Emperion Hamburg

The upcoming auction by Emporium Hamburg is, as usual chock full of modern fakes:

https://www.numisbids.com/n.php?p=sale&sid=3792

Lots 546 to 571
Lots 643 to 654
Lots 653 to 665

... are in my view all modern fakes, including fantasy fakes, i.e. coins that didn't even exist in antiquity. They are selling these fakes for years now. I don't understand why they are getting away with it.

(Sorry I misspelled the name in the title)

 

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Ridiculous.

"Julius Nepos' AE coinage is so rare that they show up maybe once per year. Here's 6 in the same auction, several with wrong monograms."

I wouldn't touch anything from their auctions. Even the best sellers will sometimes move a fake, but this is inexcusable, even criminal.

 

it's infuriating. I bought a Galla Placidia from them once (before I knew better) that was, of course, fake. They only gave me a partial refund if I recall, and when pressed gave me a 20 euro credit to my account--which I will of course never use since I will never buy from them again.

They're notorious at this point, but I don't understand how they haven't been stopped. Numisbids, sixbids, etc. should certainly stop hosting their auctions.

 

Their grading is also sub standard. The opposite of Kunker, who grade much along CNG standards. I did get 2 German States AV 5 Marks/ Bayern AV 10 Marks/ Baden that where graded MS=Stempelglanz/ they turned out as MS-65/66....I got lucky.

 

Thanks for the warning!

 

Do the grading standards matter on fake coins?

 

Also lots 522, 525, probably 526 and 530, 531, 533, 534, 535, maybe 536, 537, 538, 542 (fantasy ID as Avitus), 617, and 618. (Some of these might simply be heavily tooled.)

I agree this firm should be prosecuted for fraud. They are far and away the worst offender as far as I'm aware.

I would encourage everyone to write to contact@numisbids.com to complain and demand that they be delisted. Maybe point them to this thread, or a search for "Emporium Hamburg" here on CoinTalk.

 

I agree that lots 546-571 are modern fakes. 653-665 are too. That sort of fabric was never seen until a few counterfeiters starting making silly fakes with that fabric a few years ago. Many have been sold on eBay. I imagine that fakers think that after enough of them sell they will become accepted as genuine, or at least offered as genuine frequently.

I agree. If you know enough to recognize those coins as fakes, please add your weight to the argument.

EDIT: I wrote contact@numisbids.com with this information, but several collectors reporting this would be better. I wonder if anything will happen?

 

I contacted their main numismatist (Dr. Josef Fischer) maybe two or three years ago asking about these fakes. (Yes, they have been selling these rediculous fakes for many years now).

He played stupid, saying "I don't understand why these coins should be fakes", "We got them from a very reliable source", "Reputable numismatists have approved the coins" and so on.

There is obviously something very fishy going on at this firm. I dare to say that this is not an honest mistake, but the criminal attempt to defraud collectors, and Dr. Fischer is either incompetent or part of the racket.

I also informed Numisbids of my concerns.

 

LOL, wow. Thanks, @Tejas for the heads-up.

I have never purchased anything from them before. I am a casual collector, and not an expert. However, I reviewed areas of my interest and was able to immediately decide: "NOPE, these do not look good to me." When in doubt, go without!

Not getting my business.

 

I wonder what Dr. Fischer’s training is in. No ‘numismatist’ should say something is real because it came from ‘a reliable source,’ they should have enough experience to look at something and judge for themselves. Provenance does not equate to authenticity.

 

We have great auction sites for ancients on sixbid....
Kunker
CNG
Roma
Morton & Eden
Gorny & Mosch
Ars Classica

sadly we lost some NFA/ Tkalec AG

 

Just looked at the EH auction. I don’t see why anyone in their right mind would find it interesting. The starting price in the world coin departement is more than normal market value.

It reminds me why I took a long break from coins: I can’t stand the greed.

 

Greed is not the sole propriety of coins. Just look at the Corona Virus antics of people. There are times I think that humans are inherently good, but that gets overshadowed all too often.

 

I saw a picture from a Danish shop yesterday: One bottle of Antibac 4.90 euro. Two bottles: 95 euro. Good old danes. Made me believe in people again.

 

There was a thread on another forum where a member bought one of these coins that was purchased from Hamburg and consigned to another auction house.

Ostensibly a nummus of Aelia Zenonis.

The buyer gave it an acetone bath and the coin's entire surface washed right off. It was a featureless slug wrapped in some sort of fake patina with the details basically drawn on. I suspect that is the case with most of their "rare" late empire AE4s.

 

I think it would be kinda neat.
Would help a non-experienced collector, such as me, making an informed decision:

F : fake
VF : very fake
XF : extra fake
AU : Almost Undescernible

But seriously, it's shocking. Since I am relatively new to collecting I have to (at least partially) rely on the assessment of others. For that reason I make it a point to steer clear of E-bay and other sources that might be infected. Sad to see that some auction houses are in the same racket.

 

Good idea – I saw a similar picture taken in a German supermarket yesterday:


In translation, the sign says:

"Against hoarding! Please take only one pack of toilet paper. Therefore:
1st pack: normal price
2nd pack: normal price + €5
3rd pack: normal price + €10
All additional profit will be donated to the local food bank."

Seems like an appropriate response to the current TP craze.

 

I don't always buy fakes, but when I do, they're MS-70.

 

I learned a lot from following the CFDL; coin forgery discussion list. They’re still active. They may be overly suspicious, but suspicion should be one of a collectors traits anyway.