Hello everyone. I've always been fascinated with coins. You can say that I get it from my mother, since she's been collecting coins since like forever. And yeah I am here today to ask for your assistance. I've recently found this 1796 silver coin. I want to know whether or not this coin is real. Here are some pictures I have taken.
Sorry, a Chinese (or other) fake; one tipoff is the wiry date, especially its uniform thickness, and lack of a "tip" on the upstroke of the 6. Look at the Redbook illustration. And can you weigh the coin to the nearest 0.00 gram?
The first thing to do is to check the weight. A 1796 $1 should weigh 26.96 grams (slightly less if the coin is worn). That weight indicates that—most likely—the coin is silver—which doesn't necessarily means is real. If nearly 27 gm, then you can look at the diagnostics mentioned by Doug444 for further study.
Well I had my doubts anyway, seem to good to be true. I will try to weigh it later on today. Thanks everyone. Really appreciated it.
How much did you pay for it? Most of the "coins" like this on that site are in the $2-$3 range and they say in the ad they are imitations.
I could tell it was fake just by glancing at it. Looks like its to worn for that much shine to be left. Plus the coloration looked wrong.
On a serious note, to anyone ever wondering if their flea market, garage sale, junk box find is real, (and it can happen, it's just rare): 1. Weigh it. It should weigh almost exactly it's minted weight. You can find this on the internet. 2. Look at the style. It should look JUST like pics of real examples, not "kinda sorta". 3. Check edges. If the coin was supposed to have lettered edges and yours is reeded, it's fake. Those three things, in that order, eliminate most fakes. I am not posting this to pick on you op, yours was a far question, I am just posting to help anyone wondering if a coin they find or buy cheaply might be worth thousands. Once you get more knowledgeable many times number 2 answers it without having to weigh, but that takes some in depth coin knowledge, something we understand most people do not have. Hope that helps.