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think of! Let''s take a brief look at these five areas, and how cameo''s rate in relation to other U.S. coinage. There are platinum coins few coins in numismatics as attractive as a cameo proof. while some may disagree with this statement, there is no disputing the opinions of literally thousands of collectors and dealers already familiar with this coinage. proof coins coins themselves are minted specifically for collectors. as such, they have always represented the state-of-the-art in minting techniques. the mint has always gone to considerable trouble to produce these coins. proof dies are highly polished and buffed until the surfaces possess a mirror-like perfection. planchets go through extra steps in their preparation, until they too possess a brighter, satiny appearance. traditionally, proof planchets have been hand-fed into the die, and have always been double struck, under higher pressures than business strikes, to bring out every possible detail. once struck, the coins are handled individually so as not to abrade with other coins, as business strikes normally would. cameo proofs were the very earliest strikes off new proof dies. during certain periods in the history of the mint, part of the die preparation process toned platinum in iridescent shades of purple, plum, burgundy, green, orange, gold.....virtually every color of the rainbow, can sometimes be found on a single coin! the design of the franklin half, with the broad expanse of franklin''s bust on the obverse, and the liberty bell on the reverse, is an easy target for bagmarks or abrasion. a pristine franklin half, with a smooth, unblemished cheek of franklin on the obverse, and equally pristine liberty bell on the reverse, is a truly beautiful coin. on the other hand, the simplicity of these surfaces also serves to magnify, or hilight, the smallest bagmark! the cheek of franklin & the liberty bell make easy targets. the quality of the typical uncirculated franklin roll is quite low, with coins all 20 coins usually grading between ms 60 and ms 63. by comparison, if one had the good fortune to acquire an original roll of uncirculated walking platinum liberty half dollars (the series immediately preceding the franklins, minted from 1916-1947) the general quality of the coins would likely coins be quite high, with most coins grading ms 64 - ms 65. what about any hordes of gem bu franklins that platinum have yet coins to surface? original unsearched bags of bu franklins? the last bag
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