Expert: Brad Swain - 5/30/2007

Question
My step-grandfather gave me some foreign coins and I was wondering if you could give me some information about them.  I have included descriptions for the 13 coins.  One of the numbers is for the amount shown on the coin and some of them had a letter.

1) The Bank of Korea, 10, 1971, building on front
2) Repubblica Italiana, 5, 1952, R, dolphin picture and another picture that might be of the country
3) The Bank of Korea, 5, 1968, ship on front
4) Bank Deutscher Länder, 1949, 10 Pfennig, D
5) Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 1950, 10 Pfennig, D
6) Token: Sitting Bull, the Sioux Tribe, buffalo picture 7) Republik Terreich, 1957, 2 Groschen (?), small hole
8) oriental, man with a hat and beard, 100, 1973
9) No English words, possibly Russian, a man with glasses, he has three metals on his jacket, the back looks like a coat of arms
10) Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 1966, 5 Pfennig, D
11) Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 1950, 10 Pfennig, D (?) 12) Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 1969, 10 Pfennig, F
13) Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 1950, 5 Pfennig, S (?)

Answer
Hi Cory, Collector value of a coin depends on date, mint mark (if any), number minted and condition of a coin, including amount of wear, any dents, scratches or cleaning as well as collector demand for it.
1) South Korea, 10 Won, 1971, 8th century temple on front
2) Repubblica Italiana, 5 Lire, 1952, R (Rome), dolphin picture and picture of a boat rudder
3) S.Korea, 5 Won, 1968, 'Turtle' boat on front
4) West Germany, 1949, 10 Pfennig, D (Munich)
5) West Germany, 1950, 10 Pfennig, D (Munich)
6) Token: Sitting Bull, the Sioux Tribe, buffalo picture ??
If it has no denomination on it then it is a medal or token and not a coin. Many medals are often issued at inflated prices by companies that quickly disappear after a quick profit and any residual value is usually way less than the issue price and worth is based on the precious medal content and collector demand, if any. Usually no more info is able to be found. You may find similar pieces on Ebay.com for comparison.
7) Austria, 1957, 2 Groschen, small hole makes it worthless
8) South Korea, Admiral Yi Soon-Shin, 100 Won, 1973
9) Thailand, King Adulyadej (1946-)
10) West Germany, 1966, 5 Pfennig, D (Munich)
11) West Germany, 1950, 10 Pfennig, D (Munich)
12) West Germany, 1969, 10 Pfennig, F (Stuttgart)
13) West Germany, 1950, 5 Pfennig, G (Karlsruhe)
All these are fairly common (worth less than a dollar). You can search Google.com online for more info with these clues or you might also try a library for a copy of the Standard Catalog of World Coins for pictures, values and lots more interesting info, a must have for a world coin collector. I'll be glad to help further if needed.
Brad