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Message:: [QUOTE="IdesOfMarch01, post: 2969631, member: 39084"]For fairly obvious reasons, I have shown my coins only to a very small number of friends.  I have never had anyone ask "How do you know they're real?"  Maybe this is because of the coins' quality, or maybe it goes without saying that I'm careful enough to avoid buying counterfeits (although one did slip through the NAC auction into my hands a few years ago). For those of you who continue to get this question, I have a genuine interest in hearing your questioners' response to the following: What makes you think this ancient coin isn't genuine?  If you have an opportunity, please ask this question.  I'd love to hear the range of answers. Usually, the strength of one's belief (i.e., that ancient coin must be fake) is inversely proportional to one's knowledge of the topic at hand.  Anyone who asks "How do you know it's genuine?" is almost by definition ignorant.  If he/she had any knowledge of ancient coins, this would never be their first question (unless you showed them an EID MAR denarius).  So my curiosity is real -- What makes you think the coin isn't genuine? -- but what I'm really thinking is "You know absolutely nothing about ancient coins so how can you possibly have an informed skepticism on the authenticity of this coin?"  But phrasing the question in this insulting manner won't elicit a thoughtful response, so if you do ask that question, please use the polite form.[/QUOTE]