The E-Sylum:  Volume 9, Number 14, April 2, 2006, Article 32

DUTCH-MADE ISRAELI ERROR COINS

Leon Worden writes: "Last week you asked about a Dutch-made
Israeli coin error. You cite a report about a year-ago delivery
of 9.5 million 1 shekel coins, of which 40 percent were faulty.
There must have been two error coins made at roughly the same
time, because a story by Pinchas Bar-Zeev of Tel Aviv in the
July-August 2005 issue of The Shekel (the journal of the American
Israel Numismatic Association) chronicles a commemorative
"error shekel" with a reported mintage limit of only 1,500
pieces.  The coin is inscribed in English, Hebrew and Arabic.
The error was in Arabic script.

The coin in Bar-Zeev's story was a "miniaturized version" of a
previously issued "Jacob and Rachel" 1 New Shekel gold coin,
released in late 2004 and/or early 2005. An excerpt: "(A)
collector with a good knowledge of written Arabic and very
keen eyes noticed that the miniscule Arabic word ISRA'IL was
... written incorrectly, and that the middle letter A was
completely missing. Not just some freak die flaw" (note: the
letter is formed by a small, relatively straight line), "but
a real spelling error by either designers or engravers had
quietly slipped through all quality control checkpoints of all
parties involved: the Royal Netherlands Mint, the Bank of Israel
and the Israel Government Coins & Medals Corporation. The same
collector informed the IGCMC of the blunder, who [sic] in turn
interrupted the coin's sales at its stores and franchise outlets
all over Israel and recalled all outstanding stocks."

According to Bar-Zeev's story, the Dutch mint was instructed to
manufacture new coins from new, corrected dies. "The first
'corrected' coins reached the Israeli collectors market (in)
early April 2005, and a few Israeli numismatists ... are now
lucky and proud owners of a set of 'Jacob and Rachel' miniature
gold coins: one error variety plus one 'corrected'
version."

  Wayne Homren, Editor

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