Someone just covered this in a coin podcast. I cannot recall which one it was though.............. WOW. They mentioned the opening bid was 36,000. NO wait, it was on a youtube channel I follow.
That page the link takes us to says "Authenticated by the US Mint" That's not true. It was authenticated by the Treasury Dept., but that person, as I recall, belonged to the BEP division, and had nothing to do with the Mint or coinage.
I read that also. "In 1987, Baller sent the coin to the United States Department of Treasury, and agent Richard M. McDrew responded with a letter (along with his coin) that stated, "Enclosed is your United States 1C coin, dated 1959-D, with a wheat reverse. This coin was microscopically examined by our Forensic Services Division in Washington, D.C. and it is our opinion the coin is genuine." What the letter did not mention was the agent who inspected the coin was actually a currency expert, not a coin expert. In the following years, the coin was submitted to different grading companies including PCGS in the hope that one of them would label it as authentic. In all cases, the coin was returned without being graded or deemed authentic. Not to mention, it was even speculated that the coin was produced using a spark erosion process. This is a method used to make fake coins."
No, the spark erosion process is used to make the dies. You use a coin and a flat faced die blank. Mount the coin parallel to the die blank and apply a high voltage pulsating DC across them. A spark will be created from the high point of the coin to the die blank and with each pulse the spark will erode a tiny pit in the die face (the size of the pit probably being a function of the voltage, the higher the voltage the larger the pit and the faster the process but the cruder the final die with less fine detail.). As the process continues the cumulative pits will erode the die face till it parallels the contours of the coin. The die can then be hardened and polished and used to strike fake coins.
Conder101 - a great concise explaination of the spark erosion process. Thanks. (makes it sound like a 'poor man's reverse version of a Janvier Transfer Machine)
I would love to see a SEM ( scanning electron microscope ) photo of the surface are as I would imagine some of the micro-pitting effect would show , even with polishing, but that would be a big money bet for the owner although it might pay off if negative . Jim
Mark Hoffman (convicted felon) who confessed to making this coin, (the secret service says there's no evidence he made it) if he had the dies why wouldn't he make a few coins and not just 1? Unless the dies were damaged after the 1st coin, or unusable. And, unless he destroyed the dies or discarded them, they should have been found/confiscated. If he spent time and money making them, it would be hard for him to just get rid of them. But there aren't any other coins and the dies were not discovered either. A different article states the coin was found in circulation in 1986. If you are going to create this rarity, you are going to try to make money from it and not just release it in to circulation. In the OP it says the coin was discovered by Baller. But in another article it says he paid $1500 for the coin in 1986. Yet another article claims it was sold for $1200 in 1996. (I think that one is wrong.)
The other side of the coin says that he was caught and the secret service has the other examples, I am not sure what to believe.
This is not anything that I read. I am only using common sense that when he was arrested they also seized whatever he was working with and the proceeds. There would not be any benefit to label what was taken at the public level. But if someone could find the subpoena or original articles I would bet it is in there.
Quoted from another site: ( interesting to note that his electroplating equipment is now owned by a former correctional guard, who guarded Hofmann for two years and was given the equipment by one of Hofmann's duped clients, He uses it to make nusmismatic replicas.) Imho, it’s definitely one of the most expensive fake coin in the world.
There's fake 1804 Dollars, Fake Brasher Doubloons. It's one of the best counterfeits, I'll say, but not one of the most expensive, imo.
Yes, I agree someone should create a website/blog/post on the most expensive fake coins. With full details and descriptions. Pictures ect..
It certainly would be useful to the foreign duplicators to get the details and photos. I would personally limit it if possible as there aren't many fakes that would pass as there might be. Jim