Egyptian I think

I could be wrong but it looks like a cast copy of a Shekel of Tyre. They are pretty common, and were given out in cereal boxes in the 1960's. Where did you buy this from? If you can see the edge, does it have a line running around where the two sides meet? Weight would also be very helpful to ID the coin.

 

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I saw this as a possibility but the photo is too fuzzy to go past head/eagle which works for either. If we had any legend, it would help. I opted for Ptolemy as a guess because of the portrait style and lumps in about the right spot to be the date and city monogram but I agree that fake Shekels of Tyre are very common and probablt should be the first thing to rule out.

 

Yes it was hard with the photos, but I guess I have just seen too many of those inexpensive fakes to not think of those right away unless i have the coin in hand. I think I have had to tell about 40 people over the years their great treasure found in grandpas belongings has no value. Of course, they all would call me a crook, a fraud, and that they were going to talk to someone who "knows what the hell they are talking about".

To the OP, ancients have been reproduced for eons. This is why weight and clearer pictures are imperative. If you aren't good at photography or just don't care for it, (I am not a fan of it myself, maybe just lazy), then weight and size in MM is very important. Most ancient silver coins were within a tight tolerance, and having its weight and size greatly helps us to judge the coin.

 

While I agree with medoraman regarding the need for full disclosure of weight and measurements, be careful not to hide behind them. The first fake coin I bought back in the earlier day of my collecting was exactlty to the .01 gram what the standard catalogue said was the average for that issue. I used that to try to convince myself the thing was good but it was about 1800 years newer than I hoped and made by someone who knew enough to get the weight right.

I am a photo fan but I will rarely tell you that your coin is good just from photos. I can sometimes tell that your coin is bad and usually say I see nothing about the coin in the photo that makes me suspicious but I know full well that there are many better photographers than I and many coins that even in hand would fool me. That is part of the hobby - not our favorite part.

 

Yep, fakes galore. A 1875 Meiji Era Japanese Yen was just sold. Its 3 + grams underweight. Did not stop the seller from pawning it off for $80. I told him it was fake, before the hammer fell. What a jerk.
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