Fake Coin 911: I have put together these tips and recommendations in order to help our clients and collectors in general avoid counterfeits, whether they are fake Spanish colonial cobs, or ancient forgeries, or reproductions of any other sort... Of course these are not the commandments for the numismatic collector, but perhaps they will help!  

 

* This following list applies especially to coins posted on a website or listed in eBay auctions. If you add to these rules a little bit of common sense, the combination will certainly boost your protection a lot!

1) Buy only from sellers who guarantee the authenticity of the pieces they sell.

( This will save you a lot of headaches. Numismatics is not an infallible science. Mistakes can be and are made even by experts, so having a guarantee is a very good idea. )

2) Be wary of very "rare" coins being sold for lower than the average price for a common coin of the same type.  

( Being cheap can cost you a lot! This is a trait that varies with each person, and something that is hard to change, but when you get your fingers burned once or twice, you will learn very quickly)

3) Always ask an expert about a coin you would like to buy.

( Don't think you are an expert because you’ve already bought 20 coins. Don’t be afraid to ask an expert. Be willing to learn from advanced collectors and dealers. Always be patient )

4) The Golden Rule on eBay:  avoid private auctions from sellers who also keep their feedback private.

( This could mean that the seller wants to hide the bidders' IDs, so that they can't be warned about the questionable items they bidding on.)

5) Do your homework. Research the pieces you would like to purchase or bid on BEFORE you buy.

 ( If you want to get serious about collecting, you need to study. There is no other way to avoid fakes and get the best experience out of your hobby. Read and study. Going to Coin Shows will also help to train your eye. And remember, you do not need to go to shows to buy coins. You can go just for learning purposes. Leave the checkbook at home! )

6) If you don't know the seller, always ask for references and check the seller’s feedback.

(  Ask, ask, and ask, if you don't know. It is always a good idea to ask for a phone number and have a conversation. Don’t be shy about asking for credentials and references. Legitimate sellers have them.)

8) Do not do business with a seller that seems suspicious to you. Ask about his numismatic background and credentials. If the answers do not relieve your suspicions, don’t do business with him.

( There is no rush in buying a coin. Take your time and look for the right person. Do not think that you won't be able to find a similar coin. If you really know whether a coin is a rarity, you are an already advanced collector and you shouldn’t have a problem. But if you don't know, please take it easy! )

9) Never pay for coins using services such as Western Union or MoneyGram.

( This is unsafe when paying someone you do not know. What recourse do you have if the seller does not deliver as promised? These forms of payment should not be demanded by someone the buyer doesn't know. )

10) Always take good pictures of your coins and share them with a dealer or expert if you are not sure about your purchase.

( Keep your records organized. This way you can easily identify your coins, and by sharing the pictures and purchase information, determine if you have made any mistakes.)

11) Become familiar with the type of coin you are buying.  Know the background, dates, variations, metals, etc .

(  Know the item you're buying. Look in the standard reference books. Compare and ask questions. Again, if you want to collect coins, you better start buying catalogs and books. Enjoying the hobby of numismatics involves not only owning some coins but also studying and learning about your coins. ) 

12) The term "As Is" or similar language should be used only to describe condition.

( It must never be used to qualify, and in effect void, a guarantee of authenticity.  Read the description carefully. Read it two or three times before you buy. Sometimes tricky phrases you miss will cost you a lot. )

13) When buying from a seller you don't know well, always get insurance and request tracking information to protect yourself.  

( Pay a little more to wait without worries. It is a very good idea to request a delivery confirmation or a tracking number along with insurance. )

14) Cobs were hand struck on planchets that vary almost infinitely in size and shape. No two cobs are ever exactly alike.

( This applies to some ancient coins too, although ancient coin planchets were often much more uniform than cobs.)

15) Always look carefully at the surface of the coin. Look for marks or pits that should not be on an authentic coin or that show alterations done to the coin.

( These features are sometimes caused by air created during casting. On some pieces these features are normal, given the manner and the time the coin was minted. Always try to become familiar with the type of coins you are buying.)

16) Your best numismatic investments will always be books, magazines, auction catalogs, and newsletters.

( First buy the book, then the coin. Invest in your education. Buy books, auction catalogs, and newsletters. )

17) Remember that a coin has three sides. Look on the edge for suspicious features. Authentic coins won’t have a casting bite or some kind of protuberance at one or two points on the edge.

( These protuberances mark areas that were used as paths for putting liquid metal into the mold. Sometimes these marks are polished or partially filed. Always use a 10x Loupe.  )  SEE SAMPLE

18) Another red flag is a seam around the edge of the coin, where the two sides of a mold were joined.

( With mold waxing-cast, however,  these telltale seams can be avoided. This is really hard to detect from a picture, but at least you now know where to look when you get the coin. )

19) This tip is for eBay buyers: always verify that a Second Chance Offers is real

(  If you receive an email with a Second Chance Offer for an item you recently bid on, always check your “My Messages” inbox, located on your “My eBay” home page. If the offer is not repeated there, it is not authentic. )

20 ) Again, only buy coins from  knowledgeable and reputable sources. 

( If you follow this last tip, you probably don't have to worry about the rest! )

IMPORTANT: HOW TO REPORT A FAKE? WHAT TO DO?

In a case of fraud please use the following links and contact the proper authorities, these links will be the most helpful to follow in most of the cases.

IC3  The Internet Crime Complaint Center is a partnership between Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) & National White Collar Crime Center

COINAF.ORG  Coalition of Numismatist against Fraud (easy way to report in one generic FORM)

FTC  Federal Trade Commission (works to enforce federal consumer protection laws that prevent deception and unfair business)

U.S. Postal Inspection Service  (Fraud directly linked with the U.S. mail it will be handled here)

 

 

Extra tips:

Excellent tip sent by Ernie Richards Jr.   EN RADA Publications  (Gracias Ernesto)

 

Historic Real Treasures Authentic Shipwreck and Ancient Coins A) Spanish Colonial Cobs:

 Weight is a very good indicator for real vs. bogus coins. Gold and silver are very dense metals used in Spanish colonial coins; the base metals used in fakes are not so.

 If, when the buyer gets the item in his hand, he weighs the piece and it is more than 10% off what it should be...without showing extreme sea wear, then it should be considered suspicious. Por ejemplo, Spanish colonial 8s --gold or silver-- should weigh about 27.3 grams, the lesser denominations: 4s, half that; 2s, one-quarter, and 1s, one-eighth of the 27.3. Cast pieces shrink after cooling and, therefore, weigh less than a real coin which is struck from pre-weighed metal. 

 

Summarized points to keep handy by Steve Niederloh. Celator’s Art Ancient Coins (Gracias Steve)

 

Historic Real Treasures Authentic Shipwreck and Ancient Coins B) Detecting Ancient Counterfeits:
To a new collector of ancient coins, one of the most frequently asked questions is: "How do I avoid buying counterfeits?", or maybe: "How do I know its real?"  The fear of being stuck with a "fake" is a real concern, and yet one that can usually be avoided simply by taking some basic precautions. Although I am far from being an expert on the subject of ancient counterfeits, there are some tips I have learned from my own collecting and selling experience that I can pass along to those that have an interest in buying ancient coins.

First, lets differentiate "counterfeit" from "reproduction".

A "Reproduction" is a replica of a coin created to be similar to the genuine article, but is not intended to represent itself as a genuine coin. A number of artists create reproductions of coins for a variety of reasons. A very popular coin may be out of the reach of the average collector's budget, so they may instead choose to buy one of these reproductions, which are available at a small fraction of the cost of the real article.

A "Counterfeit" is a replica intended to fool collectors into thinking that they are buying a genuine coin. They are struck with the intent to defraud.

Avoiding counterfeits:  There is actually no way to completely avoid buying counterfeit ancient coins. A number of large collections put together by experienced collectors have been found to contain counterfeits! There are, however, a few fairly easy precautions that the average collector can take to keep the risk at a minimum. The most obvious, and easiest way is to deal only with established, reputable dealers. They have the experience and the knowledge to detect most common fakes. All reputable dealers stand behind what they sell, and will be happy to refund a buyers money if a coin is ever found to be not authentic. Find out if a dealer offers this guarantee of authenticity. If they don't, avoid buying from them.

If you purchase from online sources such as eBay or Yahoo auctions, check the seller's feedback. Low feedback, too many negative feedbacks, or "private" feedback levels are all red flags that the seller should be avoided. Also, keep in mind that old adage: "If something seems too good to be true, it most likely is".

The physical appearance of a coin can also give some indication as to its authenticity. Look for the following clues that may indicate a fake:

Edge Seams: A genuine coin will not have a visible seam running around it. This seam is the result of casting. While some early coins were indeed cast, the vast majority were not, so any coin with a seam should be highly suspect. Likewise, a coin whose edge shows file marks should also be avoided, as the filing was most likely done to remove evidence of a seam.

Casting Bubbles: Often the casting process will result in a number of small "bubbles" in the fields of the coin. The pressure caused by the striking of a genuine coin was usually enough to fill the entire die, thus avoiding the tiny bubbles that often appear on the surface of cast coins. Note that more sophisticated counterfeiters may use a centrifuge to avoid these bubbles.

Weight: As ancient coins were used as a medium of trade, their value was regulated, in general, by their weight, and the mint supervisors were careful to see that the precious metal coins were of a specific weight. These weights fall within a fairly small range, so any coin outside of this range should be looked at more carefully. Of course, the collector must learn what an acceptable weight is for this to be effective.

General Appearance: Does the coin being examined fit the general style of other coins struck during the same era? Does the condition of the legends match the wear on the rest of the coin? Are the legends and devices fairly sharp, or do they appear "mushy"? Is the patina or toning natural or artificial? These can help in determining an authentic coin from a fake.

While the above can all help to avoid fakes, none of them are a magic touchstone that will insure that you never buy a fake. Without a doubt, the single most important factor is EXPERIENCE! There is no simply no quick and easy way to gain experience, but by spending time looking through dealers trays at shows, talking with experienced collectors and perusing catalogs of ancient coins, a collector can begin to develop a feel for what a genuine coin should look like, and be able to spot a coin that just looks, somehow, "wrong".
 

If  you have a tip,  I will gladly post it here.. (Scroll all the way down and click "Contact Us")


FAKE SPANISH COLONIAL  Top

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

FAKE GREEK Top

 

 

 

FAKE MEDIEVAL Top

 

FAKE ROMAN Top

 

 

FAKE JUDEAN Top

 

 

 

 

Type of Fake coins
 

Casting is one of the most common methods for creating counterfeit or fake coins. Casting requires that a mold be made of the coin to be copied. Casting is then a process by which a material is introduced into the mold while it is liquid, allowed to solidify in the shape inside the mold, and then removed producing a fabricated "coin". Casting is often used for creating multiple copies of the original coin in order to mass-manufacture fakes.

-Centrifugal casting, or rotocasting, is a casting technique that is often used as a means of casting small, detailed parts or jewelry. Coins made in this way avoid the common tell-tale bubbles found in the normal castings. An articulated arm is free to spin around a vertical axle, which is driven by an electric motor or a spring. The entire mechanism is enclosed in a tub or drum to contain hot metal, should the mold break or an excess of metal be used. Single use molds are prepared using the lost wax method. A small amount of metal in a ceramic pan next to the mold is heated with a torch. When the metal is molten, the arm is released, forcing (by centrifugal force) the metal into the mold. The high forces acting on the metal overcome the viscosity, resulting in a finely detailed piece.

A similar refined product is obtained by vacuum casting, giving high relief and detail (“life”) to fakes, forgeries or counterfeits.

Electroforming is another method to create counterfeits. In electroforming, the metal is electroplated on the surface of the mold. Electroplating is commonly used to reproduce medals or other objects. This process was formerly known as galvanoplasty. One kind of electroforming, called electrotyping, is the reproduction of type forms and engravings for the printing industry.

Counterfeit coins are also sometimes die struck from counterfeit dies. Counterfeit dies are often created in the same fashion as the original dies, hand cut by skilled die cutters. Once the new die is cut and annealed, fake coins can be struck from it on different planchets and using almost any type of metal.

Note: In addition to these type of manufacturing fake coins, we find some cases in which the surface and features of an original coin have been altered by tooling. In this process the "fake-artist" mechanically adds or removes parts of the design, making the coin more desirable or rare.  . Top

 

 

What is a fourrée?

A fourrée is a coin, most often a counterfeit, that is made from a base metal core that has been plated with a precious metal. The intent is to deceive the user into believing that the coin is precious metal throughout.. The term is normally applied to ancient silver plated coins such as the Roman denarius and Greek drachma, but the term can also be applied to other plated coins.

Cicero mentions that the M. Marius Gratidianus, a praetor during the 80s BC, was widely praised for ontroducing tests to detect false coins, and for removing many counterfeits from circulation. Gratidianus was killed under Sulla, who introduced his own anti-forgery law (lex Cornelia de falsis Sulla widely introduced serrated edges on precious metal coins, an anticounterfeiting measure that had been tried earlier. Serrated denarii, or serrati, which featured about 20 notched chisel marks on the edge of the coin, were produced to demonstrate the integrity of the coin. This effort was not completely successful, as examples of fourrée serrati attest.

The most common method for producing a fourrée, Roman and otherwise. was to take a flan of copper, wrap it with silver foil, heat it, and strike it with the dies. If the coin was sufficiently heated and struck hard enough, a layer of eutechtic ( 72% silver and 28% copper) would be produced, fusing with the copper core. Exposure of an eutechtic fourre was often delayed until;wear at the high points of the coin revealed the copper.,

A later method for making fourrées involved adding silver to the base metal coin after it had been struck. This method allowed for even less silver to be used, which became more important in order to make counterfeiting profitable as the official coinage was debased. The exact method by which these coins were silvered is unclear, although possible methods include dipping the coin in molten silver, brushing the coins with molten silver, or dusting the coin with powdered silver and heating it until the silver melted.

An easy way to detect a fourrée is by weight, since a fourré with its copper core weighs noticeably less than a solid silver coin due to the lower density of copper. The opposite would be true for a fourrée with a lead core.

Another method to determine whether a coin is plated is to listen to the sound produced by dropping the coin onto a hard surface. If the coin is solid silver, it will have a distinctive ring. Although this method was used by contemporary merchants, it is not recommended that this method now be used on ancient coin, since the coin could be damaged, especially old silver coins have become brittle due to recrystallization.

The most obvious way to detect a plated coin is if the coin’s surface has worn or damaged, revealing the base metal below. There are often chisel or chop marks on ancient silver coins by merchants attempting to determine if a coin was solid silver or gold. These "banker marks" are most common on Roman denarii of the 1st century BC and 1st century AD. Top

 

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