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Happy 53 years Merdeka Malaysia

I just want to wish happy 53 years Merdeka Malaysia to all my reader. This year celebration held in a closed place at Putra Stadium in Bukit Jalil with a motto "1Malaysia generating transformation" (1Malaysia menjana tranformasi). Many of us must remember how normally government will celebrate Merdeka (Independence) at the Dataran Merdeka in front of Sultan Abdul Samad Building. Even if no celebration will be held at that place, some of us still keep coming to that place for Merdeka countdown. Its been a long time since any Merdeka Celebration has been Celebrated at this place. Most probably because any celebration in Kuala Lumpur means traffic jam for the whole day.

Photos: The building in 1960.

To all Malaysia Banknotes collector, you maybe has seen the Sultan Abdul Samad building picture on Malaysia 500 ringgit banknote. The Sultan Abdul Samad Building is located at Jalan Raja in front of the Dataran Merdeka (the Independence Square) by Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The structure takes its name from Sultan Abdul Samad, the reigning Sultan of Selangor at the time when construction began.

Photo: The building at the reverse of Malaysia 500 ringgit note

It was designed by A.C. Norman and the construction started in 1893 and finish in 1897. At first, its house several important government departments during the British administration. A.C. Norman spent time in Africa and saw Muslim mosques in India which led him to use Moorish architecture in the building's design. In 1945, when World War II ended, Britain resumed control again, but Malaya's independence movement had matured and organized itself in an alliance under Tunku Abdul Rahman. When the British flag (union jack) was finally lowered in Kuala Lumpur's Merdeka Square in 31 August 1957, Tunku became the first prime minister of Malaya.

Photos: The building in its early days.

In front of the building is the Dataran Merdeka (or Merdeka Square). It was here, the Union Jack flag was lowered and the Malayan flag hoisted for the first time at midnight on August 31, 1957. The Dataran Merdeka was officially opened on January 1, 1990, in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 1990. The Merdeka Square symbolized British sovereignty as it was a cricket ground for the colonial administrators and fronted the Royal Selangor Club, Malaya's most exclusive whites-only club.

The building has seen many history in its days. Its even older then most of us in Malaysia. Wish Merdeka Celebration will be held again at this place in the future. "Happy Merdeka day to all Malaysian".

Source: Wikipedia.

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India PAMP refinery delayed

India MMTC Ltd last week announced that their new gold refinery in Haryana will be delayed for at least three months due to the installing of machinery. The refinery, which is 72 percent owned by MMTC with PAMP holding the rest of it, is in Haryana and is expected to produce coins from 100 tonnes of gold in the first year. The refinery was to start production by September, but it has now been delayed to December as it took time for the company to absorb technology as told by Rajesh Khosla, managing director of MMTC-PAMP India Pvt Ltd on Saturday to Reuters at a conference in Varca in Goa.

Photo by Reuters: gold bar for sale

"The demand for coins is quite good and prices haven't made much of a difference (to sales)," said Khosla, who has been the India representative for the precious metals company PAMP for several years, facilitating sales of gold bars and coins.

Khosla said the refinery, being built with an investment of 600 million rupees ($12.8 million), would import 160-170 tonnes of gold concentrates from South Africa and Australia as raw material as India hardly produces any gold. MMTC Chairman Sanjiv Batra told Reuters earlier this year that they also expect to export gold coins from the refinery.

India's investment segment for gold is small, but has been growing faster than the jewellery segment as Indians realise the benefits of holding gold as an investment product. India is the world's top consumer of the metal and MMTC is one of its biggest gold importers. In the April to June quarter, India's investment demand for gold was at 41.5 tonnes, up 7 percent on year, while jewellery demand stood at 123 tonnes, down 2 percent on year, data from the World Gold Council shows.

The second quarter of the calendar year saw gold notching up gains of nearly 12 percent (the highest quarterly gain in more than two years) as Europe's debt woes burnished the metal's safe-haven appeal. Spot gold hit a record high of more than $1,260 per ounce in June this year. Khosla said the refinery aims to produce coins with 200 tonnes of gold in the second year of operation.

MMTC is an authorized agency of the Government of India for import of gold, silver, platinum, palladium, rough diamonds, emeralds, rubies and other semi-precious stones and supplies these items to jewellers in India for domestic sales and exports. During 2009-10, MMTC Limited, (A Govt. of India Enterprise) is India’s Premier bullion trader, handling more than 185 MTs of Gold & 690 MTs of Silver. The company also operates an in-house assaying and hallmarking unit at New Delhi, Jaipur, Ahmedabad and Kolkatta for testing purity of gold and gold articles duly accredited with Bureau of Indian Standards. MMTC has a unit in New Delhi for manufacturing its own brand of gold and silver medallions since the year 1996.

Source: Reuters India, MMTC Ltd website.

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What happen to East India Company?

Do you know what happen to East India Company? East India company is English chartered company formed for trade with East and Southeast Asia and India, incorporated in 1600. It began as a monopolistic trading body, establishing early trading stations at Surat, Madras (now Chennai), Bombay (Mumbai), and Calcutta (Kolkata). An Indian entrepreneur is relaunching the East India Company with the opening of a store in London, after buying the remnants of the British trading giant that once ruled much of the subcontinent.

Photo by AFP: Mehta showing one of his product.

This former global trading power was acquired in 2005 by Indian businessman Sanjiv Mehta, who has transformed it into a consumer brand focused on luxury foodstuffs; tea and coffee.

"I was born and grew up in Bombay (Mumbai), so for me to acquire a company which once owned us is a tremendous joy," Mehta told AFP, as workmen put the finishing touches to the shop in London's upmarket Mayfair district.

But the entrepreneur, who moved to Britain around 20 years ago, insists he is not driven by a desire for vengeance, he says his plan is based on carefully thought-out commercial considerations. In reawakening the slumbering giant, Mehta has bought into a 400 year old brand already known to millions of people around the world. At its peak, the company employed a third of the British workforce and was responsible for 50 percent of global trade.

"It's impossible to build a luxury brand like this," the 49-year-old said.

"You can spend billions of dollars and not reach where the East India Company is already starting from."

Although his ambitions are much more modest, he hopes the EIC will once again spread its tentacles across the globe. The company is already in talks about taking the brand to Japan and the Middle East. Mehta also expects the EIC to make a return to India at some point to tap the market for luxury goods in one of the world's fastest expanding economies.

"The East India Company is a name which every Indian knows," he said.

The Mayfair store, which measures around 2,200 square feet (200 square metres), is designed to remind customers of the East India Company's heritage. The EIC's coat of arms hangs on a wall, and ancient Indian coins are scattered across one of the sales counters. Metal tea trays are decorated with patterns of criss-crossing straight lines, representing the EIC's trade routes across the globe. It is stocked with 350 high-end products, developed by the company and using ingredients sourced from across the world. They include more than 100 varieties of tea, in a specially designed "tea bank", many varieties of mustard and biscuits, and decorated gift boxes of chocolates. Mehta hopes the business will be in profit by 2012, and predicts it could be worth 100 million pounds in the next four to five years.

Source: AFP.

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Japanese arrested for US bond fraud

Yesterday, Two Japanese men were among four people detained by police in connection with a syndicate that is believed to have issued false bonds using the name 'Federal Reserve of America Bond' running into hundreds of millions of ringgit in a raid at a hotel in Shah Alam, Malaysia here early this morning. Shah Alam police chief ACP Noor Azam Jamaluddin said in the 1.45am raid by the Commercial Crimes Investigation Department (CCID), the two Japanese men, aged 62 and 68, and a local aged 38, were detained in a room at the hotel.

Photo by Utusan Malaysia: ACP Noor Azam (center) showing the us bond.

He said the team then raided another room in the same hotel and detained a 31-year-old Indonesian woman who had in her possession a briefcase containing bond certificates and counterfeit money.

"We also seized several other materials like 114 sheets of brown-coloured A4 paper with the words Federal Reserve Bond embossed on them and seven sheets of platinum written with "United States of America Department of Treasury Bank Memorandum".

"Also seized were 50 "The Japanese Government" currency notes and 150 Gold Certificates valued at USD100,000 each (RM314,000) four gold coins and five green cards titled "Federal Reserve Bond"," he told a press conference here.

Noor Azam said the modus operandi of the syndicate was to use the local man as a trustee to find investors.However, to date no police reports had been lodged on the syndicate. The syndicate is believed to make the bond and gold plate illegally to find victims of the investors in the country with promises of investment in construction projects such as hotels and other facilities in Malaysia.

He said his initial investigation also found that local men are arrested, it is required by the authorities in the territory of Indiana, the United States for involvement in criminal fraud. He added that he will refer men to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for investigation. All suspects are now detained remand to assist investigations under Section 420 and Section 511 of the Penal Code. They will be remanded at the Magistrate's Court here for a period of detention for further investigation.

Source: Bernama, New Straits Times, Utusan Malaysia.

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No flag by Malaysian?

For the past few days, we can read a local news reporting that no flag waving by Malaysian? Everywhere in Malaysia, we can see a poor display of jalur gemilang flown by proud Malaysia. Malaysia will be celebrate 53 years of independence in just 5 days but Most Malaysian have yet to raise their national flag. Almost every newspaper reporting the same story. While some mainstream newspaper reporting that the no flag waving is a way to protest Malaysia current Government.


The Malaysian flag with its 14 alternate red and white horizontal stripes representing the 14 states including the Federal Territory as well as a crescent and eleven point star superimposed in yellow inside a blue quarter was officially named the Jalur Gemilang by the then Prime Minister Datuk Seri (Tun) Dr Mahathir Mohamad on Aug 31, 1997 in conjunction with the nation's 40th anniversary of independence. Jalur Gemilang combines the Malay word "Jalur" which means stripes or range of values while "Gemilang" signified glory, the Jalur Gemilang is a symbol of national identity that encompasses the 1Malaysia concept.

Why do I talk about this today? Maybe newspaper and most Malaysian don't realize, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) also need to show their patriotism, loyalty, love and respect for our beloved nation by way of minting merdeka coin every year. I envy our neighbour Singapore with their beautiful 45 Years of Independence Commemorative Coins launch on 28 July 2010. All newspaper in Malaysia talking about Malaysian not flying their flag high on national day but they forget that one of Malaysia most important institution forgot to fly our flag high every years.

Some of previous merdeka coins:

20th Anniversary of Independence 1 ringgit coin
Copper-Nickel, Diameter: 33.4 mm. Weight: 16.80g
Obv: Malaysia 1st Yang Dipertuan Agong; Tuanku Abdul Rahman Head
Rev: Malaysia Coat of Arms/Jata Negara
Minted by: Franklin Mint

25th Anniversary of Independence 1 ringgit coin
Copper-Nickel, Diameter: 33.4 mm. Weight: 16.80g
Obv: Malaysia 1st Prime minister; Tunku Abdul Rahman left arm raised
Rev: Malaysia Coat of Arms/Jata Negara
Minted by: Royal Mint, UK

30th Anniversary of Independence 1 ringgit coin
Copper-Zinc Diameter: 24.5 mm. Weight: 9.00g
Obv: Malaysia Coat of Arms/Jata Negara
Rev: Numeral 30 divides dates below with flying doves and sun above
Minted by: Singapore mint

The last Malaysia independence coin set minted in 2007. Most probably BNM will only produce another commemorative merdeka set in another 2 years based on the previous coins launch by BNM. Why don't they produced it every year? They can start the patriotism of Malaysian by conducting a yearly coin design competition for Merdeka coin. Malaysian people will be motivated when they see that BNM asked them to participated in producing something for Malaysia Independence.

What are BNM excuses on this matters?

Source: Bernama, Malay mail, Malaysia Kini.
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India investigate De la Rue?

Online Dailymail UK reported 5 days ago that a delegation of Indian government officials will fly to investigate banknote printer De La Rue over quality control errors. As reported by the same news, De La Rue's biggest contract is with the Reserve Bank of India, to whom it supplies watermarked banknote paper. The company's chief James Hussey forced to quit because of the quality control errors. The Indians are expected to negotiate a compensation deal with chairman Nicholas Brookes, but they are expected to stop short of cancelling the contract.


In another news by India Times, it is reported that the news is not accurate:
In India, notes are printed only in India by Royal Bank of India (RBI) subsidiary Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran (BRBNMPL) and the government-owned Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India (SPMCIL). These presses source the high security paper from international suppliers such as De La Rue. BRBNMPL printed 850-crore notes in 2008-09 (July-June) while SPMCIL printed 516-crore notes in the same year. The printing order is placed by RBI based on its estimate of the quantity of notes required denomination-wise. The notes received from the presses are issued and a reserve stock maintained. RBI derives its role in currency management on the basis of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.

Source: Indiatimes.

Can anyone from India confirm this? I check Wikipedia that there is some information about Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran establish in 1995 as the subsidiary company of RBI that produce banknote. Dailymail also reported that RBI contract deal accounts for 25 percents of De La Rue group profit. De La Rue, which produces 150 currencies around the world, is still weeks away from completing its investigation into the quality control lapses, which are blamed by staff on a round of redundancies.

Source: Dailymail.co.uk.

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1976 bronze 1 sen story

Do you know there are few 1976 bronze 1 sen found in circulation? For anyone who still don't know, only bronze variety for this coin is rare and have a high value. I don't remember if I show any of this coin before, on sell or in my friends collection. Normal copper clad steel only prize at least RM3 for uncirculated. Its not easy to get them and not easy to spot bronze coin. Someone suggest using magnet to differentiate copper clad steel from bronze. You just put together the 1 sen 1976 coin and look for coin that not attach for that magnet and that mean it is a bronze variety.

Photo: this are only normal 1976 coin.

Do you know how this bronze variety get out into circulation? Here is a story told to me Dickson. a frequent reader of my blog:
In 1973, when Bank Negara found out the production cost of the 1973 1 cent copper is higher than the face value,they decided to replace with copper-clad steel blank. As a result, half of the 1973 1 cent coins produced in copper-clad steel.

In 1976,a staff of Bank Negara found some 1976 1 cent coins stuck in the coin counting machine.The coin counting machine was adjusted to detect only 1 cent coin in copper-clad steel in 1973. Apparently, 1 cent coin in copper-clad steel is lighter than copper blank and attracted to magnet.The staff took out those stuck coins and reported to his superior.They found out this coins was minted on copper planchet.

A post-mortem was conducted by them.They traced it to the mint factory. Here are what they found out:
when they clear the floor of the minting area which is full of all sizes planchets,they separated those planchet for future minting because each planchet is accounted for.However, they missed to separate the copper planchets form the copper-clad steel planchets for 1 cent coins. So when times to mint 1976 1 cent coins, this mixed planchets was used. Some of the planchets include this bronze variety.
Malaysia Numismatic Society traced the owners of this rare coins. So far only 19pcs, mostly in UNC condition are known. We called this the Transitional Error. Current price, RM1000 offered. So far no seller.

Latest news on 1976 one cent bronze, l was told by a collector (an ex-staff of Bank Negara) changed RM4000.00 worth of old one cent coins (equivalent to 400000 pieces),when finished checking, he found 4pcs of used 1970 one cent coin and lucky enough to find one piece of used 1976 one cent Bronze.

If you know any owners of this rare piece,please update us to add into the list.

I don't think I saw any of that in my life Dickson. I received many email asking me if their coin is the 1976 1 sen collector were looking for but most of the time its only the normal copper. I am still searching for the best way to show in this blog on how to differiantiate between copper and bronze. Maybe we can get a positive result about this coin after that. To anyone who own this Malaysia 1 sen bronze variety, feel free to show it to me at lunaticg@gmail.com. You will be helping other collectors a lot by just one clear picture of your collection.

If you have any information regarding Malaysia coin story, please email me about it at lunaticg@gmail.com. Every information will get a free link to any of your Blog, website, sales page (eBay, Mudah.my etc) or even your email. I don't publish any story that had been written by someone before or your ads for selling your items. It will be easy if you can provide me with written story and clear pictures of the items. Any pictures publish in this blog, I will put lunaticg blog watermark to prevent others from plagiat or copy the story. Please tell me if you don't want me to publish your question or story in here.


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World coin blogs link

Everyone from all over the world will be looking for coins blogs link. This post will be helpful for everyone especially to collector and blogger. I am inviting everyone for link exchange or Reciprocal Link Exchange Invitation in here. I am looking for any blogs about coin, banknote, silver and gold that related to the stories. Your site must be at least 6 months old with one post a week. Only website with a pagerank 2 and above will be added in this list. I will not entertain any site with Google Page Rank 0 or unranked. Only 30 site will be added to this list.


You need to link with my blog first and please give me the url of your link list. After that, just tell me some information about your blog via email at lunaticg@gmail.com.

Title:
Url:
Description:
Category: Dealer, Collector, Blogger etc.
Owner:
E-mail:
Country:
Blog language: (If other then English, Please make sure you install translator widget).
Frequency updated:
Google Page Rank:
Write about: Please tell what you write about (Ancient coin, polymer banknote, your own collection, silver coin etc)? Do you accept swap?

You can see the example of my previous list at: Malaysia coin blog list. Currently, the list is in PR2 and it will be going up too if my rank going up. Just give this list a few months before its perform the same as my previous list. Malaysian blogger will be added in the old list.



Here are the current list:

Title: Numismatics From A Commercial Perspective
Description: Commentary on the Australian rare coin market
Category: Dealer
Owner: Andrew Crellin
E-mail: andrew@sterlingcurrency.com.au
Country: Australia
Blog language: English
Frequency updated: weekly
Google Page Rank: 3
Write about: Primarily Australian coins & notes, a modest amount of world.

London Mint 1 ringgit

Do you know some of the 1971 1 ringgit coins minted in London Mint? According to Saran Singh Book, 500,000 pieces were minted in London. This first series of Malaysia 1 ringgit have artistic design with hibiscus (Malaysia National Flower) and a dollar ($1) sign on the Obverse. On the Reverse is the Parliament House over a crescent moon with 14 stars. It has a plain edge with a letters -BANK NEGARA MALAYSIA. It has a diameter of 33.5 mm, weight 16.85 g and have Cupro-nickel composition.


Do you know how to differentiate London mint and local mint? You need to look carefully at the lettered edge-BANK NEGARA MALAYSIA, London mint is very neat, clear and clean U-shaped incused grooves. The coins minted by local Shah Alam factory are normally come with a thin lettering (the London Mint look fat). You need to compare the coin one by one and look at the difference between them. Just look for coins with a fat lettering.
1) London Mint with Clear and Neat Strikes on the Lettered edge.
2) London Mint, On the lettered edge,the word "Malaysia",the alphabet "M" are different from the local mint.The center -V of the "M" are taller on the London Mint than the local mint.
3) London Mint, The word "Malaysia",the alphabet "S" are different from the local mint.The "S" are taller on the London Mint than the local mint.
I have been searching for this information since 2005 when I found it for the first time. That is the only one I could find.


If you have any information regarding Malaysia coin story, please email me about it at lunaticg@gmail.com. Every information will get a free link to any of your website, sales page (eBay, Mudah.my etc) or even your email. I don't publish any story that had been written by someone before or your ads for selling your items. It will be easy if you can provide me with written story and clear pictures of the items. Any pictures publish in this blog, I will put lunaticg blog watermark to prevent others from plagiat or copy the story. Please tell me if you don't want me to publish your question or story in here.

Source: Dickson.

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NBR reply for anti semitic coins

The National Bank of Romania (NBR) on 19 August release a Press Statement for a reply regarding the letters received by the NBR from Mr. Radu Ioanid, director at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C., and from Mr. Alexandru Florian, executive director of the "Elie Wiesel" National Institute for the Study of Holocaust in Romania on the featuring of the former Prime Minister Miron Cristea in a numismatic issue of the NBR, Mugur Şteţ.

Picture by Reuters: A coin depicting Romania's late Patriarch Miron Cristea.

Here are the following statement following the analysis of an internal commission set up by the NBR Governor:
1. The NBR prepares every year a program of numismatic collector-coins issues. The program is set according to the NBR’s legal competences based on written proposals received in advance from the main institutions of the Romanian public life. In completing that program, the NBR consults with the Romanian Academy, the Romanian Orthodox Church, the Ministry of Culture, Denominations Department, other ministries, governmental and cultural institutions. The NBR’s numismatic issues are dedicated to personalities and events that shaped Romania’s history and had a decisive contribution to the development of the Romanian society, as well as its culture and civilization, and to outstanding personalities and events around the world that marked the universal culture and civilization.

2. In 2010, at the special request of the Romanian Patriarchate, in a bid to mark the double celebration of the 125th anniversary of the autocephaly of the Romanian Orthodox Church and the 85th anniversary since the establishment of the Romanian Patriarchate, the NBR launched a double numismatic issue including a gold coin and five silver coins depicting the following symbols of the Romanian Orthodox Church:
  • The Patriarchal Cathedral
  • The Holy Trinity icon
  • The Patriarchal Palace, an emblematic edifice for the history of Romania where the Union of 1859 was sealed
  • The Arms of the Romanian Patriarchate
  • All the Patriarchs - the heads of the Romanian Orthodox Church who passed away: Miron Cristea, Nicodim Munteanu, Justinian Marina, Iustin Moisescu, Teoctist Arăpaşu, in a chronological order.
3. The symbols chosen for the numismatic coins dedicated to the Romanian Orthodox Church’s double anniversary are deeply and firmly related to the history of this fundamental institution of the Romanian society, an institution which played a paramount role in defining and shaping Romania’s national and cultural identity. If we only refer to the Patriarchs of Romania, it is well-known and acknowledged that they played a crucial role in the developing of the Romanian Orthodox Church, being prominent figures that marked the history of the Church and Romania’s history. All these clearly reveal that the symbols chosen to mark the Romanian Orthodox Church’s double anniversary cannot be linked to the deeds specified in the above-mentioned letters.

4. Miron Cristea’s featuring in the above-mentioned numismatic issue may not and should not be related to his short activity as Romania’s Prime Minister, but is rather a natural part of the group of Patriarchs of the Romanian Orthodox Church, in a chronological order that may not be subject to dispute.

5. The NBR’s numismatic issues are in no way and by no means intended to hurt the feelings of any community, to prejudice the interests of specific groups or to convey xenophobic, racist or anti-Semite messages. In fact, the entire activity of the NBR is solely targeted at observing the values of humanity, democracy and multiculturalism.

Source: National Bank of Romania
The US ambassador in Romania on Friday slammed the central bank decision to go on selling a coin depicting an inter-war leader with anti-Semitic views despite criticism from the Holocaust Museum in Washington.

"I am very disappointed by the decision on the part of the National Bank of Romania to issue the coin commemorating Patriarch Miron Cristea", Mark Gitenstein said in a statement.

"Cristea's actions as Prime Minister - specifically his role in the revocation of citizenship for over 225,000 Romanian Jews - cannot be ignored," he added.


Source: AFP News.

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Antique box with treasure found

A family from Dronfield, Sheffield found an Antique box with treasure in old mahogany box that had been kicking around their house for 30 years. Opening the box with help from a locksmith revealed the drawers filled with 1500 coins, some dating back 2000 years. The collections are auctioned at the online website ELR Auctions so people from all over the world can take part on the auction. The auction house has been established in Sheffield since 1840.

Photo by BBC: One of the Roman coins found.

Auctioneers at ELR in Sheffield were surprised at how much they sold for. Rob Lea from ELR spoke to BBC Radio Sheffield after the auction in August 2010:

"I thought there may be some very good prices and there were. The odd one fell short but the vast majority sold for a lot more than we expected.

"The best price was a collection of Roman and ancient coins which we thought would go for £600-800, but they ended up going at £1700."

The collection included coins which were 2000 years old up to the 20th century. They had belonged to a collector who had passed them down to the people who found the box.

ELR put the auction online so that bidders from all over the world could take part:
"Lots of people bought over the Internet and the room was well attended."

Photo: Rob Lea, an auctioneer from ELR in Sheffield.

The collection was split into 50 lots for the auction:

"Different collectors want different types of coins," explains Rob Lea. "There are Roman collectors, people who want gold, silver, and so on. There were some very good coins among them.

"The sorts of people with an interest are coin collectors, traders who buy to sell them on and people who buy them to melt the gold and silver down.

"None of these fell into that bracket because they were all very interesting coins."

Photo by BBC: Some of the 1500 coins.

Rob Lea says it was an exciting moment when he first looked through the opened box:
"I was like a kid opening his Christmas presents. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to see but each drawer contained some real beauties, some really difficult finds. This doesn't happen all the time and to get the cream of the crop is quite exciting. I'm sure the owners will be very happy at the good news."

You can read more about the auction house at their official auction website-ELR Auctions.

Source: BBC News.

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US 100,000 dollars bill

Boston World's Fair of Money bring a very rare item for its exhibition, US 100,000 dollars bills, fabulous gold treasures dating back to the California Gold Rush era, rare coins including those tied to the first stirrings for America's independence and federal government securities worth more than a billion dollars. The money fair started on 10 August 2010 until 14 August 2010. More than 1,000 of the United States best coin dealers with the best inventory of coins, paper money, medals, tokens and other numismatic items gather in Boston for the largest coin show in the world.

Photo by AP: Kevin Brown displays a sheet of $100,000.

Photo by AP: US 100,000 dollars bill.

The sheets of America's largest denomination currency, the $100,000 bill, which is said to be worth about $1.6 million today. The gold certificate note, which bears President Woodrow Wilson's portrait, was used only for official transactions between Federal Reserve Banks. It was not circulated among the general public and cannot be legally held by currency note collectors.

"The reaction from kids to grandparents is universally the same: `Wow, that's a lot of money.' So, they wouldn't mind having it," Kevin Brown, manager in the marketing division of the U.S. Treasury Department's Bureau of Engraving and Printing, said while holding the $100,000 bills.

Photo by AP: Gold Ingot from SS Central Amerika.

The SS Central America, which sank in a 1857 hurricane off the coast of North Carolina with more than 400 passengers and 30,000 pounds of gold from the California Gold Rush, made its inaugural appearance in Boston. The exhibit features more than $10 million in gold treasure recovered from the ship, also known as The Ship of Gold.

The show, which already ends last week, includes a comprehensive collection of U.S. paper money that has never before been exhibited. It has coins from the Mexican War of Independence and Mexican Revolution that are being seen outside of Mexico for the first time since 1970. There also are rare coins worth several million dollars. Other historic items include one of the few known surviving copies of the Declaration of Independence printed in Boston circa July 17, 1776, and silver spoons crafted by Paul Revere.

Photo by AP: Boston World's Fair of Money.

"The economic conditions have not diminished the demand for material from the standpoint of collectors who seek and desire to own the rare and exquisite pieces," said Larry Shepherd, president of the Colorado Springs, Colo. based American Numismatic Association.

"Demand also has been fed by rich people who are increasingly willing to store some of their wealth in rare coins with a proven history of gaining value after traditional investments vehicles, including real estate and the stock and bond markets, dipped to woeful levels during the economic crisis," Shepherd said.

You can read more about this even by visiting World's Fair of Money official website.

Source: Associated Press.

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Kelantan Dinar sell like hot cake

As reported by Bernama yesterday, Kelantan gold dinar and silver dirham sells like hot cake in Kelantan. Every Kelantanese from all walks of life crowded the Ar-Rahn Islamic Mortgage Centre, looking for that item. Maybe because poeple were afraid that federal government will make any move that will ban Kelantan government's new currency. A survey by Bernama found that most of them wanted to buy the dinar and dirham coins to be used as accessories, like lockets, and others simply wanted to keep them as personal collections.


One of them, Zainun Che Aziz, 60, said the dinar was the latest trend for gold items in the market.

"Gold comes in various forms and sizes in the market. The latest is in the form of dinar. I have to buy it is unique and I want to use them as lockets for my grand-daughter. It will be a loss if I don't get it now. Who knows, suddenly they stop selling the dinar," she told Bernama here.

Meanwhile, the operations manager of the Kota Baharu 2 Ar-Rahn, Siti Azian Ibrahim, said a total of 344 pieces of dirham and 50 pieces of dinar were offered for sale to the public today.

"We did not expect to get good response considering the initial feedback where many were against the use of the dinar in our daily life. However, when the currency is opened for sale to the public today, the people are keen to buy the dinar to be used to make jewellery like lockets and bracelets," she added.

Siti Azian said the dinar came in five sizes and sold based on the current market price of gold where the half dinar could be bought for RM296, one dinar (RM592), two dinar (RM1,184), five dinar (RM2,960) and eight dinar (RM4,736).

"The value for the dirham is RM13 for each dirham," she added.

She said the dinar was made from high quality gold normally used for making gold jewellery.

Yesterday was the first day the dinar and dirham are sold to the public. You can go to their official website http://islamicmint.com.my/ to purchase the coins which are introduced as an alternative currency for the people in Kelantan by the state government or going to any Ar-Rahn centres.

Source: Bernama.

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Bank Islam: Only Pawn service for Dinar

Yesterday, Bank Islam response to a statement by Kelantan Menteri Besar, Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat that the bank has agreed to use the gold dinar and silver dirham in its transaction. Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd, via its unit, Farihan Corp, only offers a custodian service for the dinar gold and Silver dirham currency at its Ar-Rahnu premises in Kota Baharu and Pasir Puteh. In a statement on Tuesday, the bank said pawning of the dinar or dirham currency was also accepted from the currency owner, whether from the Kelantan Golden Trade Sdn Bhd or the public.

Photo by Malaysia Star: New Dinar and Dirham Kelantan

"Currently, the bank does not provide gold saving service as well as distribution of dinar or dirham currency in any form of transactions," it said.

The coins came into circulation kast Thursday and can be purchased at various locations in Kelantan. The gold dinar and silver dirham is managed by Kelantan Gold Trade (KGT), a subsidiary of Kelantan Mentri Besar Incorporated (PMBK). Nik Abdul Aziz said 1,000 traders so far had agreed to use the currency in their transactions besides Tabung Haji and Bank Islam Malaysia. The Kelantan state government had issued RM2 million worth of the gold dinar and silver dirham coins for the public to use as an alternative currency at about 1,000 shops in the state.

Malaysia Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak on Saturday commenting that only Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) can issue currency that is legal tender. Some Malaysian forum also discussing about how this new currency will be effecting Malaysia economies. People will start buying dinar and ringgit value will be dropping. Some Malaysia Chinese also feels that they don't like dinar because it is an Islamic currency. Whatever it is, Gold is far much better then fiat money.

Source: Bernama, Malaysia Star.

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Who is on Malaysia Banknote?

Do you know who is on Malaysia Banknote? Many people mistaken that picture with Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia first prime minister. The guy on Malaysia notes is Tuanku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia first Yang di-Pertuan Agong or Supreme head of state. Tuanku Abdul Rahman was elected first Yang di-Pertuan Agong or Paramount Ruler of independent Malaya on 3 August 1957 for a five year term by eight votes to one, defeating the more senior Sultan Abu Bakar of Pahang. Tuanku Abdul Rahman was installed as the first Yang di-Pertuan Agong of independent Malaya on 13 September 1957 at the throne room of the Istana Negara. He had been the ruler of Negeri Sembilan for 24 years before being elected as the first Yang di-Pertuan Agong.



Colonel Paduka Sri Sir Tuanku Abdul Rahman ibni Almarhum Tuanku Muhammad, GCMG (24 August 1895 – 1 April 1960) was the first Supreme Head of State (Yang di-Pertuan Agong) of the Federation of Malaya, eighth Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Seri Menanti and second Yang di-Pertuan Besar of modern Negeri Sembilan. Born Tunku Abdul Rahman at Seri Menanti, he was the second son of Tuanku Muhammad ibni Almarhum Tuanku Antah, first Yang di-Pertuan Besar of modern Negeri Sembilan and seventh Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Seri Menanti (1888-1933) by his consort Tunku Puan Chik.

Tuanku Abdul Rahman received his primary education at the Jempol Malay School, going on to the Malay College between 1907 and 1914. He worked at the Federal Secretariat in Kuala Lumpur for a period of one year before being appointed Assistant Collector of Land Revenue in Seremban. He served in the Malayan Volunteer Infantry as a Second Lieutenant, to be promoted Lieutenant in 1918. On the death of his elder brother, Tunku Abdul Aziz, in 1917, he was groomed as heir to the throne and received the title of Tunku Muda Serting.

Tuanku Abdul Rahman was later appointed as Assistant Malay Officer in Klang before being transferred to Sepang. He was then assigned to work in Ulu Selangor as Assistant Collector of Land Revenue. As a result of his perseverance and diligence, he was promoted to Assistant District Officer. The turning point of his career was in 1925, when he served for a short period in the Kuala Lumpur Supreme Court.


In 1925, he accompanied his father, who was then the ruler of Negeri Sembilan, on a trip to the United Kingdom for the British Empire Exhibition in Wembley and to visit His Majesty King George V. During the journey to the United Kingdom, he decided that he wanted to study law. With the approval of his father Tuanku Muhammad, Tuanku Abdul Rahman stayed in the United Kingdom until he completed his studies and received a degree in law.

He stayed on to qualify as a barrister from Inner Temple. Three years later, he was admitted to the bar. In London, he was elected first President of the Kesatuan Melayu United Kingdom, one of the earliest Malay nationalist groups. Upon returning to Malaya in December 1928, he served in the Malayan Civil Service in various parts of the country. For the first few years, he worked hard until he became a Magistrate. Subsequently, he was appointed District Officer.

Tuanku Abdul Rahman married four times:
  • In 1919 to Dulcie Campbell, a Eurasian nurse who embraced Islam as Cik Maimunah (divorced).
  • In 1920 to Tunku Maharun binti Tunku Mambang, a member of the Negeri Sembilan royal family (divorced).
  • In 1929 to Tunku Kurshiah binti Tunku Besar Burhanuddin, a cousin, who became first Raja Permaisuri Agong or Queen of Malaya.
  • In 1948 to Tunku Zaidah binti Tunku Zakaria (1922-present), another cousin.
Tuanku Abdul Rahman has three sons and five daughters. His second wife, HRH Tuanku Maharum gave birth first to a boy, HRH Tuanku Munawir, the ninth Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan. Cik Engku Maimunah, his first wife, gave birth to two boys and two girls. The eldest is HRH Tunku Aidah. HRH Tuanku Jaafar is his second son and the tenth Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan.

Two of his children succeeded him as Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan:
  • Tuanku Munawir (son of Tunku Maharun), who reigned 1960-1967.
  • Tuanku Jaafar (son of Dulcie Campbell), who succeeded his brother in 1967 and reigned till 27 December 2008.
As Malay rulers do not traditionally possess crowns, he was installed by kissing the royal kris of state (keris kerajaan) to the beat of the nobat, a tradition which has been followed by every Yang di-Pertuan Agong since. In honour of Tuanku Abdul Rahman, all subsequent Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia have also used the headdress Dendam Tak Sudah (literally Unending Revenge), the fashion employed in Negeri Sembilan.


Tuanku Abdul Rahman died in his sleep at Istana Negara in Kuala Lumpur in the early morning of 1 April 1960. The lying in state was held at the Banquet Hall of the Istana Negara. On 2 April 1960, a state funeral procession was held in Kuala Lumpur, whereupon the teak coffin of His Late Majesty was then taken by train to Seremban and later by hearse to the Istana Besar, Seri Menanti. He was buried at the Royal Mausoleum in Seri Menanti, Negeri Sembilan on 5 April 1960.

Source: Wikipedia, Parlimen.gov.my, royalark.net.

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De La Rue chief quits

As reported by BBC News, the chief executive of banknote printer De La Rue has quit after the firm said sales would be affected by quality problems, sending its shares down 8.4%. The UK company has yet to name a replacement for James Hussey, who only took over the top job last year. De La Rue said sales in both 2010 and 2011 would be "materially lower" after it halted production at a paper factory for failing to meet quality standards. De La Rue prints notes for the Bank of England and 150 other countries.

Photo by BBC News: Mr. James Hussey.

However, it said currency printing would be unaffected by the problems. The paper factory in question is located in Hampshire, where the company also has its headquarters. Production at the facility was suspended on 21 July. Shares in the firm were down 66.5 pence or 8.4% to 727.5p in afternoon trading in London. They had been as much as 13% lower earlier in the day.

De La Rue said in a statement that Mr Hussey believed "he must take responsibility" for the production problems. It added: "The company continues to look into these irregularities in one of its paper production facilities, which the board considers to be of a serious nature." It said the problems related to the testing of paper quality and did not involve any issue with either the physical security of the facility, or that of the paper produced.

Analyst Paul Jones of Panmure Gordon said he remained "concerned that the reputational damage may be ongoing both operationally and in stock market terms".

Mr Hussey, 48, had worked for De La Rue for 25 years in total, including four years as head of the security paper and print division at the centre of the current quality problems. In addition to banknotes, the firm produces passports, and the holograms fitted to most bank and credit cards. It also makes cash sorting machines and authentication labels. The company employs about 4,000 people across 24 countries.

Source: BBC News

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Kelantan dinar not legal tender

Only Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) can issue currency that is legal tender, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak. Commenting on the Kelantan government's introduction of gold dinar and silver dirham as an alternative currency in the state, Najib said BNM would be looking into the matter to see if any laws had been broken. Friday, when launching the Syariah currency, Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat had said the state would strive to expand the use of the gold dinar and silver dirham in all transactions, including paying civil servants' remuneration.

Photo by Malaysia NST: Ruzaini Yaakub showing the Dinar and Dirham.

"Follow the laws of the country, only Bank Negara is authorised to issue currency that is legal tender," he told reporters after handing over Ramadan aid to mosque and surau from the Pekan parliamentary constituency here Saturday. However, he said there were still many technicalities that had to be addressed by the state government over the use of the currency.

Bank Negara Malaysia giving a statement on front page of today New Straits Times said the ringgit is the only currency that is the legal tender for payment of goods and services in the country.

"Only Bank Negara has the right under the law to issue currency in Malaysia,” it told the New Straits Times in a statement yesterday.

It was responding to a move by the Kelantan state government on Thursday to make Islamic gold dinar and silver dirham an alternative currency in the state. Menteri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat had said the move was not against the law as it followed the central bank’s regulations.

International Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed said the statement by Kelantan Menteri Besar Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat that the dinar and dirham would be used as alternative currencies clearly breached Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) regulations.

"I advise the Kelantan government not to do so (introduce regulations) as it likes. Whatever it wants to do must be discussed, otherwise members of the public will be confused over the jurisdiction of the Federal and State governments.

"Matters concerning currency comes under the jurisdiction of the Federal government, and not the state government, and what had been done clearly breached the country's law. We have the constitution and regulations," he told reporters after chairing the meeting of the Kelantan Umno Liaison Body, here Saturday.

Source: Bernama, New Straits Times.

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BNM say no to Kelantan Dinar?

Kelantan state government has issued a gold dinar and silver dirham on Thursday and plans to give employees the option of receiving part of their salary in this currency, as well as introduce gold bars for large investments. Muslim alms can also be paid with the coins. Malaysia Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Dr Awang Adek Hussin in commenting on the move was reported to have said that under the law, currency matters came under the purview of the federal government and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). He added that the Finance Ministry and BNM would be studying the action that could be taken regarding the matter.

Photo by Malaysia Star: New Dinar and Dirham Kelantan

The gold dinar was the official currency of Muslim societies for centuries. The value of the coins used in Kelantan can fluctuate according to market prices, but officials say it remains a better alternative to currency affected by the U.S. dollar and other foreign currency. Kelantan authorities also say the use of such coins is encouraged in the Quran. State officials have produced coins worth about $630,000 for use at about 1,000 outlets in Kelantan's capital, said Nik Mahani Mohamad, executive director of Kelantan Golden Trade, which mints the coins.

"It's a great, great moment for Muslims," Nik Mahani said. "We are providing an alternative means for the people to trade with."

The coins came into circulation Thursday and can be purchased at various locations in Kelantan. Their worth is currently about US$180 per dinar and US$4 per dirham. But the plan hit a snag when Malaysia's central bank said in a statement later Friday that the ringgit remained the only currency that is the legal tender for payment of goods and services in Malaysia. The bank said it has the sole right under the law to issue currency in Malaysia. It was not immediately clear how the bank planned to block the use of the coins for transactions.

Photo by World Islamic Mint: 8 Dinars


The Kelantan Government denied that its gold dinar and silver dirham will be made a second currency in the state. State Economic Planning, Finance and Welfare Committee chairman Datuk Husam Musa said the syariah currency instead was seen as an alternative for use in the barter trade system.

"Several news report about the dinar being Kelantan's second currency are not accurate and have caused confusion. I do not see why this issue has to be blown up following Kelantan introducing the use of the dinar, as it has been around since the beginning of Islam," he told reporters here.

The gold dinar and silver dirham is managed by Kelantan Gold Trade (KGT), a subsidiary of Kelantan Mentri Besar Incorporated (PMBK). In a symbolic gesture, Nik Abdul Aziz handed over a dinar gold to PMBK chief executive officer Mustapha Salleh as payment of salaries to PMBK employees for the month. Nik Abdul Aziz said 1,000 traders so far had agreed to use the currency in their transactions besides Tabung Haji and Bank Islam Malaysia.

Photo by World Islamic Mint: 10 Dirham

I support the move on using Gold Dinar and Silver Dirham as a form of salaries payment. I just cannot accept that this good thing been politicize. You can read more at their official website World Islamic Mint. I am not sure who is saying no to this gold coin; most international news says it is BNM but from what I read in Bernama, it is by Deputy Finance Minister.

Source: Bernama, AFP, Malaysian Star.

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2,200 old gold coin found in Israel

Archaeologists in Israel say they have uncovered the heaviest and most valuable gold coin ever found in Israel. The 2,200-year-old coin weighs an ounce (28 grams) and was found at the Tel Kedesh site near the Lebanon border on 22 June 2010, according to Wednesday's statement from the antiquities authority. It said this coin is six times the weight of most others from that era.

Donald Ariel, head of the antiquities authority coin department, said the coin dates back to the rule of the Iraq-based Seleucid Empire, though it was minted by the rival Egyptian Ptolemies. Ariel said the coin's image may represent Cleopatra I, wife of Ptolemy V. It is only the second gold Ptolemaic coin ever found in Israel. The first weighed just two grams (0.07 ounces).

"The coin is beautiful and in excellent preservation. It is the heaviest gold coin with the highest contemporary value of any coin ever found in an excavation in Israel," Dr Donald T. Ariel, head of the authority's coin department, said in a statement.


The coin weighs almost one ounce (27.71 grams), whereas most ancient gold coins weighed 4.5 grams, he added. It was minted in Alexandria, Egypt during the reign of Ptolemy V in 191 BC and bears the name of the wife of Ptolemy II, Arsinoe Philadephus (II).The coin was uncovered at a site at Tel Kedesh near the border with Lebanon by a team of American archaeologists from the universities of Michigan and Minnesota.

"This extraordinary coin was apparently not in popular or commercial use, but had a symbolic function," Ariel said.

"The coin may have had a ceremonial function related to a festival in honour of Queen Arsinoe, who was deified in her lifetime."

Excavations at Tel Kedesh began in 1997 and have uncovered remains of a large Persian-Hellenistic building, complete with reception halls, dining facilities, store rooms and archive, the antiquities authority said.

Source: Associated Press.

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MNS Auction 145 invitation

This is an announcement to all Malaysia Numismatic Society (MNS) members,you are invited to contribute coins and bank notes in this coming auction. The authentication will be held on 21-08-2010. You may contact Mr. Lawrence at 012-3710951 for more details. MNS Auction No.145 will be held on end of September 2010. The Auction normally will be held at Jabatan Muzium Malaysia, Muzium Negara, Jalan Petalawati, 50480 Kuala Lumpur. There is a small hall in there where this auction normally held by MNS.

Photo: Entrance to Jabatan Muzium Malaysia.


Photo: Item viewing session for MNS Auction 143.

This auction only for members of MNS only. You can read about their membership in here: Malaysia Numismatic Society membership. Entrance fee for ordinary member is RM20.oo and RM40.00 for annual subscription fee. Their coin auction is for member only. Any numismatist over 12 years but below the age of 18 and resident in Malaysia may apply to be a Junior Member. The Entrance Fee for Junior Members is RM5.00 and Annual Subscription is RM15.00. Kindly download the Application Form and send it to the Society either via post, fax or e-mail for approval.

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