1873 silver Japanese one Yen

An authenticated genuine pattern's value would be somewhere north of $50,000 - possibly very far north.

As rare as patterns are, the basic first step in valuation is authentication.

Is the coin magnetic? - If so, it's a worthless fake.

Is the weight 416 grains (26.96g)? - If not, it's a worthless fake.

Is the diameter 38.6mm? - If not, it's a worthless fake.

Are the calligraphy and design elements correct? - If not, it's a worthless fake.

Has it passed all of the above tests? - If so, the statistical probability is that it's a worthless fake, but it needs to be seen in hand by a real expert for certainty.

That "film of copper" doesn't bode well for its fate IMHO.

 

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Thanks
who would the "best" real expert on such things?

 

Bizarre - never seen anything like it before.

I suppose undocumented pattern coin can happen for instance trial coins made in Birmingham mint. If the above documentation is correct, I still don't like the "coin" shown because of the crudeness of the details especially with the Western dating.

Now this is interesting because off the top of my memory, I don't remember any coins were dated with Western dating until the 1964 Olympic coins. I can be very wrong on that one. Even with the trade dollar coins, they were still dated with the Emperor years. Might have to pick up that book some day.

 

Hi all,
I know this is a little bit of an old topic but I was just offered this Japanese coin. The guy claims it is a rare Japanese Silver Yen. Can the experts here look at this and tell me what is this and is it worth anything?
I know nothing about asian coins. Thanks all

 

Well, it's so rare that not even the Japanese Mint has an example. The problem is, that the Chinese fantasy meisters have minted those, but the Japan Mint didn't.

It's dated Meiji 4 (1871), but the first year of that design was Meiji 7 (1874). Real yen coins of that design are 38.6mm, 26.96g of .900 silver, so of course they are non-magnetic. Chances are very high that yours would be attracted to a magnet.

The light reflection on your photo of the obverse makes it impossible to tell how good a job the counterfeiter did on the calligaraphy. The reverse photo has some characteristics of a struck coin - relatively sharp edges to the design elements - and some characteristics of a cast coin - the grainy surface - so an in-hand examination needs to be made to determine whether it is cast or struck.

BTW it is much better form to start a new thread rather than reviving an old one to add a new subject.

 

Hi
still waiting for someone to give me the names of a real expert in this feild
thanks for your help

 

Do you want the name and address of someone in Japan? All the real experts I know are over there.

 

Thanks
that would be great

 

Easy up tiger
i first posted when i joined and have been helped by
some nice and accommodating people along the way
read the full thread and you may be enlightened as to what is happening here

 

My favorite shop go-to shop in Tokyo is World Coins Japan, www.coins.co.jp (Japanese language site), email is info@coins.co.jp and they do read English. If they can't help you they can refer you to someone who can. Good luck.

 

Neither does Google or any of three other search engines I used.

Four of the top five sites found by Google are this thread (#2) and three other places you have posted inquiries about your coin.

On the other hand, searching for "Eliasberg Collection" (a genuinely famous collection) brings up thousands of hits

 

Hi guys,

I have a one yen coin which belongs to meiji era year 2. I really appreciate your helpful comments about my coin. could anyone here tell me whether it's fake or an original one?

I'm wondering if anyone could help me.

Thank you so much.

 

That's a fantasy piece. The first Meiji era one yen silver coin was issued in 1870 (M3), and it bore no Western alphabet letters-- only Japanese characters.

 

I didn't get your point. what do you mean? is it a fake or something like that?

 

In other words, a fantasy piece is a "coin" that often resembles a genuine coin, but its date and/or other features are wrong. Your coin is fake, because no genuine one-yen silver coin was minted in Japan in 1869 (Meiji 2), and the first one-yen coin that was minted, one year later, only had Japanese script. The Western alphabet script was added to the coin later.

 

Do anyone knows what is the value of this Meiji 1873 coin?

 

Any idea are the attach Meiji 1873 coins real or fake?

 

I'm not a Japanese coin expert but I am a serious coin collector, I do have the 1887 version of the same coin and have spent considerable time researching the history and have come across some very good sites. I would not include Wikipedia as a professional site but I happened across them by accident today and they do clearly confirm that the 1873 version of the coin in question was minted and have noted that it is "rare". That should encourage you to not do anything rash with your coin. There are several other "professional" sites that have experience with Japanese coins and several books on the subject that provide a lot of detail regarding the provision of these coins by Japan for use in other Asian countries such as Taiwan over the Meiji period. Japan may well have altered them for this purpose. My final point to the owner of the coin is to not give it away or sell it until you have absolutely confirmed it's potential value even if that takes a considerable amount of time. It seems to me one or two of the participants on this thread have been way too eager to toss it off as a fake.

 

Pictures didn't come through and I would advise you to start your own thread.