Would anyone please be able to identify if this is a real Denarius of Caesar on ebay before I bid, as it looks too good to be true, Thanks. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Roman-si...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2060353.m1431.l2649
I don't mean to be rude, but if you cannot tell that is a modern forgery you have no business looking for ancient coins on eBay. You're only going to get ripped off!
He makes a great point. Experienced experts rarely find "deals" on ebay. Either the coin is a fake, as this one is/very much appears to be, or they sell for waaaay too much. Either way, being new and buying off ebay is a great way to get ripped off. Find yourself a nice Auction house and treat yourself.
Aren't you glad you asked though? Stick with reputable dealers. Here https://www.vcoins.com/en/Default.aspx and here https://www.sixbid.com/
Thank you very much. I'm definitely glad I made an account and asked. Would you say this is a fake also? https://www.ebay.com/itm/Ancient-Gr...e=STRK:MEBIDX:IT&_trksid=p2055359.m1431.l2649 as the seller is selling hundreds of ancient artifacts so I'm not sure. This is my last time asking I promise.
Know the coin, know the seller or preferably know both (I picked that up around here). If you had seen any of these types before you would find this a very laughable attempt at a Gorgon. http://www.forumancientcoins.com/board/index.php?topic=18502.0 A list of known fakes sellers. And Yeppers. He is on it.
Please heed the advice and stay away from eBay. The links I provided above have more than enough genuine ancient coins to keep you happy.
Welcome Rozzw74! Bad news: If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. Good news: Very cool ancient coins are affordable, though JC probably doesn't fall into that category too often. I hope you stick around. Peruse some of these threads to get oriented in the wonderful world of ancients collecting without making some expensive rookie errors: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/ancient-coins-beginners’-faq-thread.324858/
My advice to you: stop looking at eBay. We can share all the fakeseller lists and stuff but as a new collector you're still going to wind up with a fake shopping on eBay for the kinds of coins you're looking for. Take a look at Vcoins for now, maybe some auction houses like Roma Numismatics or Naville Numismatics since it appears you're in the UK.
I do not intend to be mean or condescending... but both coins are very obvious fakes. The Caesar coin... the weight is too light. The engraving style is completely wrong. The surfaces do not show characteristics of hammer striking. It is in fact a fantasy piece, no such coin was struck for Caesar. That you are asking about such a coin, indicates to me that you have not seen or handled genuine ancient coins yet. I do not specialise in Greek coinage but even then I can tell the Greek coin you posted is very suspicious. Genuine struck ancient coins just don't look like that. It is a private listing too. Please, stay away from Ebay until you have much more experience.
@Rossw74 , my beginner's guide: http://augustuscoins.com/ed/numis/ has a page on buying and a page on places to buy (dealers), as well as pages on eBay, fakes, and many other topics.
Well let's be honest ... there can be good deals on eBay and most new collectors look to purchase within the budget end of things as they get started. It really does feel crappy when you are getting into the hobby - you see all of these coins on eBay - basically the largest market and you're told to stay away. I really wish that the excellent "Beginners FAQ Thread" featured a few of the good eBay sellers that experienced collectors trust. This way new collectors could stick to a few and feel that they can learn from viewing the variety of quickly changing stock and maybe place a bid or two once they feel comfortable. What is wrong with that? Here are a couple of that I am comfortable with. I wish I knew more but that information does not seem to be readily shared.. which is a shame as it took me way longer to find a few than it really should have.. I wish I knew more as it would increase my enjoyment of the hobby. Please add any others that you know.. if you don't want to state them maybe send me a PM? I enjoy the hunt - it's a lot of fun - I may not buy expensive coins but I certainly enjoy following the auctions and learning as I go. I've mentioned this a few times and all I get is crickets..... that's Ok.. I will keep trying. cody111111 frascatius victor_clark
I would advise you to stay away from e-bay at least until you get a lot more experience in smelling these fakes out. I would suggest you look at v-coins, MA-shops, sixbid auctions. You don't have to afford these coins , just look at tons of them and get a good feel of what genuine coins look like - crisp striking, proper weights, correct wearing, what patinas look like, metal-flow lines. You don't have to like the coins - just observe and observe some more. Soon enough you will be posting your own threads pointing out e-bay fakes and discern the genuine e-bay offerings.
Thank you for the reply. I agree with you that it would be good to have a list of genuine ebay sellers. It would be most helpful for beginners like me!
When they teach driving a car, it is called 'defensive driving'. That is more or less suggesting we look at other vehicles on the road and ask what is the most stupid thing they could do that might cause me trouble. If just once that keeps you from pulling in front of a car that is running a red light, it pays off. We here on CT recommend Defensive Collecting. That means that we assume a coin is a bad deal unless we have some reason to believe it is good. That usually means that the seller is known and trusted but it could mean that we believe our level of experience has reached the point in that particular specialty that we feel relatively safe trusting ourselves. In recent years, I have bought and returned for refund three coins that turned out to be fakes. I got my money back because the sellers were honest people and friends looking out for the good of the hobby as a whole. Selecting coins you want is a fun part of collecting but selecting your sources is much more important at least until you are comfortable with the risk. I have been in this hobby for 50+ years. I'll let you know when I get there. Below are the three fakes I returned. Actually two of the sellers gave me the coin for free to keep in my 'Black Museum'. They each fooled a good seller much better than your standard eBay source. Would they fool you? Not only should you know that they are fake but you should be able to tell how you know. Until then, it would be best to collect defensively.
