Browsing through Large Cents on ebay and came across this one, at first glance there is nothing wrong with it but looking closer you can see that it has been whizzed (not a super big deal, it happens a lot with these) Also, possibly some plating blisters but that might be corrosion. But the bigger problem is the way "ONE CENT" is oriented on the back... several of the letters look like they are falling off/crooked... have any of you seen this before? Does it seem to indicate a counterfeit? Appreciate your opinions! https://www.ebay.com/itm/353485235554?_trkparms=aid=1110006&algo=HOMESPLICE.SIM Already 6 bids on it with 4+ days left.
Hey William ! As a Metal Detectorist , I'm thinking this is Environmental Damage . It looks like it spent time in the ground and cleaned up in my opinion .
Cross your eyes...it might look better. Pretty common for this series. PCGS Photograde Online - Estimating Coin Grades Has Never Been Easier
Indeed!! Interesting to see that the periphery devices seem reasonably spaced and level. Probably part of the engraving/trace. But the ONE CENT is hand stamped/placed on the working hub. I think I recall reading about this some time ago. Someone here will know for sure.
I see a lot of raised dots in the fields. They are all over the reverse. The piece is a counterfeit. Using my John Wright book, it appears that this is a copy of the 1829-8 variety. The crooks use a real coin to make the molds they use to produce this stuff. Therefore the lettering will be in the right place. It also has the general look of a Chinese copper, but I know that observation does not count.
Gosh...learned people strongly opining that it's real/genuine/normal...and others learned strongly opining that it's fake/counterfeit. Understand just photos and not in-hand analysis...plus opinions and everybody has one...but what does one trying to learn believe...or how/what to learn from...? Will go with consensus.
I don't see them,my screen is ×10 smaller than yours most likely and I keep my brightness extremely low.
Look at the fields around “ICA” in “AMERICA.” There are many of them there. There are others in the fields, but I saw those first.
I didn’t speculate on authenticity since I’m not overly familiar with this series. I had some doubts though relative to the raised dots/anomalies in the fields (my Henning has those). But corrosion on copper can have a similar effect. Many of these older cents have these problems so you need to investigate. Asking for opinions here helps generate discussion and learning along those lines. Folks who collect and study the series are in the best position to offer a strong opinion. A generalist to the series, like me, can offer more obvious input such as the lettering. All this said, research is essential. And learning from a master is paramount to rapid and improved learning. Spot those experts and take notes on their contributions. Your own level of mastery will improve. Good luck!
I think it is a strong likelihood that some of his others are counterfeits also, Pretty sure it is the same seller that I mentioned in this thread: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/1843-lc-on-ebay-counterfeit.380065/ I don't remember for sure but I think that seller had the same username...
This is the way the Chinese operate now. They copy lower grade, fairly common coins that most collectors would not think are worth their while. Neophyte collectors can’t spot that it’s bad, more advanced people assume that it’s good. They have even gotten stuff like this passed NGC and PCGS. They can scrape off the problems, like raised dots and these coins into “details” holders. @Jack D. Young can tell you about this better than I.