Got these delivered from GC yesterday, I needed the California token for my collection and I always wanted a Cuban gold coin so I bidded that one up as well! What's the deal with feebay when it comes to selling Cuban gold coins, why don't they allow them for sale, anyone know? Just wondering as they're a bit pricey?
eBay doesn't allow any Cuban coins because they claim they are embargoed. It doesn't make sense but they're covering their butt. You used to be able to slip them through but the last few times I tried they got taken down right away.
As @Hiddendragon said, eBay misinterprets the law and doesn't allow any Cuban coins. But there is no fighting them, so you have to go to other venues to buy or sell Cuban coins.
Next I'll get a North Korean, jk! Gold is so expensive now I hardly buy anymore but glad to have Great Collections, so i can keep my eyes peeled, you never know.
eBay: "Counterfeit coins? Yes, we allow people to sell those! Cuban coins? No way! That is against the law, you know."
Yes, I was in the right place for sure, check out this feebay seller, don't know how he figures out his prices but they're definitely are out of my interest and price range! https://www.ebay.com/itm/358459843437
What's the story behind the token, I haven't seen that one before. I think I might "need" one now, just not at the eBay price.
I had that token in my watchlist!! I forgot about it, as is typical with my watchlist items, and didn’t bid on it. Congrats on a fantastic piece! For those that don’t know, the heart signifies that it’s in your watchlist:
Yeah, I have a small California token collection and this specific token is rare, like R7 from what I've read. Five and 6 pic is about the 1849 token. Many think Christophe Lauer of Nuremberg, Germany and his company made many of these California tokens, whether he was in California or not, idk. That said, I know for a fact he made the 1850 in the pic below. Under the bear on the right, on the reverse, is an L under the bears left foot, that's Lauer. There are a few more tokens that were definitely made by him. This 1850 Gold Mines token below is extremely rare and pricey. The book below has some good information in it, hope that helps, lastly under the book pic, there's a pdf!
Yeah that law they think they're following only applies to buying things from sellers in Cuba or buying things directly from the Cuban government. It doesn't apply to Cuban coins or currency in general. They're very much interpreting the law incorrectly, though I guess they decided they'd rather err on the side of caution (just wish that caution extended to obvious counterfeits, which they clearly don't care much about, if at all).
I think the Cuba coins "used" to be illegal here but aren't anymore. Here's my non precious metal Cuban coin the only one I ever found out in the wild. (Gave it to my nephew for his world coins collection.) I thought it was pretty cool and I liked it.
Just realized that I never mentioned who Christopher Lauer was, so I'm back, his tokens are from various years as his Father started the company 'Spiel Marke' in Nuremberg, Germany. After the Father passed Christopher Lauer and his sons would run the company, per the internet the company operated from 1790-1924. I just figured coin collectors may have never heard of him, so I'll leave this thread with a couple of Lauer's tokens! First is a rare triple header, with signature and on the bottom is a super nice die crack!
