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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;JLASS, post: 7777115, member: 122189&quot;]I’m certainly no expert, but happy to weigh in. I think it would be pretty tough to replicate a slab correctly (that a hobbyist would think of as looking and feeling normal) unless you do it on large scale, though I could think of ways in which empty slabs or Frankenslabs from opened ones could be done, but even if you got that right, made the labels and seals perfectly and made it look like it was properly sealed, I think the database is the key here. As I understand it, NGC retains a database with that coin. There’s a registration (if that’s what you call it?) number on that holder that can be checked against their database, and it’s going to be a surprise if, say, your nice “AU 5/5” Athenian owl tetradrachm looks looks a bit better than a silver version of the slugs that were often left when I tried my hand at cleaning uncleaned Roman coins when I was a child (or if it is anything else for that matter). Of course, this assumes people will bother to check. As to your question re it being necessary, my understanding is that there are a number of experts out there who could probably beat out (in quality of authentification, attribution, etc.) most any TPG (e.g., David Sear). In favor of the TPGs, though, they keep archives of known counterfeits and the like). So, no, not necessary, and plenty of people buy through reputable sales channels they trust and know well without any significant issues and usually at less premium.&nbsp; I do see a market opportunity, though, in that people who are new to ancients, or familiar with other types of coinage (or even if the “general public”) could get a real benefit, and I would think resale outside of hobbyist channels would be made easier for folks if they believe (rightly so) that an reputable agency’s opinion (though not a guaranty, in the case of most ancients, for reasons I actually find mostly understandable) is behind it. Plus, there’s the fact that as long as it’s sealed (likely), you can’t do much damage to that coin even without going to storage methods that seem normal to us but maybe not to everybody…).&nbsp; Just my thoughts on the fly.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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