I am posting this as I have no idea if it's real or fake. Purchased around one month ago from an antiques dealer who had a source with a "medieval coin of unknown date possible King John" after some googling appears to be a Replica Henry III coin. Thanks for you time.
Well, it’s certainly not gold, for starters. Anything more than that, I’m not qualified to say. Perhaps @TheRed or someone else better-versed in medievals can provide some info.
As far as it not being gold I was happy with and convinced it was not until a Jeweller pointed out the exposed edge of the coin which is actually gold coloured so I'm completely stumped
At a glance, it does not look inconsistent to me from how a hammered silver medieval coin should look (and I do own some). I am not familiar with the type, however, or otherwise confident enough to speak about its authenticity or lack thereof. I do not immediately notice any signs of it being an obvious fake, but you’ll definitely want a more experienced opinion.
Henry III did issue gold coins which look like this. I could not comment on the authenticity, but if real, this coin was valued by Spink at £27500 back in 2015 (last copy of the standard catalogue I have is the 50th edition from 2015. This is #1375). Apparently one sold for half a million pounds in January. If you paid less, then I would doubt the authenticity. What is the weight? It should be twice the weight of a silver penny (about 1.5 grams, so the gold should be about 3 grams).
Thank you very much for the advice, I have been trying to get in touch with Spink of London to have it properly looked at, but to no success so far. I'm too busy with work during the day to call so relying on email and with covid I'm not sure if anyone is in office. It's a strange one to be honest it looks like a Replica to me but there is still enough lingering doubt to be unsure and hopeful. It owes me nothing as I paid £15 for the coin at an antiques dealer after pestering him for weeks for something medieval. A client who he knows never knew what the coin depicted but assumed it was a King John coin, he decided he had enough keeping it and would sell it to me after having it for a good few years, it was only supposed to be a bit of fun on my part owning something medieval, I would have been happy with a rusty old spur and it would probably be less frightening. I'm terrified to damage the coin.
Thanks for your vote of confidence @lordmarcovan I think this is a very high quality replica of the gold 20p of Henry III. So much of the fine detail is excellent, this is no tourist trinket. I've seen a number of them in different metals, from actual gold or silver to pewter. It's my recollection, very foggy though it may be, that they were made by or for the British Museum back when one of the first examples turned up. While it is unlikely to be an authentic coin, there are only 7 or 8 of them known to exist, its not impossible. Stranger things have happened. There is the story of the Achaemenid gold cup that turned up in a box under the bed of a deceased scrap dealer.
Reminds me of the old man that found a ancient greek gold wreath crown in his attic https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...are gold crown,in the modest Taunton property.
Aha. Thank you. I wondered about that, because, as you say, the fine detail is well done, so it's no mere tourist trinket. Even if it's a high-quality museum replica (which surely it must be?), then I reckon @JosephPine25 did just fine for £15. There's not a lot of downside there.
Well I'm pretty stunned, what a find and for once seems like I have some luck. Will need to make an appointment with the big museum in Edinburgh to see if they have an expert who can take a look to know one way or the other. I knew there was something more to it than met the eye. I spent ages looking for the King John coin online when I came across an article about a coin selling in Texas for £500,000 and the shock of coming across the same coin as well. I can only thank you very much for having a look and your opinion is valued more than words can tell.
