Just won this last night for $1200/bargain! My first Quarter Eagle! This is a very common date, but still nice grade....
Nice. If you buy any more of these, keep in mind that they are one of the most, if not the most, widely faked US gold coins.
Thanks Paul. I would definately "only" buy coins from reputable auction houses, there are a lot of spurious coins on e-bay I once bid on a "stempelglanz" 1/4 Dukat Hungary 1708 Holy Roman emperor Josef I/ coin was withdrawn....turned out to be a really good fake! With Ancient coins, there are many bad fakes being offered on e-bay!
Is it getting to the point that a Certified coin needs to be authenticated by a third party and then again and again? Where does this all end? My own code of ethics tells me to not purchase expensive coins without in hand inspection. You probably got a nice coin at a great price, but eventually, the law of averages can take hold. Do auction houses professionally inspect all lots offered? I can trust a few dealers whom I know will do this inspection for me, but to assume a coin is authentic just because it has a cert. number is risky for me. The coin needs to match the photo, and if there is no photo, then I become skeptical and probably pass on that one. If it,s from my trusted source than not a problem. I guess I,ve become paranoid, but with large sums of money I can,t afford chance.
As long as you have a return privilege, pay using PayPal, and use a credit card through PayPal (where the ability to do a chargeback offers an extra level of protection), I think it is okay as long as you know how to detect fakes.
