Fake or authentic Dupondius Vespasian

Would like an opinion about this coin, I dont like the edge. Thanks

 

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Looks off to me too, especially due to the edge.

 

Seams to be (pun, get it?) a cast replica.

 

Looks cast for sure.

 

The style of the obverse and reverse, including the devices and legends, looks authentic.

The edge, however, looks strange. None of my bronzes have edges that look like that. I would have to do further research and/or consult an expert

 

Thanks to the thread to post your favorite as coins, I examined all my as coins.
When I received it from CNG in September I had no doubts about authenticity.

Still Looks OK, apart from the edge, I can not find a similar one on the net under Vespasian Pax fake coins.

I want to be 100% sure before I send it back to CNG.
I know TIF is an expert finding listed known fakes, hope she tunes in.

Thanks for your opinions sofar.

 

I woud believe, that this one is fake.

 

The seam would make me suspect it as well. Looks like a nice coin otherwise. In fairness there was a thread the other day where the poster had a coin with a seam that looked off but experts in the series came in to explain why it was still likely genuine. Hopefully that will happen here as well

If you love the coin but doubt it you could send it off to Sear as well.

 

There is fakes of Sestertius of this type.

 

I dunno, but the coin, other than the seam, looks perfectly fine to me. Like @IdesOfMarch01 I think this is one of those coins I would want verified one way or the other.

 

Normally I would have condemned it (and indeed seemed (seamed...cant help myself) to have done so in my earlier post). But, as it came from CNG, well, they like all of us make mistakes but likely fewer than others. I do think it warrants further inspection due to what does appear to be a casting seam, but not the type of seam which appears from flan creation.

I did look it up in their archives and since you paid a respectable price you may want to shoot them an e-mail with your concerns and see if they are willing to give it a closer examination.

 

I've got a fast Google finger but I'm definitely not an expert!

I was going to say the same thing. It's from CNG and they make fewer such mistakes than most companies. This coin has passed through their hands twice: 2011 in a print sale, where it sold for more than the seemingly high estimate, and September 2016, where it sold for around opening bid on an estimate that was less than half of the print sale. Interesting! It's a beautiful coin and looks like it was a bargain the second time around. Then again, it is also possible that no one noticed the edge.

I'd call or write CNG and ask them for guidance. As others have said, it looks fine to me but the seam-y thing is puzzling. My bet is that it is authentic and there is some other explanation.

Maybe @Ardatirion will weigh in.

 

It looks somewhat similar to the edge seam on this Severus Alexander dupondius of mine.




I once posted these pictures on CT, and @Barry Murphy was of the opinion that the coin looked authentic and this was not a casting seam I was looking at.

I posted a few more pictures of the edge (including the two below) but did not receive any further confirmation one way or the other. I'm on the fence about it but still leaning towards fake.

 

FWIW, I don't have a match in my digital 'black cabinet'. As others have said, everything looks OK other than the seam.

 

Very curious how this turns out...

Can the flan preparation process ever leave this type of stair step?

 

Yes, it can. But it needs to be seen in person. We cant say from any photo.

 

Were the flans for 1st-century Ases cast? That would be new to me.

For some reason, equivalent coins in CNG's printed auctions sell for at least double the price of those in their internet auctions. Why is this?

 

Clientele, timing, marketing.

 

Ummm, I'd send it away to David Sear .... that way, if he says it's a fake, then you can approach CNG for a refund .... but if he says it's a winner, then you'll have that sweet certificate if and when it comes time to sell that cool coin (I've done that many, many times and I'm fairly sure that it'll be money well spent, especially in the case of suspect-coins ... err, kinda like your OP-example)

 

Skip that. Send an email to CNG to let us know its coming back for consideration, then send the coin back. If we agree that there's a problem we'll issue a refund.

And for those of you wondering why the difference in price, spot the difference:

CNG 87, lot 985 – Vespasian. AD 69-79. Æ Dupondius (28mm, 12.10 g, 6h). “Judaea Capta” issue. Lugdunum (Lyon) mint. Struck AD 72-73

CNG E382, lot 371 – Vespasian. AD 69-79. Æ Dupondius (27.5mm, 12.07 g, 6h). Lugdunum (Lyon) mint. Struck AD 72