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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;dougsmit, post: 3215468, member: 19463&quot;]I am a bit surprised&nbsp; Sphinx sold a fake but the only way to avoid this is if the two coins are the same specimen.&nbsp; If the Sphinx example was sold first and then polished a bit, it might look just like this one.&nbsp; Otherwise, I see two fakes.</p><p><br /></p><p>I see no reason to doubt the Trajan from the photo but a photo is not a great way to expertise coins.&nbsp; You can often state with no doubt that a coin is fake just from seeing a photo but the converse is not true.&nbsp;&nbsp; For example I can not start to say that the second Hadrian or the Trajan as are genuine from those little photos but I see no reason to doubt them either.&nbsp; I really get tired of pointing out rule One as stated by Joe over on Forvm Ancient Coins:&nbsp; Either know the coin or know the seller.&nbsp; Seeing a photo can go a long way to convincing me that a coin is worth the risk unless that photo came from a source I know better than to trust.&nbsp; That means I would love to know where you got that as photo.&nbsp; I would love the coin if it came from someone I trust but I would not touch it with a ten foot pole if it came from a known fake seller.&nbsp; TIF used to say, &quot;I am not an expert.&quot;&nbsp; Now she is &quot;Always learning.&quot;&nbsp; I find myself forgetting at about the same rate as I am learning so I will take TIF&#039;s quote and expand it a bit: &quot;I am not an expert, never was an expert and never will be an expert.&quot;&nbsp; I&#039;ll go one further.&nbsp; 99% of the self styled experts I have met not only were not experts but were not smart enough to know that &quot;Always learning&quot; is a considerable step better than being an &quot;expert&quot;.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>It was common for emperors, especially toward the beginning of their reigns, to include their predecessor&#039;s name in their coin legends as a way of establishing their own right to power.&nbsp; It is always good to read every letter and assume nothing. We all make mistakes.&nbsp; I am going to a coin show tomorrow.&nbsp; I plan on making mistakes while there and second guessing the decisions I make right or wrong.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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