fishy e-bay auction(s)

I am not very knowledgeable about Chinese coins but I want to see if I've learned anything - I do not believe those coins are real for a number of reasons - first of all, they look like the exact same material that the counterfeit US dollars are that come out of that country. Some of those coins have horrible strike and detail and it doesn't look like wear. To me they look like very poor, cast metal rounds that have been artificially toned to resemble antique. Okay - where are the experts to tell me if I have learned anything?

 

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Here is another, I believe. Notice how the name of the seller ends in "668" like the other guy?

Another Fake?

~neuron

p.s. Please let me know if I am annoying anyone by posting these, and if you believe I should stop. Unfortunately I do not yet know enough about coins to be certain that these coins are fake, but my internal fraud sensors keep going off for various reasons. If I were to contact eBay myself with the accusation of a fraudulent coin, I don't think I would know exactly what to say. Until then, my goal is to point them out to others with more experience and eBay prowess than I.

 

Yes, fake. - I have never seen a genuine Morgan dollar that does not have a small notch in the base of the throat.

Take a look at this closed auction by the same seller.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=525&item=3924697906

This one is even more blatant.

 

Where, oh where do I start

In the first place, the Chinese items lack two very important features that differentiate "coins" from "medals" - a date and a denomination. The Japanese use the same characters for numbers as the Chinese, and very similar characters for equivalent monetary denominations. (Early Japanese "Yen", Chinese "Yuan", and Korean "Won", all use the same character.)

China's name for itself includes the character for "middle", which looks like a square or slightly rectangular box with a vertical line extending above and below. Neither that character, nor any numbers, can be found on any of the supposed Chinese silver. It may be a set of medals from a Chinese equivalent of the Franklin Mint.

Both Neuron and Susan have pointed out some good signs.

The ridiculous shipping charge is another tipoff.

On the dollar, look at the location of the "M" in Unum in relation to the hair bun, and you'll have your answer.

 

I reported it to eBay. We had two sellers' auctions pulled today, can someone say "3"?

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=11978&item=3930263641

What do you guy think about this coin??
My Opinion, fake .. same goes for all his other listing.

 

After I reported this seller, I emailed him. Here are the emails in order from the bottom up. This guy is a piece of work!

Dear friend:
But I don't know it is a fake too.I thought it was real coin.It is expensive when it was bought from another seller.
Best regards!
Truly yours,
middle-age668

Susan <Susanlynn9@comcast.net> wrote:
If you are so concerned, why is the auction still running or why haven't you added to the description calling this a copy or replica coin? Misleading auctions such as yours are hurting the on-line coin market, not to mention the bad reflection it causes on a very noble hobby.

-----Original Message-----
From: WH H [mailto:]
Sent: Monday, September 13, 2004 9:25 PM
To: susanlynn9@comcast.net
Subject: Re: Question for item #3929354262 - Antique coin made in 1896

Dear sul9:
I'm sorry that I collected this coin from a friend too.I don't know coin very much.
Best regards!
Truly yours,
middle-age668

Dear middle-age668,
Not only was this coin not minted in 1896, it is a fake. All genuine Morgan Dollars have a notch in the base of the throat. You have been reported to eBay.

 

You may be right, but with only the Krause illustrations to compare, I'm not so ready to condemn his Chinese stuff, which are the only ones I feel at all comfortable about trying to authenticate. He has a couple of copper patterns for 1912-14 silver dollars that actually look pretty good.

Certainly he's selling stuff that is heavily counterfeited, and with some unrealistically low no reserve opening bids.

 

Hey Susan,

Are you becoming a masked crusader?

 

Nah! Just crazy and obsessed.

 

Sweet- we should think up a super-heroine name for you...

The Lone Numismatist?

Noble Numismatist?

Scam-Slamming Susan?

Super Susie?

lol

~neuron

p.s. Seriously, though- nice work!

 

even the amount of coins that are admitting to being fake in the category not for replicas is getting out of hand

 

I know, but at least the information is there and can be read. Personally, I think either the word "COPY" or "REPLICA" needs be required in the title. No one who is selling a replica as such should have a problem with that. It's only the ones who are trying to scam that would fight it. I just reported two more this morning. Hope this AM goes like yesterday: 2 out of 3 dealers with their auctions pulled is mighty nice odds.

Besides, I'd like for my 300th post to be: "They pulled the auction!"

 

The problem is that the sellers accurately describing these as fakes are getting pulled. The scams that aren't identifying these as fakes seem to never be pulled, regardless of all the reports we send up.

 

Now, Ziggy, we got results yesterday. And I'm still hoping to be a part of the CCW. I think some of the members of that group may be scared to take aggressive action. Do you think if I'm on that committee that I'll be scared? I think we might be looking at some significant changes coming in the next 6 months (if I have anything to say about it!)

Shoot, I wanted to save my 300th post for "They pulled the auction"!