I've been collecting coins for a while and I just noticed this site while I was looking for info on indian head pennies... so I decided to join. Here's the scoop: I bought a 1908-s indian head penny on ebay. It looks a little bit too BU. It's like a mirror, but the details are definitely high grade (so not likely polished). When I first saw it in person, I thought it had to be fake. Is there some way to fake these? I've looked at a lot of pennies, but haven't seen one quite like this. It's copper and it's the correct weight. I guess I'm just wondering if anybody on here has any history or knowledge of the existence of fake 1908-s indian head pennies???
There are countless ways to fake this (and pretty much any other) coin. The Chinese counterfeits of this coin are spot on for weight, alloy, etc.
It is if you know what to look for. If you have seen a number of Chinese fakes it is easier to spot them. Most of them have that "look". There are numerous types of fakes out there. Some are complete counterfeits (e.g., Chinese counterfeits). Others are genuine coins that have been altered (e.g., a genuine 1980 IHC with an added mintmark). You would need to take a course on counterfeit detection to become proficient at counterfeit detection. (ANA offers such a course at Summer Seminar.) Otherwise post good photos and let us take a look or take it to a knowledgeable coin dealer.
I will try to get some good photos and put them on here. While I'm at it, I also have a 1928 peace dollar from ebay that looks a little fishy where a mintmark might have once been. I'll take some pictures of that too.
I don't collect silver dollars but I do know that the rim of a 1928 Peace Dollar struck at Philadelphia is different from one struck at San Francisco so if you know what to look for you can tell where the coin was minted by looking at the rims.
