Hi All, I purchased this coin from a seller on eBay with over 1,000 feedback ratings at 100%. I did not ask for a picture of the edge of the coin because the coin was cheap enough that if it is fake, I only have hurt feelings. in general the style of the coin is okay but the edge really concerns me. As @Mat reminded me, many provincial coins are cast. After reviewing the fake coins and seller lists I do not see any matches (I did post my coin there without any seller identification today). Of concern is the seam which runs around the entire edge of the coin and some areas where the edge seam has droplets of metal. I do not see any filing marks but there is an area where the edge may have had a sprue removed but there it is hard to tell through the patina. The edges of the coin are sharper than I would think as well and the coin is very round. I sent a message to the seller about the issue and he says the coin is genuine and purchased from a major seller. Any thoughts? All are welcome. I was trying to buy a Thessalonican coin for my collection so this is the first I’ve handled, hence my ignorance. Thanks, Nick
Thanks @Roman Collector. I don’t know enough about the coinage of Thessalonica from this period and resources are limited. The weights are all over the board for similar sized coins from this which is 12g and 24mm to 15g and 26mm.
"Seams" like this can throw me too. Unfortunately not one diagnotic for fakes, because any ONE of them can be explained. The rest of the coin looks good. If you would have had mushiness of lower relief areas I would have been concerned. I always look at the eyes. Its lower relief that the rest of the head, so unless the coin is VG good detail should always be there. If its mushy, I immediately raise an alarm in my head.
@medoraman Thanks for your thoughts. I thought the rest of the coin looked normal but the seam is so obvious the that I would feel stupid to not investigate further.
I understand. That is why we are here. I admit when I see one of these I stop and look at the coin wholistically once again just to be sure. Its a red flag, but not proof. Same could be said of mushy surfaces, or a few other "signs" of a fake. Each one individually can never condemn a coin, but in conjunction with knowledge and experience can combined. Many others here are better at this than I, I simply have handled and seen quite a few coins now, and learned from others smarter than me.
