Hi all, first post. I’m looking for help before I decide whether to wear a piece of jewelry. I'm not a collector myself but inherited a coin charm bracelet assembled by my grandfather in the 1960s from a box of miscellaneous coins he purchased. Most of the bracelet is identifiable: there's an 1866 Napoleon III French Empire coin, an Edward VII British piece, and others from around the world. One coin has always been the odd one out and I'm hoping someone here can help. I’ve done as much googling as I can and am stuck. Physical description: Copper/bronze colored, clearly not gold (which is different from the entire rest of the bracelet), 15mm diameter. Obverse: leftward-facing portrait consistent with the Indian Princess design, fairly clear despite wear. Reverse: central "1", below it what could be "DOLLAR", below that what must be a worn date in very bad shape, wreath around the perimeter. The edge isn’t visible due to being mounted in a bezel on the bracelet. Provenance and backstory (family oral history, take with appropriate salt): My grandfather purchased a box of miscellaneous coins in the mid-1960s. In the 1970s he brought it to the Smithsonian, where a curator apparently examined it, looked disappointed, and said something to the effect of "I thought we had the only one of these left in the world." I have no documentation of this other than family stories. What I'm trying to determine: I want to understand what I have before making a mundane decision: is this worth insuring, or can I just wear the bracelet without worry? If it turns out to be something significant I'd consider finding it a good home with a serious collector, but that's secondary. Is this consistent with any known pattern or off-metal error? Does the Smithsonian anecdote ring any bells for anyone with deep coin knowledge? Photos attached — happy to provide more with different lighting. I understand the bezel is a problem for proper examination and am aware it would need to come off before any formal authentication. Thanks in advance for any guidance.
Welcome to CoinTalk, unusual medal but I have no idea what it is, I mean it's obviously a copy of a US $1 gold coin but from that point I'm lost. That said, maybe someone else will chime in who knows exactly what it is. Feel free to post more pics of your coins as we love to learn and share knowledge.
I don’t know if this will help or not, but I googled: “Indian princess copper 1 dollar”. The AI info mentioned pattern copper dollars in the 1870’s. Up to you to trust the AI data, but this may give you a vector to pursue.
Don’t know about the piece itself but it’s from your Grandfather and nothing can be more precious than that and the story that goes with it. Welcome to CT.
That is quite the anomaly. I would carry that to a coin dealer and ask him to scan the piece with an XRF. That will tell you the composition of the metal. Beyond that, I don't really have any good suggestions.
The design doesn't match other gold dollars and it's base metal. I'm going with (contemporary?) counterfeit pocket piece. I circled a few of the differences.
Based on your description - ancient copper coin, obverse: crowned head facing left, reverse: a 1 above center - the most likely match is a late Roman bronze coin (often called LRB) especially from the Constantinian era (circa 330 - 350 CE). Obverse: A ruler's bust facing left or right, often wearing a laurel wreath or radiate crown. coin-identifier.com Reverse: Simple symbolic designs, sometimes including standards, numerals, or marks that can resemble a "1." especially when worn. CoinWeek Located on Copilot. Nice coin, thanks for sharing, hope this helps.
Based on probabilities, I would guess it is a copy made for jewelry, just as you have it. It might have been considered legal because it doesn't quite say "ONE DOLLAR." Based on dreams, wishes, the family story, and the fact that lightning does sometimes strike, it would not be impossible (though HIGHLY unlikely) that it is some kind of pattern struck in bronze or other base metal. Slight differences in design, as noted above, could occur in either scenario. If the family story is accurate, and the Smithsonian has one like it, it should be catalogued somewhere. You might search there. The fun would be in the search, but be prepared to find it is only jewelry. But it might just be more fun to consider it a family heirloom and pass it and the story down to future generations.
While I like the pattern connection with the Smithsonian and all, I am dubious. It is very odd that the Indian Princess obverse, used for $3.00 gold back then, would even be considered for anything copper, pattern or not. But I suppose the Mint could have used anything, including copper, to make a pattern coin. At 15mm, copper coin that size, IHC was 19mm, the previous Large Cent was 27.5mm, would only have about 1 cent of copper metal in it around 1870, so my theory is leaning toward a facsimile created for use in jewelry.
