Hey there folks, I have a few older US gold coins that I was hoping to get some input on. I know there are commonly counterfeit (Lebanon) so I am looking for verification. I see some tell-tale spikes near the rim of the 1854 but they don’t match some photos of known fakes. Anyhow, I’d love to know what people think. Thanks!
All of them look legit at first glance. Color is ok. The Second one looks a bit off, but this depends on considerable more wear.
I don't like the 1854; I see the spikes by the dentils on the rev at 3 & 9, and a blob near 2. also, the shape of the numbers in the date looks wrong compared to HA archives. I'll check the others if I have time. On the 1882, I see rev spikes near the dentils, and overall the letters and numbers look mushy. the 5$ looks ok. I recommend having the $3's authenticated.
I have doubts about both of the $3 gold pieces. The relief does not look right on the 1854. It looks too shallow, and I don't like the wire rim or the "extra rim" around the coin. Here is a certified example. The dentiles on the reverse look inconsistent to me on the 1882. They are thick on the lower right and thinner on the upper left. I also don't care for the two colors on the obverse, which almost look like the gold plating has worn off the piece. The $5 gold looks okay to me.
I am with @johnmilton, the 1882 $3 looks totally off, especially the wire rim makes me think it’s a counterfeit. I’d send them all to ICG for authentication. It would be a great learning experience to see what they say.
Do you suggest ICG for authentication because they are the cheapest option or do they specialize in such things. I’m inclined to take them down to the most reputable coin shop in town and get their input / have them test them for purity and then if they are gold but counterfeit, just sell them for melt. Unless, of course, there is some collectible market for such counterfeits.
I said ICG because I believe they have currently much faster turnaround times and also because it would be the cheapest option for authentication. If they turn out to be authentic it would be much easier to sell them. @Insider mentioned there’s a special for CT members. Maybe he can tell us already something from the pictures above…?
Hard to authenticate by images BUT... Both $ look counterfeit. The 1882 is more deceptive than the 1854. The $2 1/2 looks genuine. CT members get a $10 rate and we return coin in 2-3 weeks or faster. Next a new subject: I'm really sad. I was going to post a new thread because of all the "junk" I've seen today from good folks but I'll mention this here. If you are buying "raw" coins from anyone YOU HAD BETTER BITE THE BULLET and have a few checked at a TPGS. It is sad to get 20 coin orders from new customers who want their "gems" slabbed only to find out that just about everything they have been buying for DECADES is a "details" coin!
Um there are two $3 dollar coins and one $5 dollar coin. Seriously what the hell are you babbling about?
@Insider certainly meant “both $3” coins and mixed up the Liberty half eagle with a quarter eagle… no big deal. I think it’s great he chimed in.
Check out the 'I's in United and America on the 1854 $3. Notice both have an identical missing serif!! That would be very highly unlikely on a mint produced coin.
Certainly? My take away is that if he can't get the basic info correct, then any opinion expressed is suspect. I wish he'd put me back on his ignore list.
iontyre, posted: "Check out the 'I's in United and America on the 1854 $3. Notice both have an identical missing serif!! That would be very highly unlikely on a mint produced coin." Good Eye! We noticed this back in the day when some dealers questioned if we had certified a fake. We let them know that the counterfeit die copied that defect from a genuine coin. Unfortunately, I don't remember the date of that $3 (1857?). [EDIT: I just checked. It was 1857 ] What you have shown is that very often (in the old days) the counterfeiters used an identical die (side w/o the date) to produce coins with several different dates. This was one way many C/F's were detected back then. For example, we found fake $2 1/2 gold coins spanning several decades made with the same reverse die! @CoinCorgi, I'm not interested in any of your "takes." That may be the reason I put you on "Ignore" sometime (?) in the past. I'm the real loser here. It's unfortunate for me that for all that time (?) I missed out on all your very informative posts dealing with numismatics. I consider you to be a very important "foil" around here. I wish I had your talent for humor.
