New blog: numismaticfakes

Hi everyone, I'm a Portuguese collector of ancient coins. My father was Italian, so I can read the posts published on lamoneta.it forum, where many experts and scholars analyze and detect fakes listed on auction catalogs. Some days ago I opened a blog where I translate in English their findings, to share with collectors who do not speak Italian.

This is the address to my blog:

https://numismaticfakes.wordpress.com/

Adeus a todos
Odysseus

 

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Wow, thanks for doing this, @Odysseus! And welcome to CoinTalk

 

Thanks for the effort and the link, Odysseus. It's certainly appreciated!

 

Ditto. Excellent source.

 

I recently notified CNG that this coin, which is lot 223 in their auction 102:


appears to be the same as the bottom left coin on this page:
http://forgerynetwork.com/asset.aspx?id=Iyyb8~x~4zGvQ=
I expect it will be withdrawn soon.

 

Thank you very much ancientnut!
I just updated the blog.

 

Kroton Hera Lakinia--Roma's Obscenity!

Check out Odysseus' fake site to see this current Roma offering. They also sold this coin in June of 2015. You don't think they would be trying to sell a coin that was returned with suspicions of authenticity?

 

Well shocking, roma, kunker...humm that confirms again they have no sympathy with collectors only business sell and make money..

 

WOW!!!

Since I'm one of those who seem to have difficulty identifying fakes even after trying to match them with 'known' fakes, I'm totally stunned by all those that seem to be listed at so many major auction houses---especially since I would have no reason to suspect otherwise on nearly every one you posted on your link.

Incredible blog @Odysseus

 

I saw that Roma coin and identified it as the rare "Hera sucking lemons" variety.

 

Great info @Odysseus! Thanks for all your hard work, I appreciate it. And welcome to CoinTalk Ancients

 

BA-HA-HA! I snorted coffee all over the keyboard!

 

Great idea. yes it is pretty confusing these days , I bet many people are snookered, with all the counterfeits coming out of China, with disregard to the US Hobby protection act, specifying a copy mark on replicas... I wonder how many fakes people have , thinking they have the genuine article? I bet the numbers would be shocking...

 

Great site, thanks. Also, welcome to coin talk.

 

"Hera Charles Laughton" variety.

 

Hmmm.........provenance at Roma says HJB sold this coin first............


Also, having skimmed through the site, I have to say I like it. More detail than I expected and the die photos and the attached documents showing the casts with sprues attached are also very informative.

None of this surprises me. Whenever anyone buys any collectible, you have to be on guard for fakes.

Those who collect everything and anything are at the greatest risk for buying a fake. I am crossing Roma and Kunker off my acceptable seller list going forward (and I have purchased once from each) and Lanz got scratched off years ago. I stopped Gorny buys when they got implicated in a Sicilian sting operation that netted looted goods AND fakes with dies. They found shipping labels destined for GM.

Oh well, I mainly buy from CNG. Returning a recognized fake to them should never be a hassle. If it is, there are always the US courts. Dealing with overseas sales and returns has always made me uneasy. The proof that European dealers have run amok in such an obvious fashion, makes CNG seem a safer bet for me. Although their growing buyers premium is getting obscene.

 

Staying ahead of the forgers is a hard task but worse is the fact that fakes refused by one dealer are certain to be shopped around to find one that might not know that one. If we were to send a collection of 1000 nice looking coins to a number of dealers on consignment and request sale as soon as possible, we would be asking a lot for every one to be perfect in each case. I agree with 4to2's list but more importantly that he has a list. Every dealer will make a few mistakes. The important thing is how they handle those mistakes. When we see enough mistakes that we start to question them being mistakes rather than sloppiness or, worse, malice, it is time to add another name to the 'no-fly' list. Sure you can shop all sources and try to pull out the real coins from the bad but I'd suggest that starving out sellers unable or unwilling to do their homework is in the best interest of us all.

When you sell coins, do you select a dealer because you know they won't ask too many questions (due to ignorance or attitude)? If so, you, too, are the problem. How would you feel if dealers had a (secret?) resource where they posted photos of coins they had refused to handle, withdrawn or returned to consignors? How many fakes are you willing to tolerate in a 1000 lot sale? The government has a level of rat hairs they will allow in grain products on the market --- or would you rather not think about it?

 

Wow! Thank you all for the great feed-backs.
I am very glad to see how much people appreciate my new blog, in few days it has been visited by thousands. I intended it primarily as a resource for less experienced collectors, to avoid fakes, but also as a tool for scholars, because the most dangerous aspect of the actual invasion of fakes on the market is not for private collectors (caveat emptor), but rather for collective knowledge, as if a scholar should include some of those fakes and "unlisted dies" in a published study... it would be a great damage for Numismatics, adulterating our view of ancient history.
About sellers, I think we should not condemn they all. Some of them are surely not fair, especially those who list again and again fake coins once they have been returned or publicly condemned. I hope my blog will have the effect of making them more careful about what they list, to save their reputation. But really I am convinced that the great majority of sellers are not dishonest, they are victims of counterfeiters just like us collectors! The invasion of fakes is determining the risk of killing the hobby of many people, and this shall not happen! So, do not be frightened by my blog, do not be overcome by fear of buying fakes. Rather, use this fear as a stimulus to the study, an input research, to networking each other to identify and condemn fakes, and to better appreciate the beauty of genuineness.
About the major auction houses listing fakes, I think that if one likes the coins they list, he should continue to bid with confidence, as their coins are guaranteed for life, so if some day one should spot that he bought a fake, he will be refunded.
Goodbye all, and stay tuned, I still have so much stuff to publish on my blog. Also, if you have any advice or criticism, please tell me, I think we should always network to defeat forgers.
With kindest regards.
Odysseus

 

Thanks so much for all your work, Odysseus.

I'm completely clueless when it comes to picking out fakes. Almost all of them would be out of my price range, anyway.

But, it's really good to have this blog to help point out those forgeries. It really sucks that we need to have one, though.

Erin

 

wow