Thousand Buck Owl

Here's what I ended up with. I came in a bit under budget, so I hope it's real.

 

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I hope you can get a refund, that is most certainly a fake.

 

Hmmm where did you get this??

 

Unfortunately, it is a fake. I too hope you can get a refund. When/if you get a refund; stick with reliable sources like vcoins, ma-shops, or 1 of the many renown auction houses. eBay (where this most likely came from (Eastern Europe?)) is not the best place to purchase expensive coins if you're new.

 

From a dealer in Greece.

 

It's illegal for Greece to export ancients. If it's listed from Greece as authentic, don't purchase it.

 

Yup, definitely a replica unfortunately. Here's someone who sold one of its twins recently. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ancient-Gre...ip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557#viTabs_0

 

Thanks for the bad news. I should be able to get a refund one way or another.

 

If through eBay and Paypal you shouldn't have any issues; if it's been less than 45 days? Something like that.

 

Try a Vcoins dealer, CNG, Agora Auctions or similar next time. Owls are popular coins, some of the most popular ancients on the market really, there are always examples for sale at the big auction houses and dealers and there is no reason to buy one from some random seller on eBay.

 

I won't pile on.....

 

I love the Tetradrachms of ancient Athens. Truly an iconic coin.

When considering which coin to purchase it might be good for you to consider a few things that can effect the price.

1) some of the later classical issues 435-404 BC will tend to be more off center than the ones struck 454-436 BC. If Athena's nose is slightly off the flan that can warrant a discount of as much as 30%

2) Chisel cuts made by ancient bankers are common on the owls that circulated outside of Greece and can warrant up to a 50% reduction on an otherwise uncut coin

3) A lot of the Athenian tets have significant amounts of silver chloride deposits that can give off a greyish-purple hue and effect the porosity. Excpect around a 30% reduction for such an imperfection.

4) Good style archaic and early classical 480-454 will probably be out of your range.

If you don't mind some of the above imperfections you can save a good bit of money on a great example. Here's my caged Athena

Edit: oops! I didn't realize this was an old thread. My humble apologies on the far too late advice Sorry about the fake tet benveniste

 

$520.00 USD with shipping included bought this coin!

Now you tell me if $1000.00 USD is sufficient for the owl you want? I think the answer will probably be yes!

 

A small difference to the uninitiated can make a significant difference in desirability and value. Probably the simplest key is the eye. If it is "frontal" (as posted by @iamtiberius ) it is earlier and can be attributed to sometime in the 5th C. BC with all the famous Athenian history. On the other hand, one with a "profile" eye (as posted by @Sallent just above) will be 4th century, after the Peloponnesian War (431-404 BC).

 

Translation: Sallent wishes he had @iamtiberius owl coin!

Yes, I do. And some day I will. The eye of Athena on those earlier Athenian owl tets are awesome, and definitely worth the big bucks.

 

The one I posted was a sub 1K example that was recent and not mine; though I wish it was. This is my best example and was $700 w/ buyer's fee:

 

Careful. This one is smoothed. Too bad for whoever bought it.

 

What I ended up with (Pictures courtesy Heritage Auctions -- I'll take my own shots this weekend):

 

Nice one @benveniste !

 

I thought this coin was among the items taken from my home earlier this week, but I was wrong. Sorry for the false alarm.