I would like the opinion of a few people as I am probably going to try and buy this coin. Is this genuine?
Looks ok to me - if someone were faking it they would make a better condition copy all round. No point going to all the effort to put in a split when all it is doing is reducing the value! Pictures are not great.
As I have said before, if someone is cheaply faking coins even with a split it is still very profitable and could make more people believe it is genuine. I have heard of fake antique Staffordshire figures being buried in the garden for a few months or even soaked in tea to give it a dirty aged look, I'm sure it would work well with coins but thankyou for the info, I will probably have a bid.