I'd like to start by making it clear I know absolutely nothing about coins, let alone ancient coins. I happened to trade some firearms for silver bullion and rounds recently and so I had searched "silver coins" on Facebook Marketplace out of sheer curiosity, which I'm assuming is what brought up the ad of "Old coins" on my feed. I thought they looked kind of cool, and after about a minute and a half of Google I was convinced that if even one of the five checked out I would make back the $113 dollars after shipping and tax. I should mention I also spent a few minutes perusing the seller's profile looking for the obvious warning signs (recently made profile, few friends, other items for sale with suspect pricing, etc.), before hitting the "Buy Now". The other 24 people who saved the ad will now have to wonder the rest of their lives if they dodged a bullet or missed out on the deal of a lifetime. At any rate, after some more Google-fu I decided that pending what you all have to say, David Sears would be my best bet in authenticating as some of them appear eastern and I understand NGC only does western coins? This is of course assuming they actually show up, are actually what was pictured, and aren't obviously fake. I've included the only picture of the coins I have for you all to speculate on while we wait to see how this pans out. All of this aside, I'm now curious to hear other's stories of sketchy old coin purchases. Were they "bank" or "bust"? How mad did your significant other get? What lesson did you learn? Thanks for the input!
Sorry to be the one to tell you, not one of those coins appears to be worth more than $15 (they look more like $5 or less), led alone the $50 it costs to have Sear take a look at them. The only one that could have a little (NOT the $113) is the denarius. But it looks very suspect. And double so with the awful picture. I would recommend seeing if you can get a refund. Maybe take a look at https://www.vcoins.com/en/Default.aspx All reputable sellers and a lifetime promise of anything you buy from them turns out fake.
Sounds like a "bust"! That's not surprising. So what is each coin then? I'm assuming the top is the potential denarius? Thanks for the info Ryro.
The Bohemond VII gros from the County of Tripoli (middle coin on the left) would be quite valuable if it were real. Unfortunately, it very much looks like this well-known forgery. The two medieval Islamic dirhams on the bottom of your picture might well be authentic. They aren't worth a lot in any case. I'm not an expert on these and it's hard to identify them without seeing both sides of the coins, but the one on the left looks like an Abbasid dirham to me. The one on the right might be Mamluk, but I'm not sure. I can't say anything about the Chinese cash coin (top right row). The coin on the top left is or imitates a Roman silver denarius from the reign of emperor Domitian. It is impossible to determine whether it is real or not from your picture.
A couple Islamic coins, the one with the hole is Chinese, a sketchy looking medieval and there isn't a emperor Demarcus other than Looks like a modern reproduction Domitian. Edit* @Orielensis best me to it and did it better
The Chinese coin (with center hole) is of the "Ban Liang" type (Hartill 7), these were issued (with many variations) from around 350 BC to 119 BC. Distinguishing the various types involves careful measurement of weight and diameter as well as style. The coin pictured has a strong raised rim around the edges, which does seem odd for the series; that may be a known variety, but I don't see it listed in Hartill. The coin has also been hideously over cleaned (assuming it is genuinely ancient and not a modern casting.) Bottom left coin looks like a silver dirham of the Abbasid caliphate (agree with @Orielensis ) but can't see well enough to ID more precisely. I don't see anything about that coin to make me suspicious. The other Islamic might be Mamluk, but part of my brain is saying Ilkhan; either way, could be very common unless I'm missing a rare variety, and nothing about it screams "fake" to me.
The smaller Islamic dirham is Seljuqs of Rum, Kayqubad bin Kaykhusraw, 1220-1237. I agree that the other Islamic coin is likely 'Abbasid but the important information is on the other side. Both appear to be genuine and in reasonable condition.
Well I messaged the seller about getting a picture of the other side of the coins. I have the option to cancel the order before it ships, and judging from the seller's communication (or lack thereof) I might have to just because the coins don't get sent, probable lack of value aside.
Don't feel bad, we've all made similar mistakes before when we were starting out. If you are interested in ancient coins stick around and read some threads here. It's pretty amazing that you can get ancient coins from many different empires in reasonable condition for less than $50. Vcoins.com is a good place to start and there's been threads on many of other sellers of authentic ancients posted here before. John
The funny thing is, the "gros" is kind of what I expected of them all--a coin that might be worth a few hundred dollars if real but had a much higher probability of being counterfeit. As luck would have it, that was the one coin I spent a minute and a half trying to figure out before concluding I would go ahead with it, because similar looking coins appeared to be of decent value. As stupid as it may sound, I'll go ahead with the deal provided the seller actually ships them! But yes I am surprised at how reasonably ancient coins can be had. I'm also impressed by the knowledge and warmth of the community.
Don't let this transaction shoo you away from ancient coins. Imagine holding a coin that you know someone from (for example) 1st century Rome held, too...actually, many people held. Many ancient coins can be had for very little money, and they're like little time machines that take you back to the common person in an ancient era. Stick around, read a bit, find a period of time that grabs your interest, and find yourself a keeper!
You can get some very reasonably priced coins from eBay and Facebook groups. 90% of my purchases are from these venues, now that cashed-up COVID era "investors" (who are afflicted with zero knowledge and irrational exuberance) are infesting the major auction houses and driving up prices - with the result that a slabbed Edward I penny can sell for a thousand dollars. BUT you really need to know what you're doing on eBay/Facebook. If you're not confident, Coin Talk is a great place to go for free pre-purchase advice. There are also Facebook forums that specialise in "real or fake" appraisals. We really should publish a list of reliable Facebook buy/sell groups. Many of them have well known and trusted dealers. And don't worry, i bought a fake Julius Nepos nummus on eBay a few years ago - we all make these mistakes.
Aww Facebook or the seller canceled my order! I know some of you feel that its probably for the best, but I really wanted to know what the coins ended up being. The risk was most of the fun!
