10G set along the way but I'm definitely worried that it may stall out for a while now that I have all the common dates and the only things that are left are the rarer dates. Of course, the set is already more complete than I originally hoped it would ever be, so even if it's never finished I don't think I'll ever consider that set a disappointment.

Link to comment

I've also been enjoying the Queen's beasts coins. I also have kept mine all raw in capsules. Bought the 2019 Falcon coin so I have all 6 ( but just one set of each)--probably will leave a great amount of my coins to the granddaughter as she is my only grandchild to date and has shown tons more interest in coins than either of my daughters.

Link to comment
5 hours ago, jackson64 said:

I've also been enjoying the Queen's beasts coins. I also have kept mine all raw in capsules. Bought the 2019 Falcon coin so I have all 6 ( but just one set of each)--probably will leave a great amount of my coins to the granddaughter as she is my only grandchild to date and has shown tons more interest in coins than either of my daughters.

Hi there! Nice to see you around! Yeah. Keeping these raw feels like the way to go to me. Good luck with the grand daughter. My son likes to play with a small tube of generic silver rounds I have. He counts them and calls them "my monies."

Link to comment

If I may go back to subject of the original post:

I wish you and your wife the best of luck with your pregnancy, and upcoming birth. The most important thing is the health of your wife and new child, and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Edited by Just Bob
Link to comment
13 hours ago, Just Bob said:

If I may go back to subject of the original post:

I wish you and your wife the best of luck with your pregnancy, and upcoming birth. The most important thing is the health of your wife and new child, and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

Thanks. As I said at the end of my post late yesterday, it's not really going the way we'd prefer so far. The baby is healthy by all indications but the rest of the pregnancy and delivery are likely to be hard on my wife. She should hopefully come out okay in the end though, fortunately. I have to deal with the bad but I'm grateful for the good.

Link to comment

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now