2003 Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace (LIMA) Proof Set Of 3

***And from under the staircase of a very low-profile collector, here is the nothing-to-shout-about Set of 3 Proof Coins in a box issued in 2003 for the Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace Show.

These proof coins come in a rather odd-shaped plastic-like box, and of course, with the tiny 8.6gm pure gold coin as its centre piece.

The gold coin should be worth around RM1,500 today, based on its weight vis-a-vis the current spot gold price & as such, this Set of 3 should be worth around RM2,000 to RM2,400, as after all, only the gold coin has value as the other 2 pieces in the form of silver & copper-nickel are mere fillers.

My collector friend is trying to sell this set to me at a ridiculous price of RM3,500, but I am not biting.

Definitely, something that's not worth gloating about. The best thing to gloat about is having a low-numbered Replacement banknote & that's really my cup of tea, I suppose.

Malaysia 2003 Proof Set Of 3 Islamic Summit Conference (OIC)

***And from the store-room of my former dormitory mate, here comes the seldom-seen Proof Set Of 3 coins issued 8 years back commemorating the 10th Session Of The Islamic Summit Conference, with, of course, the 8.6gm Proof gold coin as its pivotal centre piece.

Apparently, only 250 boxes were issued for this set by the, then, Royal Mint Of Malaysia, and by the way, where have they all gone now as this set is now rarely seen?

Don't tell us that the delegates of the conference had taken them back to the countries where they came from!

With the recent surge in prices for everthing that is Proof & comes with a box & a cert, the open market value for this elusive Set Of 3 must also have shot up, if one were to be invited to take a wild guess....

Malaysia 1983 10 Sen Coin Brilliant Uncirculated

***And from the monetary vault of low-profile Datuk Raymond Chang, here comes the common Malaysian 10 Sen coin dated 1983 but in golden-toned lustrous Brilliant Uncirculated condition.

Vis-a-vis the 1971 10 Sen coin issue, the 1983 one seems to belong to the usual big mintage group but trying to look for a nicely struck one in BU condition is not easy, esp. if it carries a golden lustrous patina. Most, if not all of the 1971 10 Sen coins are in BU condition; try looking for a few in VF condition and see, if you can get any.
The motto among many Pakar Numis' today seems to be to accumulate as many as possible the nice BU Parliament Series. It's not that these Pakar Numis' want to ignore the Hibiscus series but how many of these Hibiscus coins are actually in BU condition, tell me?

Malaya & British Borneo 1961 $10 Buffalo Note Choice Uncirculated

***What a gorgeous note in Choice Uncirculated condition in the form of this ever-popular & very popularly known Buffalo Note from British Malaya!

Definitely a very fresh looking buffalo rather than the overworked tired-looking ones that one sees so often being offered for sale online.

This banknote actually is the consecutive piece to another one already featured over here a month or two ago.

And this gorgeous note is now on the way to the US so that PMG can do its usual good job by independently and professionally grading this note, & I am very cocksure that this note will come back graded at least with PMG 66 EPQ, no matter how strict PMG grading criteria will be as this is a banknote a few notches up against many others in terms of freshness, sharpness of the corners & the exceptional paper quality..........

Malaysia 2011 $1 ZAC Replacement Banknotes Uncirculated

***This is a consecutive pair of the RM1 ZAC Replacement banknotes which I believe were issued this year and which I have managed to buy during my recent trip down south to Singapore, while attending the recent Singapore's Monetarium auction.

As I don't have a piece of this 'rare' Replacement issue I thought acquiring them would be a good idea as after all, I was an underbidder through & through at the Monetarium Auction as my pockets weren't enough deep enough vis-a-vis the big players present there.

Yes, I felt like a squeezed anchovy all the way through.

Thus, getting these 2 notes back home was some sort like the 4D's Consolation prize, I suppose.

But the freaking question running through the back of my mind for these past several nights is will there be a ZAD Replacement, or better still, why not, a ZAE?! The more, the merrier, I suppose!

Malaysia 1981 50 Cents Coin Brilliant Uncirculated

***Never have I seen a 50 Sen coin from the Parliamant Series as lustrous and as beautifully struck as this one from the year of 1981.

This is definitely what all Pakar Numis' will label as a Choice BU type of coin, so lustrous, very few or hardly any bagmarks & so well & sharply struck, despite the fast passage of 30 years.

And of course, that can't be said for the current Hibiscus Series as coins from this series seem to be poorly struck, perhaps due to worn-out dies or even lousy planchets & they seem 'invaded' with lots of bagmarks.

As such, there is a feeling that coins from the Hibiscus Series that exhibit the traits of BU condition would command very high prices in the numis market in the not too distant future.

Actually, that's not what I have opined. That's the expresed opinion of a few Pakar Numis' during our recent alfresco tea-tarik session. And this speculation should hold water as after all they came from the mouths of an esteemed group of numis folks.

Malaysia 1986 $20 Banknotes Last Prefix TH Uncirculated

***As most collectors are aware, the $20 deno will be making a comeback next year & apparently, this time, it will be in yellow color, compared to the previous brown color.
The $20 banknotes signed by Jaffar Hussein have always been underpriced & 2 years ago was selling for just around RM40 a piece in UNC condition, perhaps, due to slavish following of the numismatic catalogues which for one reason or another assigned a low reference price to this issue even though the total quantity printed for this issue was less than half that of its predecessor of the same denomination.
But, since this year, this $20 banknote has been on the uptrend and that too, depends on its prefixes.
Its TH prefix commands the highest price as only less than 2 million pieces were printed & those in Choice UNC mostly, as you may notice, bear the Serial NOs starting with TH 149xxxx.
Featured today is the seldom yet seen in Choice UNC condition with the serial numbers that start with TH05xxxxx.
Many numis Smart Alecs are predicting that this TH prefixed banknote will hit way above the RM300 mark by next year.
They should be correct with their guess or rather prediction I suppose, as after all, these are the Smart Alecs who should be in-the-know compared to a layman like, who else, but yours truly.